When Olympic Ethiopian silver medalist Feyisa Lilesa crossed the finish line at the Rio Games, he crossed his wrists above his head as if handcuffed. The symbol became internationally recognizable, but it is now banned in his country.
Since Lilesa’s picture in August was seen round the world, much has happened in Ethiopia. A stampede at a religious festival killed more than 50 people on Oct. 2. That was blamed on police firing tear gas at anti-government protesters. As a result, a six-month state of emergency was declared. Most recently, the Ethiopian authorities detained more than 2,600 people under the state of emergency.
Lilesa’s gesture was a symbol of solidarity with the Oromo people, the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia. They have a long-standing grievance about the fact that despite this, they have never controlled the political leadership. The towns in the region of the Oromo, along with the Amhara, have waged a nearly year-long protest against a government largely made up of minority Tigrayans. In its 25 years in power the ruling coalition, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), can point to economic development and improved health and education, especially for the rural poor. But it has had trouble vis-à-vis the transition from a centralized, revolutionary movement to a more open, democratic government. To cite one example, in last year’s general election, every seat was won by either a member of the governing EPRDF coalition or one of the party’s allies. The government has recently proposed reforms to the electoral system so that opposition politicians have a better chance of being elected.
That step might not end the protests which are not new. For the past five years Ethiopia has been hit by protests, and at least 500 people have died in clashes with security forces over the last 11 months. The tension mostly concerns the Oromo and Amhara, two of the country’s largest ethnic groups who have been demonstrating against sustained marginalization. There are also Muslims unhappy at the imposition of government-approved leaders, farmers displaced to make way for commercial agriculture, and Amhara communities opposed at their inclusion in Tigre rather than the Amhara region.
Above all, the source of the unrest is the Oromia region. Not only are the Oromo numerous, their region is large and more productive than the densely populated highlands. It produces a lot of Ethiopia’s food, and most of its coffee, the biggest export earner. The sprawling region encircles Addis Ababa, controlling transport routes in and out of the city.
In the last few months, groups which were previously separate are now united. In particular, Amhara and Oromo opposition have come together, with both adopting the latest handcuffed opposition symbol.
The government says the state of emergency was put in place to prevent further loss of life and property, but it could also serve as a way to limit criticism. While Ethiopia’s constitution allows freedom of speech and association, anti-terrorism laws have been used against those who have tried to use those freedoms to criticize the government.
The overreaction of the security forces has also turned protests that might have gone largely unnoticed into a major catastrophe, inflaming anger in Ethiopia itself and causing growing concern abroad. Every time protests are badly handled they create more grievances, and generate more anger and more demonstrations.
For a government so worried about loss of control, these protests are becoming a serious threat.
