UPDATES

Indigenous Struggles Continue in Eritrea And Ethiopia

On May 25, 1993, Eritrea became an independent state, after fighting a war for independence against Ethiopia for 30 years. Ethiopia had controlled and dominated Eritrea since 1952. Some 98.5 percent of the electorate participated in the referendum which determined Eritrea's liberation; some 99.8 percent of those who voted chose secession from Ethiopia as the path to self-determination.

The referendum and its results have not ended the question of self-determination in either Eritrea or Ethiopia, however. The Afars, Muslims who live in Denkalia (the south-eastern lowlands of Eritrea), are seeking self-determination from Eritrea. Afars also live in Awsa (a large lowland area of adjacent Ethiopia) and comprise a substantial population in also adjacent Djibouti. Inspired by the outcome of the Eritrean struggle, the people of the "Afar Triangle" may now be moving toward a new independence movement for separation from all three states in which they live, or alternatively to become an administrative region within the new Ethiopia.

Meanwhile, the new Ethiopia, now reduced by the secession of Eritrea, is still awash in ethno-nationalist movements. In an attempt to cope with that situation, the new state has been reorganized into a federation of administrative subdivisions which correspond closely and specifically to the largest and strongest indigenous peoples. The state is still dominated, however, by Amharas and Tigreans, who control most of the seats in the present government of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), none to the liking of peoples who find themselves once more subordinated in such a state (in which Amharic has become a lingua franca).

The Oromo people, with the largest population of all the peoples presently included within Ethiopia, are in deep conflict with the government. Although politically fragmented among at least four separate liberation movements with varying degrees of aspiration for secession and total independence, the Oromos have the potential to become a powerful unified nation in their own right. Oromo secession and independence would effectively shatter Ethiopia, probably forever.

Apart from the cases of Afar and Oromo, other peoples with current liberation movements (mostly organized since 1991) in the new Ethiopia include: the Somali, Sidama, Gurage, Hadiya, Welayita, Agew, Issa, Gugura, Horyal, Hareri, Benishangul, Kembata, Yem, Gedo, Uma, Kore, Dawro, Omo, Kefa and Gambella (see Hearing before the subcommittee of Africa, Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives. Washington, DC. September 17, 1992).

Both the EPRDF and the Organization of African Unity (OAU) are frantically attempting to find a way to keep Ethiopia's centrifugal forces from prevailing. Accusing the various liberation movements of being the work of external actors is only one argument being inveighed in the international arena. Meanwhile, the governments of neighboring states with similar difficulties (e.g., Sudan, Uganda, Kenya and Somalia) are watching events unfold in Ethiopia and Eritrea with utmost interest and no small amount of trepidation.

Protests in 28 World Cities over Dann Imprisonment

On May 17, 1993, Western Shoshone elder Clifford Dann was sentenced by the US Federal Court in Reno, Nevada, to a prison term of nine months and a fine of $5000. The sentencing followed Dann's conviction, on May 3, of assaulting a federal officer in an incident which occurred in November 1992. Dann is currently in prison awaiting the outcome of an appeal filed in the Ninth District Court. He will probably complete his sentence before his appeal is heard.

Protests and demonstrations marking widespread public outrage over Dann's imprisonment took place in at least 28 cities worldwide, including (in the United States) Albuquerque and Santa Fe, NM; Denver, CO; Eugene, OR; Kalamazoo, MI; Kansas City, KS; Las Vegas and Reno, NV; Los Angeles and Santa Cruz, CA; New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; Portland, OR; and internationally in Berne and Zurich, Switzerland; Munich, Germany; Vienna, Austria; Brussels, Belgium; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Fitzroy, Australia; and Quito, Ecuador.

Dann was arrested, tried and convicted for attempting to prevent officers of the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from seizing livestock belonging to his sisters, Mary and Carrie Dann. The BLM attacked the Dann ranch (in Crescent Valley, Nevadaabout 50 miles southwest of Elko) on November 19, 1992, in a military-style invasion which included at least 40 armed agents, law enforcement vehicles and helicopters. The BLM claimed that the Dann sisters had violated federal grazing regulations on the land it claims is under its jurisdiction.

The Danns and the Western Shoshone Nation contend that the land they continue to defend was recognized by the United States as belonging to the Western Shoshone Nation in the Treaty of Ruby Valley of 1863. The Western Shoshone call their ancestral territory "Newe Segobia" and argue that it is subject to Indian law, not federal regulations. They insist that the United States has repeatedly violated the terms of the Ruby Valley Treaty since that agreement was concluded. The Dann sisters continue to resist the seizure of their livestock, while their brother is in prison.

For more information, contact:
Western Shoshone Defense Project
General Delivery
Crescent Valley, Nevada 89821
702-468-0230

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Fourth World Bulletin • July 1993