Spilling Blood over Water? The Case of Ethiopia 247meant acquisition and control of resources by the ruling elite and the state
soon became the main focus of conflict.
The southward expansion in Ethiopia occurred at the same time as the
imperialist intrusion into the Horn of Africa. In the process of colonialist
expansion, boundaries were drawn which divided peoples accustomed to free
movement throughout the region. The imposition of hard boundaries signifi-
cantly restricted movement of peoples accustomed to a different way of life.
The Somali people, for example, were partitioned into five states, namely:
British Somaliland, Italian Somalia, French Djibouti, British Kenya and
Ethiopia. Likewise the Afar pastoralists were divided between present-day
Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti. The partitioning of ethnic groups increased
conflict between pastoralists and also served to pave the way for interstate
conflict and tension between neighbouring Horn countries. One example is
the Ishaq-Ogaden conflict over the Hausa pastures that closely relate to the
Ethio-Somali conflict.
With the emergence of the modern state during Haile Selassie's reign, cen-
tral state power was consolidated. Following the defeat of the Italians, Eritrea
(formerly an Italian colony) was federated with Ethiopia by the United
Nations. The emperor unilaterally abrogated the resolution in 1962. This
marked the beginning of an armed suuggle in Eritrea for independence that
lasted for more than 30 years. During this period, ethnicity became a signifi-
cant factor in conflict and a rallying issue for dissident groups in Ethiopia.
Many ethnic movements sprouted in different parts of Ethiopia. Some ana-
lysts point out that the Ethiopian state was not successful in fully integrating
the peoples and territories over which it expanded, in particular the pas-
toralists who inhabited the lowlands bordering Somalia and Kenya, with the
result that no 'national' identity would emerge. State penetration and domi-
nation of diverse identity groups expanded considerably in the last century
but without sufficient emphasis on the identification, participation, and loy-
alty of the citizen to the embryonic nation state.
It is difficult to make a clear distinction between the internal conflicts aris-
ing within Ethiopia and the conflicts with neighbouring countries. The link-
ages between intra-state and interstate conflicts are manifold. For instance,
during the war for Eritrean independence, the Eritrean liberation fronts were
headquartered and supported by Sudan, while at the same time the libera-
tion forces of southern Sudan had their bases in Ethiopia. Similarly, the
Somali movements in the Ogaden region also keep bases in Somalia."
During the Cold War, military capability and the centralisation of power
were common to Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan. The risk of conflict between
states was heightened as they began to forge alliances with the two super-
powers. The United States initially established a strategic relationship with
Ethiopia in the 1940s and continued until the monarchy was toppled and
replaced in 1974 by a military regime, or the Dergue, which claimed socialist