The Hijacking of the Oromo Political Breakthrough of 2018
Posted: 11 Jun 2026, 18:42
The Hijacking of the Oromo Political Breakthrough of 2018
The political transition of 2018 was widely perceived by many Oromo as a historic victory achieved through decades of resistance and, most immediately, through the sacrifices of the Qérrô movement. It was a moment that inspired genuine hope for liberation, equality, and the restoration of Oromo political and cultural dignity within the Ethiopian state. Regrettably, that moment has since been reversed, undermined, and, in many respects, appropriated by the current federal leadership under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the Oromia regional administration led by Shimelis Abdissa.
These leaders, rather than advancing Oromo national aspirations, have systematically marginalized authentic Oromo nationalist voices while preserving the longstanding dominance of Amharic language and Amhara-centered political culture (Amaranet). As a result, Afan Oromo (Oromic) and Oromummaa continue to be subordinated within the federal system. The promise of 2018 has thus faded, returning the Oromo people to a familiar position of political disappointment and structural inequality.
Despite their demographic majority, Oromo citizens remain effectively second-class participants in federal governance. Proficiency in Amharic remains a prerequisite for meaningful participation in federal institutions and for social recognition as “modern” or “national” actors. This linguistic hierarchy perpetuates cultural assimilation, encouraging even Oromo youth to internalize Amharic norms as symbols of advancement. The persistence of this system reflects the political choices of the current leadership, which has opted to preserve the existing order rather than challenge it.
Historically, the Oromo liberation struggle has achieved several significant milestones under successive regimes:
- Under the Derg, Oromo farmers regained land expropriated by feudal elites.
- During the TPLF-led EPRDF era, Afan Oromo was institutionalized as the working language of Oromia.
- Under the Prosperity Party administration, limited progress was made toward challenging Amharic dominance within the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
Yet the most decisive and unresolved objective remains the elevation of Afan Oromo to the status of a primary federal working language. This reform would represent a structural rebalancing of power within the Ethiopian state. To date, neither Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed nor President Shimelis Abdissa has demonstrated the political resolve required to implement such a transformation. Until that occurs, their contributions to Oromo liberation remain limited and incomplete.
Meanwhile, internal divisions within the ruling Prosperity Party have become increasingly visible. Competing factions—one associated with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and another aligned with Shimelis Abdissa—have entered into open political conflict. While both factions previously upheld the dominance of Amharic and opposed Oromummaa, each now seeks Oromo popular support amid their rivalry. Whether this competition will produce meaningful concessions—such as advancing Afan Oromo at the federal level—remains uncertain. At present, the faction led by Shimelis Abdissa appears marginally more responsive to Oromo linguistic and cultural demands.
A deeper challenge, however, lies in the absence of a coherent and optimal Oromo political strategy. Existing proposals fall short of addressing the Oromo condition as a dominated majority:
- The Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) advocates a multinational federation that primarily benefits minority groups concentrated at the political center.
- The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) emphasizes independence, a model more applicable to peripheral minorities.
Neither framework adequately reflects the reality that the Oromo are a majority population dispersed across the country, including the political center itself. The Oromo are neither a marginalized peripheral minority nor a minority at the center; they are a majority whose political, cultural, and linguistic dominance has been systematically denied.
The optimal solution, therefore, is neither secession nor passive federal accommodation. It is the democratic takeover and transformation of the Ethiopian state itself. This would entail reconstituting the state as a genuine union—provisionally termed Oropia—with Afan Oromo as the primary federal working language. Within such a framework, other nations and nationalities would retain the right to self-determination, whether through autonomy, federation, or independence.
Past Oromo leadership strategies have not fully captured this necessity:
- Alignment with hegemonic elites,
- Support for centralized unitarism,
- Calls for outright independence,
- Referendum-based ambiguity, or
. Endorsement of the existing union without structural reform
have all failed to address the fundamental contradiction of Oromo majority marginalization.
Globally, most dominated peoples fall into identifiable categories—externally colonized nations, peripheral minorities, minorities at the center, or dominant cultures controlled by internal elites. The Oromo case is exceptional: a numerically dominant nation whose political center, language, and cultural institutions remain controlled by others. No durable solution can emerge without reclaiming Finfinne as a genuinely Oromo-inclusive political capital and restructuring the federal state accordingly.
True liberation will require decisive action: reforming federal institutions, redefining national symbols, elevating Afan Oromo, and renaming the state if necessary. Only then can the Oromo exercise their historical responsibility—not to dominate others, but to establish a just union in which all nations freely determine their futures.
Until leaders with the courage and conviction to undertake this task emerge, the aspirations of 2018 will remain unfulfilled. The question, therefore, is not whether change is necessary, but who will rise to carry out this historic responsibility.
Galatôma.
