Field and river

20th International Conference of Ethiopian Studies (ICES20)
Mekelle University, Ethiopia

"Regional and Global Ethiopia - Interconnections and Identities"
1-5 October, 2018

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CLASHING VALUES, ARMED CONFLICT IN HAMAR WOREDA: THE 2014/15 CONFLICT AND ITS AFTERMATH [Abstract ID: 0703-17]

YOHANNES Yitbarek Ejigu, PhD Candidate at the Max Planck Institute for social Anthropology

In Hamar Woreda, Southern Ethiopia that was until recently rather detached from the center, a growing tension between the local authorities and the community escalated into a serious armed conflict in 2014/15. The underlying causes included the enforcement of female education, the conservation schemes in the nearby Mago National Park as well as large-scale agricultural investment in the wider area. All these are having an impact on the local way of agro-pastoral life of the Hamar people.This paper looks at conflicts between the Hamar people and the local government within the general context of the constitutional recognition of cultures and traditions that are consistent with fundamental rights, human dignity, and democratic norms and ideals. Focusing on the causes of the conflicts, the reasons for their escalation in 2014/15, as well as efforts made by both sides to resolve it, the paper explores the value positions, perspectives and strategies of local government agents and the Hamar people. More specifically, the paper examines 1) the contested meanings of cultural values of the Hamar, 2) the maneuvers of the local government in using and rejecting customary institutions in their efforts to settle the conflict, and 3) the local people’s approaches to resolving the problem and defending their interests. The data is based on mostly qualitative research collected during extensive fieldwork in Hamar Woreda in 2016 and 2017.