On Wednesday, Ethiopia said its military had killed three senior members of Tigrays former ruling party, the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front, including Seyoum Mesfin, a former foreign minister of Ethiopia. But the region is also home to minority Amharas, Oromos, Tigrayans and Agaws a source of escalating tension. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Assosa Zone makes less than half of constituencies, which does not guarantee the establishment of a regional government. Benishangul Gumuz has an estimated area of 51,000 square kilometers and is located in the north-western part of Ethiopia. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. January 6, 2021, 4:10 AM On Dec. 22, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed visited the vast lowland territory of Metekel in Ethiopia's far western region of Benishangul-Gumuz, the so-called. UNHCR says most of the asylum seekers who fled ethnic violence in Benishangul-Gumuz region have been living among Sudanese host communities. [8] Values for other reported common indicators of the standard of living for Benishangul-Gumuz as of 2005[update] include the following: 19.1% of the inhabitants fall into the lowest wealth quintile; adult literacy for men is 47.4% and for women 23.2%; and the regional infant mortality rate is 84 infant deaths per 1,000 live births, which is greater than the nationwide average of 77; at least half of these deaths occurred in the infants first month of life. Full Release https://t.co/366QlfLowm@Refugees pic.twitter.com/3gdeWPfObw. "The sea is rising in the Mediterranean Sea, and the land is sinking in the Nile Delta. BDP also expressed frustration over the regional governments willingness to share power with militias while imprisoning and persecuting legally organized political parties in the region. The access situation in Benishangul-Gumuz and parts of western Oromia has evolved since OCHA's map from late January - some improvements but still large areas "hard-to-reach" due to the security situation & related restrictions. Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights. Days later, the national army regained control of the town, but the event laid bare a deteriorated security apparatus, leaving many civilians with the impression that they have little hope for proper protection. But a day later, armed men attacked a village, leaving at least 100 people dead, according to human rights groups. As a result, the militias are strengthening their holdings and bargaining power. Rashid Abdi on Twitter: "Until yesterday, 3,364 people from 62 The dust of the violence in Metekel has not yet settled and threatens to spread into neighboring zones, raising fears of escalating conflict. It even considers that it is the only country entitled to the Nile waters, which Egypt totally rejects. The river provides nearly all Egyptians with drinking water. Fighters from Amhara, however, have been accused by witnesses of carrying out atrocities along with Ethiopian and Eritrean forces in the Tigray conflict. Egypts Al-Bawaba News, which is close to the state, reported in an April 23 article that a civil war is unfolding in Ethiopia due to the poor economic and social conditions in the country and its citizens being marginalized and isolated. On 2 April, unnamed Gumuz militias claimed control of the administrative center of Sedal Wereda in Kamashi, very close to the construction site of the GERD. Egypt is not the only country that depends on the river -- it's shared by 11 African countries. The most obscure of Ethiopia's regions, practically never visited by tourists, is Benishangul-Gumuz, which runs for about 2,000km along the Sudanese border to the east of Amhara, but is on average no more than 200km. Finally, the regional government felt obliged to engage in a dialogue and negotiation with the Gumuz militia. Putting an immediate and lasting end to violence is the first step towards assessing and addressing the heavy impact of unconstrained fighting. Villages have been razed to the ground. The road has a 365-meter bridge that crosses the Abay. Benishangul - ethiodemographyandhealth.org 1975. Twelve people were killed. For the umpteenth time, we call on the federal and regional authorities to scale up security in Metekel, he said, referring to the district of Benishangul-Gumuz where the killings took place. PDF Challenges and Boons of Refugee on the Host Communities - ResearchGate Despite some progress, the humanitarian response remains drastically inadequate compared to the sheer magnitude of needs across the region, the UNs Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OHCA) said in a report on Saturday. The town is named after the highest point in the Asosa Zone of the Benishangul-Gumuz Region, Mount Bambasi. Dozens Die in Ethnic Massacre in Troubled Ethiopian Region, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/13/world/africa/ethiopia-ethnic-killings.html. Over 80 killed in attack in Ethiopian border region with Sudan - state The claim stems from the belief that Guba was gifted to Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia (1889-1913) by Khalifa Abdullahi, a Sudanese Mahdist leader, in 1897. [23], (This list is based on information from Worldstatesmen.org, John Young,[24] and the Ethiopian News Agency website[25]). It was not until the mid-20th century that Berta also settled in the lowlands, as slave hunts and armed conflict had ended. Sister exchange marriage. 