Read more: https://orompia.wordpress.com/2023/02/0 ... ox-church/
The political transition of 2018 was widely perceived by many Oromo as a historic victory achieved through decades of resistance and, most immediately, through the sacrifices of the Qérrô movement. It was a moment that inspired genuine hope for liberation, equality, and the restoration of Oromo political and cultural dignity within the Ethiopian state. Regrettably, that moment has since been reversed, undermined, and, in many respects, appropriated by the current federal leadership under Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the Oromia regional administration led by Shimelis Abdissa.
These leaders, rather than advancing Oromo national aspirations, have systematically marginalized authentic Oromo nationalist voices while preserving the longstanding dominance of Amharic language and Amhara-centered political culture (Amaranet). As a result, Afan Oromo (Oromic) and Oromummaa continue to be subordinated within the federal system. The promise of 2018 has thus faded, returning the Oromo people to a familiar position of political disappointment and structural inequality.
Despite their demographic majority, Oromo citizens remain effectively second-class participants in federal governance. Proficiency in Amharic remains a prerequisite for meaningful participation in federal institutions and for social recognition as “modern” or “national” actors. This linguistic hierarchy perpetuates cultural assimilation, encouraging even Oromo youth to internalize Amharic norms as symbols of advancement. The persistence of this system reflects the political choices of the current leadership, which has opted to preserve the existing order rather than challenge it.
Historically, the Oromo liberation struggle has achieved several significant milestones under successive regimes:
- Under the Derg, Oromo farmers regained land expropriated by feudal elites.
- During the TPLF-led EPRDF era, Afan Oromo was institutionalized as the working language of Oromia.
- Under the Prosperity Party administration, limited progress was made toward challenging Amharic dominance within the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.
Yet the most decisive and unresolved objective remains the elevation of Afan Oromo to the status of a primary federal working language. This reform would represent a structural rebalancing of power within the Ethiopian state. To date, neither Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed nor President Shimelis Abdissa has demonstrated the political resolve required to implement such a transformation. Until that occurs, their contributions to Oromo liberation remain limited and incomplete.
Meanwhile, internal divisions within the ruling Prosperity Party have become increasingly visible. Competing factions—one associated with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and another aligned with Shimelis Abdissa—have entered into open political conflict. While both factions previously upheld the dominance of Amharic and opposed Oromummaa, each now seeks Oromo popular support amid their rivalry. Whether this competition will produce meaningful concessions—such as advancing Afan Oromo at the federal level—remains uncertain. At present, the faction led by Shimelis Abdissa appears marginally more responsive to Oromo linguistic and cultural demands.
A deeper challenge, however, lies in the absence of a coherent and optimal Oromo political strategy. Existing proposals fall short of addressing the Oromo condition as a dominated majority:
- The Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) advocates a multinational federation that primarily benefits minority groups concentrated at the political center.
- The Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) emphasizes independence, a model more applicable to peripheral minorities.
Neither framework adequately reflects the reality that the Oromo are a majority population dispersed across the country, including the political center itself. The Oromo are neither a marginalized peripheral minority nor a minority at the center; they are a majority whose political, cultural, and linguistic dominance has been systematically denied.
The optimal solution, therefore, is neither secession nor passive federal accommodation. It is the democratic takeover and transformation of the Ethiopian state itself. This would entail reconstituting the state as a genuine union—provisionally termed Oropia—with Afan Oromo as the primary federal working language. Within such a framework, other nations and nationalities would retain the right to self-determination, whether through autonomy, federation, or independence.
Past Oromo leadership strategies have not fully captured this necessity:
- Alignment with hegemonic elites,
- Support for centralized unitarism,
- Calls for outright independence,
- Referendum-based ambiguity, or
. Endorsement of the existing union without structural reform
have all failed to address the fundamental contradiction of Oromo majority marginalization.
Globally, most dominated peoples fall into identifiable categories—externally colonized nations, peripheral minorities, minorities at the center, or dominant cultures controlled by internal elites. The Oromo case is exceptional: a numerically dominant nation whose political center, language, and cultural institutions remain controlled by others. No durable solution can emerge without reclaiming Finfinne as a genuinely Oromo-inclusive political capital and restructuring the federal state accordingly.
True liberation will require decisive action: reforming federal institutions, redefining national symbols, elevating Afan Oromo, and renaming the state if necessary. Only then can the Oromo exercise their historical responsibility—not to dominate others, but to establish a just union in which all nations freely determine their futures.
Until leaders with the courage and conviction to undertake this task emerge, the aspirations of 2018 will remain unfulfilled. The question, therefore, is not whether change is necessary, but who will rise to carry out this historic responsibility.
Galatôma.
Read more: https://orompia.wordpress.com/2023/02/0 ... ox-church/