Ethiopia: An Inclusive Democracy for Diversity

What is happening in Ethiopia brightens an optimist. The country seems to be on track to announce a new era of hope – an age of democracy. On the other hand, as a multinational and extremely diverse country, with a population of over 100 million inhabitants and little experience in the practice of democracy, there is no doubt that 39, a smooth transition to democracy will not be easy.

not yet developed, its role in maintaining the unity and strength of the Federal Republic and the achievement of sustainable development are not debatable. And at a time when the opportunity arises to build a democratic country, every Ethiopian should strive to facilitate the progress of the democratic transition by identifying the main obstacles and developing mechanisms to overcome them.

doubt that as a novice, Ethiopia would face several complex challenges in its democratic experience. Among the most important are poverty, the weak tradition of constitutionalism, the low level of literacy and the lack of strong institutional institutions and democratic institutions. In addition, the main challenge (and also an opportunity if it is wisely managed) is the presence of enormous cultural, ethnic, political, ideological and religious diversity in the country.

It is true that the Federal Republic was founded on the principle of democratic unity in diversity. The more than 80 nations, nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia who follow a variety of beliefs are united for a common interest; create a democratically unique political and economic community. Yet the relationship between democracy and such heterogeneity is complex.

Obviously, on the one hand, the diversity of ethnicities, cultures, languages, interests and ideologies makes it more difficult to create a national consensus on each national decision. action. Moreover, in democracy, there is this concept of majority-minority, which some say is not appropriate for all voices to be heard equally in diverse societies.

However, on the other hand, it should be emphasized that democracy faces diversity. Its main purpose is to provide diverse voices with a fair hearing and to generate complete and legitimate decisions. Therefore, if managed wisely, diversity would be an badet in building a democratic society. With the presence of an effective institutional structure for managing diversity wisely, the awareness of diversity brings intrinsic moral value to the perspectives of people of diverse backgrounds and understands the fact that people have ethnic, religious backgrounds and different cultural influences that influence opinion formation.

This belief helps people to want to understand the views of others with tolerance. This again facilitates tolerance and the generation of new ideas that would contribute to social change and global transformation.

Thus, in the Ethiopian case, the smooth transition to democracy would depend on the ability to wisely and constructively manage multifaceted diversity. And this task should in any case be left to the elite because it is ordinary citizens who have played a key role in creating this historic opportunity. To take advantage of this situation, a broad awareness must be led, including by social media activists, that Ethiopia's diversity may be a contribution rather than a curse, as some fear , in building a democratic country. And the only way to do that is to build a culture of tolerance and trust between different interest groups. At the beginning, what should be shared in common are the norms and values ​​of democracy, and everything follows. And this requires the active participation of all Ethiopians, including ordinary citizens, members of political parties, social media activists, academics and civil society organizations. All of these forces must join forces and keep the progress of democracy alive.