1989. Rural population was 424,432, while the urban population was 36,027. Awadi denied any Egyptian involvement in the recent violence in the Benishangul-Gumuz region. Similarly, Ethiopian asylum seekers have been crossing from the Benishangul-Gumuz region into Sudan's Blue Nile State. Gumuz people - Wikipedia Intimate in-person access to policy and business VIPs. Awadi noted that the Ethiopian society is disintegrated, as sporadic demonstrations occasionally erupt in the country, due to the prime ministers policies of marginalization and persecution of several social groups. It said it was working with local authorities in the Blue Nile province to respond to the humanitarian needs of the newly arrived, many of whom have arrived in hard-to-reach places along the border. Its main inhabitants are the Gumuz, Oromo, Awi, Amhara, and Shinasha communities. Unseth, Peter. The question of Eritrean troops is extremely sensitive, so we dont get the clear answer about the whereabouts or magnitude of the Eritrean troops, he said. But over the next two years, experts say Egyptians could approach a state of "absolute" water scarcity. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Control of the area must be regained. But it also unleashed simmering ethnic tensions. Instead, cross-border trade has increased, away from official pathways. Clashes had occasionally erupted in the past in the region that is home to various ethnic groups, including Gumuz, Agaws and Shinasas and the Amhara. Still, the killings should have been condemned in the strongest terms possible, and the agreement should have included an attempt to do so. 7,000 seek Sudan asylum after fleeing western Ethiopia violence The ethnic groups include the Berta (25.41%), Amhara (21.69%), Gumuz (20.88%), Oromo (13.55%), Shinasha (7.73%) and Agaw-Awi (4.22%). Opposition political parties, like the Boro Democratic Party (BDP), rejected the 18 May agreement between the regional government and the leaders of the militias, which included power-sharing elements, as illegitimaterecalling that the only way to assume power should be through an election. The Gumuz enjoyed administrative rights over Metekkel zone. Insecurity has prevented people from accessing their land for next years farming. Previously one had to travel through Wollega and Gojjam in the neighboring regions of Oromia and Amhara, a distance of 1,250 kilometers, but it is now around 378 kilometers on the new road and bridge. The murky politics behind the Metekel massacres, Benishangul conflict spurred by investment, land titling, rumors, Although the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE). The militias want to protect the Gumuzs 30-year rule of the region. Yet the Ethiopian side rejected them all, he added. In the past decade the number of refugees in eastern Africa has nearly tripled, from1.82 million in 2012 to almost five million todayincluding 300,000 new refugees last year alone. The Gumuz have traditionally been grouped with other Nilotic peoples living along the Sudanese-Ethiopian border under the collective name Shanqella (Pankhurst 1977). Eighteen years later, marginalisation, ethnic exclusion, poor governance and the absence of workable democratic mechanisms have significantly affected community relations. [14], Little is known about its history before the 19th century. 1939-40. UNHCR, COR and partners are also responding to their needs. 1234 Sudan Streat Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The cocktail of factors driving the worsening trend in food security for the whole of eastern Africa, will leave 7.74 million people (62.7 per cent of the population) across the country, facing IPC Phase 3 levels, or worse, of acute food insecurity during the lean season between April and July, according to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis. Muferiat Kemal, Ethiopias minister of peace, now says that the area has become a juncture for different interest groups.. Trading in slaves in Bela-Shangul and Gumuz, Ethiopia: border enclaves in history, 1897-1938. As it used to be among the Sudanese Uduk, marriage is through sister exchange. What are the policies of neigbouring states toward the BSG region? 1975. Minorities also deserve protection from tyrannical forms of majority ruleincluding forms that do not consider equal protection of minorities as essential, or which go so far as to engage in the forced assimilation and active annihilation of minority groups. The area comprising Benishangul-Gumuz formally became part of Ethiopia under the terms of a Nile-focused 1902 treaty signed by Emperor Menelik II with Great Britain, which ruled Sudan. Already, reports indicate the presence of training operations for militias in the Ethiopia-Sudan border. Ethiopias former ruling coalition, the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front. [14][20], Resistance to the Mengistu regime here came mainly from the Berta. Haavisto also warned that Sudan is struggling to cope with the influx of people fleeing the fighting and said it risked creating a major refugee crisis. Lauren Blanchard on Twitter: "The access situation in Benishangul-Gumuz Their claim to the entire Metekkel zone has fuelled Gumuz militia attacks on