Relation with State and Neighbours 1. State-Society Relation

i. Political incorporation: As indicated earlier in Chapter 4 the Afar-state relation has evolved for centuries. Various historical, political and economic factors have contributed to shaping the Afar relations with successive Ethiopian governments. The political incorporation of the Afar territory and the partial annexation to highland economy, and the development programmes that reflected the priorities of government political, strategic, national and foreign commercial interests have played a great role in shaping Afar-state relationships.

Some of these factors are elabourated in the following paragraphs.

As stated by various authors, until the end of the 19^th century the Afar and their Sultanates were able to maintain their “practical independence” from the Abyssinian rules. The Sultanates of Rahyata and Tajoura passed under European domination, but the Aussa Sultanate remained independent and its influence extended over southern Dankalia (Lewis, 1994:157). A number of factors have been mentioned by many writers for the “practical independence” of Afar land prior to early 1940s, and for a semi-independence status after this period (Nesbitt, 1935; Lewis, 1994; Trimingham, 1976; Gamaledin, 1993; Getachew, 2001a).

Some reported that Danakil harsh environment, a circle of sterile desert on one hand and the braveness and ferociousness of the local people on the other hand had guarded the Danakil territory against Abyssinian authorities or raids from Abyssinian highlands (Lewis, 1994:157;

Nesbitt, 1935). In relation to this Nesbitt (1935:72) noted as follows:

Though the Danakil country belongs to Abyssinia, the agents of the government are unable to penetrate in its deserts, except fringes. The brave and ferocious Danakils are in a continual state of contention with the government forces for possession of the borderlands lying between their tribal territories and the plateau. In any given sector, sometimes the government forces and sometimes the Danakils hold the upper hand. Beyond the borderlands no government forces ever dare to pass.

Other authors stated that the fact that Abyssinian rulers, particularly those of Shewa wanted to ensure the safety of their caravans to the coast and thus had to remain on good terms with the Afar had contributed to maintain a practical independence (Lewis, 1994:156-157;

Trimingham, 1976:171). The caravan route was the main access trail to the coast for import and export at the time. Still other authors claimed that the Abyssinian rules (Amhara and Tigre) followed the policy of indirect rule through natives of the Afar (Getachew, 2001a;

Gamaledin, 1993). Gamaledin (1993.45) further contended that it is not only in Afar, but

“Ethiopia as a whole did not have a centralized administration before the end of the Italian rule in 1941, when attempts were made to set up civil and military bureaucracy”. According to Gamaledin until 1941, the Afar region was not effectively controlled by the Ethiopian government partly due to the inability of the central government to provide the necessary administration and partly because of the historical relations between Shewa and the southern Afar (Gamaledin, 1993:49). Later on, with the end of colonial administration in Northern Ethiopia, the security of border and safe access to the coast had become a priority concern for the central government. This emanated from the economic and political importance of the strategic position of the Afar land for the central government. Consequently the central government strengthened its surveillance and expedition into Afar land to salve any external threat.

Generally the Danakil territory was comparatively free from the Abyssinian authority until the time of Emperor Menelik II, when, in 1895, on the pretext that the Sultan of Aussa had become an ally of the Italians, a Shewan army was sent against him and the Sultan was forced to pay tribute (Lewis, 1994:157). Therefore, after the withdrawal of Italians from Eritrea, an Abyssinian expedition reached to Aussa in 1944, captured Sultan Mohammed Yayo and brought him to Addis Ababa where he died in captivity (Lewis, 1994). His office was passed to Ali Mirah (a kinsman-young boy from the Aydahiso family), who was indebted to a celebrated Wazir (chief assistant), Hamadi Yayo, until he was crowned as Sultan of Aussa.

Then after Aussa remained as a semi-independent Sultanate tributary to Ethiopia until the 1974 Revolution when the Sultan was deposed and forced into exile to abroad (Lewis, 1994:157). In relation to this Gamaledin (1993:47) stated that the “policy of the Imperial Government in Afar land was to create an Afar officialdom on lines similar to those everywhere in the country by conferring titles and stipends on Afar notables, and in so doing the Centre was to exert its influence. Gamaledin (1993:47) also added that the introduction of agricultural reforms and large-scale commercialization into the Awash Valley was to consolidate the position of state bureaucracy, thereby creating an economic bond with the wider Ethiopia society. The increasing incorporation of Afar territory under the control of the centralized state administrative and political machinery has been enhanced during the 1940s with the advent of modern civil and military bureaucracies in Ethiopia and further intensified with the introduction of irrigation schemes into fertile lands of the Awash Valley in the subsequent decades. In general the Imperial Government and the Derg regime attempted to incorporate the Afar traditional structure and authority into the central state. This aspect has been already discussed in Chapter 4. In the following sections I describe the consequences of large-scale commercialization and delineation of parks on Afar pastoralists.

ii. Farm Commercialization and National Parks/Game Reserves: Pastoral Land Alienation:

As stated earlier in Chapter 3, the development policies and programmes implemented in the Afar Region have historically reflected the priorities of government political and strategic interests and selected national and foreign commercial interests. The land tenure and development policies of the successive Ethiopian regimes were hostile to pastoral economy of the Afar society. Their policies were mainly in favour of settled agriculture including large-scale state and private commercial farms aimed at achieving national economic goals that excluded the social and economic interests of the local customary users.