non-Gumuz residents. Independent, trusted coverage of the Middle East, Ethiopian PM accuses Egypt, Sudan of backing unrest in western region. Afari said, I do not rule out any Egyptian and Sudanese efforts to use the rebels in Ethiopia as a pressure card and to provide them with weapons, in light of the difficult choice to head to a direct war and in an attempt to deter Ethiopia from taking unilateral actions., Samir Ghattas, a former Egyptian member of parliament and head of the Middle East Forum for Strategic Studies, told Al-Monitor, Egypt is in a difficult positionas Ethiopia insists on the second filling of the GERD, and given the difficulty to go into a direct war out of fear of international reactions. Attempts by the governments of Sudan and Ethiopia to increase control over the circulation of artisanal gold in their borderland regions have largely failed. All the cooking and brewing is carried out in earthen pots, which are made by women. World Report 2021: Ethiopia | Human Rights Watch [13], According to Negasso Gidada, Oromo penetration into the region began in the mid-18th century. Comparative Komuz grammar. Weekly A.I. Simmoons, Frederick. In the absence of justice, peace cannot prevail. Sudans recent claim to Metekkel and particularly to Guba district has shocked the region. Consideration must be given to minority rights in order to reconcile important democratic principles with realities on the ground. Haavisto, who met Abiy during his visit to Addis Ababa this month as part of a fact-finding mission, said Ethiopias leadership had failed to provide a clear picture of the situation in Tigray including the widely documented involvement of forces from neighbouring Eritrea. Until yesterday, 3,364 people from 62 countries entered Ethiopia through Amhara region; 91 people from seven countries received through Kurmuk border crossing point, located in Benishangul-Gumuz region. 505 from Sudan 1,054 from Somalia and 25,947 from South Sudan (NRC, 2014). The Berta rebels instead allied with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which overthrew the Mengistu regime in 1991 with the coalition EPRDF. ", Ethiopia: Tackling environmental challenges with trees, "Benishangul Gumuz State Council appoints Ahmed Nasir as chief of state", Map of Benishangul-Gumuz Region at UN-OCHA, Map of Benishangul-Gumuz Region at DPPA of Ethiopia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Benishangul-Gumuz_Region&oldid=1151047051, This page was last edited on 21 April 2023, at 15:41. EIEP: Marginalization and persecution in Ethiopia's Benishangul-Gumuz In addition, the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) - supported by the Eritrean People's Liberation Front, which in the meantime had advanced far south from Eritrea - also fought for the area in the Ethiopian civil war in the late 1980s and early 1990s. There are a few questions that I wish the author addressed. Memos - premium analytical writing: actionable insights on markets and geopolitics. The New Humanitarian | Anger, fear run deep after months of ethnic Ethiopian army 'kills militants' behind village massacre - DW The government and its intelligence sector should reassess the routes and ways through which the militias are getting logistical support. When commissioned, it will be the biggest hydroelectric power plant in Africa - but again it has delivered few of the promised jobs and benefits to locals. Tsega Etefa does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Climate change, population growth and a regional fight for water resources are all contributing to the risk of water imbalance, experts say. Although Mr. Abiy declared victory in Tigray last month, United Nations officials say the fight continues. Amharas are the second most populous ethnic group in Ethiopia and they have been targeted repeatedly over the last year. UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said that spiralling costs of food and fuel were adding to the toxic mix. Terms of the agreement that seemingly aimed at appeasing the militias included, among others, sharing power with militia members at the wereda, zonal and regional levels, creating job opportunities, offering access to financial support services, and giving urban and rural land to the members of the militias. [4] On 28 July 2009, the Regional Rural Roads Authority reported that over the previous year almost 600 of the 800 kilometers of local all-weather roads had been upgraded at a cost of 11.5 million birr, and an additional 447 kilometers of roads constructed. This is because the Blue Nile, which originates from Ethiopia, supplies up to 80% of the Nile waters. As the Berta People's Liberation Movement[21] or Benishangul People's Liberation Movement (BPLM), they - like the Gambella People's Liberation Movement of the Anuak in Gambella - were not accepted as full members of the EPRDF, but became regional partners of the new ruling coalition.[13]. Published under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International licence. No one surrendered per the deadline. Currently, the regional government has some control in towns where administrative offices are located, but not much beyond that. The command post also tried to deter the militias by declaring that it would make door-to-door hunts and take all necessary measures to apprehend militia members. The Amhara regional state and Amhara activists say that Metekkel was forcibly included under the Benishangul-Gumuz regional state after the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front took power in 1991. Eastern Africa: Millions displaced, amid growing hunger, 'unprecedented Please send an email to pro.support@al-monitor.com and we'll onboard your team. This was followed by the killing of over 80 people in a place called Daleti in Metekel Zone. All Gumuz are organized in clans. This has received mixed reactions among residents and watchers of the region. Metekkel zone has been placed under a command post that is directly responsible to the prime minister. Despite this fact, the regional government immediately incorporated the strategy of civilian defense as part of conflict prevention and peace-building. It was previously known as Region 6. These attacks were premeditated and highly prepared, he said. By drawing a bad lesson, other groups may also end up emulating similar measures. Now, we could be at the point in history where that changes," says Mohammed Mahmoud, a director of the Climate and Water Program at the Middle East Institute. The attacks have been aggravated by recent land grabs by Amhara and other non-indigenous investors who want to control the zones agricultural and mining sectors. They speak the Gumuz language, which belongs to the Nilo-Saharan family. Unless the government and concerned parties give their attention to Benishangul-Gumuz, the country and the Horn of Africa as a whole is likely to soon feel the awful effects of an out-of-control conflict. More than 100,000 people have been displaced and 7,000 people have fled to Sudan. There have been reports that the Ethiopian National Defense Forces took measure on up to 500 youths reportedly coming from Sudan with training and armament. In the absence of effective responses and with such a weak negotiation, popular trust in regional authorities, the command post, and government institutions has been diminished. The Gumuz practice shifting cultivation and their staple food is sorghum (Wallmark 1981). Major roads are still closed. By foregoing action to investigate crimes and ensure accountability, the signed agreement has also neglected the issue of justicea foundation of sustainable peace. Often the Gumuz' lands were allocated to transnational or domestic investors. [citation needed]. Although the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) confirmed that elections in Kamashi and Metekel zone will be conducted on 6 September, it is not clear if that is possible in light of continuing security crisis, mounting fear escalation in neighboring zones, and several people displaced. Zanni, Leone. According to the CSA, as of 2004[update], 27.23% of the total population had access to safe drinking water, of whom 22.35% were rural inhabitants and 58.53% were urban. Some of the reasons for the attacks include neighbouring Amhara states claim to ownership of the Metekkel zone. That is why we must all persevere and do our part., Ethiopias parliamentary committee tasked with appraising the dispute over the GERD officially accused Sudan and Egypt on March 5 of standing behind the violence in the Benishangul-Gumuz region.. The most affected states are Jonglei, Unity, Upper Nile, Lakes, Eastern Equatoria (Kapoeta East) and Warrap - more than 80 per cent of those food insecure. The sun rises behind the skyline of Egypt's capital Cairo and its Nile river island of Manial, Nov. 3, 2022. UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and partners are rushing life-saving aid to more than 20,000 refugees after they fled clashes in Ethiopia's Benishangul Gumuz region, bordering Sudan and South Sudan. Unseth, Peter. While the Blue Nile-Benishangul-Gumuz borderland is not free from conflict, it provides an example of . You have come to the situation which is militarily and human rights-wise, humanitarian-wise very out of control, Finlands Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told journalists in Brussels, a day after briefing the blocs ministers on the crisis. Turmoil blocks aid as communal conflict rages in gold-seamed Its not hard to see how the situation could spiral, now that a violent and chaotic organization has been officially empowered through a package of incentives. It is worrying indeed that the attention of national and international actors is turned almost exclusively to the war in Tigray. "I believe there will come a point where some level of cooperation has to happen, because there is no other alternative," says Mahmoud. In, James, Wendy. Read more: There are several people, including children, who have lost their whole family due to the conflict. Ethiopia may not have control over the behavior of Egypt and Sudan. Within the federal political arrangement, the Gumuz and the Shinasha control the six districts in the local administration structure. John Young, "Along Ethiopia's Western Frontier: Gambella and Benishangul in Transition". In. The Ethiopian Emperor Susenyos invaded the area in 1617/18, and it fell to the Funj Sultanate in 1685. People from neighboring weredas of Agalo Meti and Yaso, primarily those representing non-Gumuz ethnic groups, have left their villages in fear of a similar scenario. Photo: Benishangul Gumuz regional government Addis Abeba - The Benishangul Gumuz regional government said it has signed a peace agreement on 10 December with the armed group Benishangul People's Liberation Movement (BPLM) in Khartoum, Sudan. [1] Around 67,000 Gumuz also lived in Sudan. Even small-scale farm holders used to produce surpluses each year. With widespread instability and difficulty reaching IDPs, victims of violence are out of arms reach from humanitarian assistancewhether from the regional government or from national and international non-governmental organizations. Fighting broke out on 18 January in the town of Tongo - reportedly between unidentified armed groups and federal forces - and the nearby camp . Promoting income-generating opportunities in the border area of - IGAD Disarming the armed group could have been a better solution than arming the unarmed group which will likely fuel further conflict, putting the area into a vicious cycle of conflict. There was resettlement of highlanders to their area, particularly linked to the availability of land and water. This operation has lasted more than three months, and we do not see the end, Haavisto said. Topographically, the . Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's government has provided scant information on recent violence in Benishangul-Gumuz, particularly in Metekel zone, where Debate is located. Of course, fulfilling the preconditions requires coordinated and concerted action among humanitarian organizations and government entities. In the latest episode, witnesses said that men of the Gumuz ethnic group, armed with rifles and swords, stormed into Daletti village early Tuesday. (Calverton: Macro International, 2008), http://catalog.ihsn.org/index.php/catalog/3583/download/50086, "Exhibiting Cultures of Contact: A Museum for Benishangul-Gumuz, Ethiopia", "Ethiopia and the Mahdiyya You Call Me a Chicken? 4 February 2022 Humanitarian Aid UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, and partners are rushing life-saving aid to more than 20,000 refugees after they fled clashes in Ethiopia's Benishangul Gumuz. "Experimenting with Non-Territorial Autonomy: Indigenous Councils in Ethiopia". Guba is the closest district to Sudan. To do so, its necessary to assess the success and failure of the previous strategies attempted by the command post in an effort to end fighting. Following the adoption of the 1995 constitution, the region was created from the westernmost portion of the Gojjam province (the part north of the Abay River), and the northwestern portion of the Welega Province (the part south of the Abay). Text Alerts - Be the first to get breaking news, exclusives, and PRO content. But attacks and tensions remain high. The Bega (Gumuz) of Wellega: Agriculture and subsistence. Out of this, the Assosa Zone has 42 seats while Metekel and Kamashi zones have 33 and 20 seats respectively. Benishangul-Gumz Regional Health Bureau; Benishangul-Gumz Regional Health Bureau. Learn how your comment data is processed. The EU has joined the United States in demanding Eritrean troops withdraw. First, an area needs to be effectively controlled, ensuring the availability of appropriate levels of security, social services, and economic opportunities for returnees. Thisis the first time, however, that an armed group takes full control of several cities in the region, in light of the security forces failure to counter it. I do not think the article addressed why the Gumuz rebel. The unfortunate reality is that eastern Africa is confronted with a year of unprecedented humanitarian needs, driven by severe climate shocks, ongoing conflict and instability, and surging food and fuel prices, said Michael Dunford, WFPs Regional Director for Eastern Africa. Advertisement . Since then, death from violence been rampant in the whole region. Al-Monitor.com is a trusted and award-winning independent source of Middle East news and analysis, founded in 2012. The Berta, Gumuz and Shinasha tend to have more in common with the people of neighbouring Sudan than with other Ethiopian peoples, while the Amhara and Tigrayans, who are known as Habesha (or "highlanders") are recent arrivals, who began to settle in the region during the Derg era. It has also sounded the alarm over a very critical malnutrition situation unfolding in the Tigray region, citing continuing insecurity, bureaucracy and the presence of various armed actors as major obstructions to the efforts to deliver life-saving aid. Thank you author and Ethiopia Insight. From Dust to Dollar: Gold mining and trade in the Sudan-Ethiopia Feuds between clans are common and they are usually solved by means of an institution of conflict resolution, called mangema or michu[3] depending on the region. In a Twitter thread, he said, It is clear that there is a plot designed to thwart our efforts and undermine our very existence. [6] It had a projected population of 1,127,001 in 2018.[2]. Live Video Q&A - Hear from our top journalists and regional experts. The GERD is expected to make the country a major power exporter in the region. Benishangul-Gumuz ( Amharic: , romanized : Benangul Gumuz) is a regional state in northwestern Ethiopia to the border of Sudan. [22], Over 60% of this region is covered with forest, including bamboo, eucalyptus and rubber trees, incense and gum forests as well as the indigenous species.

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