If we begin with the time of the Emperor Haile Selassie, the lands of the pastoral areas were made the property of the state by constitutional decree. In 1955 the revised constitution of the Haile Selassie Government dispossessed all pastoralists of their land by declaring it as State property. The ground which prepared for such policy could only have emanated from a total misunderstanding of the ways of life of pastoral nomads, their social system, particularly their customary law regarding land (Fekadu, 2001:1). A survey carried out in 1969 found out that 42% of the total area of the country was classified as Government land (MoLA, 1969a:118 cited in Abdul-Mejidi, 1976:12). According to this same study, 78% of the Government land had “a grazing only” potential and could not be used for agriculture without heavy investment in irrigation. And such areas were those lowlands inhabited by pastoral groups, and had been declared Government land. Accordingly the government and prominent individuals inside the pastoral groups and in the high echelon of the central government began to seize on these opportunities to assign the pastoral land for commercial farming. The immediate victims of such exploitation were the Afar, whose prime land was exploited by commercial farming to the detriment of the productivity of pastoralism (Fekadu, 2001).

In fact the rise in government interventions since the 1960s was part of much broader development strategies that most developing countries adopted during the 1950s and the 1960s. Taking into account the global economic order of the time, the Imperial Government in Ethiopia designed an industry-focused economic development strategy (Bekele, 2006:6).

Expansion of large-scale commercial farming was taken as a means to supply raw materials to domestic industries, and food supply for workers. While expanding commercial farms, the Afar plains were among the areas that attracted the attention of the Government.

Out of the total of some 200, 000 ha of irrigable land, 25% was developed in 1970-71, mainly for the production of cotton and sugar. It was precisely those areas most frequented by the Afar, i.e. their grazing pastures which are traditionally flooded during June to August resulting in excellent grazing for the greater part of the year (Abdul-Mejidi, 1976:19). The prime land “corridor of survival” of the Awash River which was used strategically in the height of the dry season when the grass is depleted in other areas was no longer available for them. The taking of this land had such disastrous consequences that the Afar were vulnerable to withstanding the slightest of the usual cyclical droughts (Fekadu, 2001:1).

The 1974 Revolution in Ethiopia deposed the Imperial Government. The Military Government (Derg) came to power. This was followed by the 1975 Land Reform Proclamation. However, the 1975 land reform, which was expected to restore communal lands lost to private commercial farms since the 1950s, failed to address the land tenure issue.

The reform that led to the nationalisation of all lands did not redress the disastrous consequences of land tenure and development policies of the Imperial Government. Rather the expropriation of pastoral communal lands for large-scale irrigation schemes had continued during the Military Regime. Firstly, the Derg Government confiscated all large-scale farms owned by private commercial farmers and concessionaires. Later on large-scale private farms were transformed into state-owned enterprises. Secondly, new farms were expanded under the Derg regime through appropriation of more pastoral lands. The Derg Regime promoted a rapid expansion in state-run irrigation schemes, which brought vast tracts of grazing land under cash crop production. For instance, after the 1975 land reform the Middle Awash Agricultural Development Enterprise (MAADE) was expanded from 300 ha in 1968 to 13,

116 ha in 1985 by clearing more land from dry-season grazing areas (Bekele, 2006:6).

Therefore, the local Afar were denied of property rights, of their remaining grazing lands due to additional expansion of state-owned large-scale irrigation schemes.

Though the Afar region is one of the hottest areas and is extremely inhospitable, it has been able to support the Afar pastoral and agro-pastoral groups due to the presence of the Awash River and other permanent water courses. Particularly the Awash River is the life-source of the Afar pastoralists and agro-pastoralists inhabiting the Lower and Middle Awash Valley.

However, their relative autonomy and pastoral economy have been severely threatened since the early 1960s by the establishments of irrigated agricultural schemes and national parks in the Awash Valley. Particularly the land which has been taken for early development was mostly land close to the river, in areas which flooded easily and took a long time to drain.

Consequently, the pastoralists have lost important dry season grazing areas that have good grazing during the hottest and driest part of the year from February to June (Abdul-Mejidi, 1976; Flood, 1976; Ali, 1996; 1997). The estimated dry/wet season grazing lands lost to non-pastoral uses in the Middle Awash Valley is given in table 5.3 below.

Table 5.3 Estimated Grazing Lands Lost to Non-pastoral Uses in the Middle Awash Valley

Pastureland Area (ha.)

I. Dry-season grazing lost to:

1.1 Middle Awash Agricultural Development Enterprise 1.2 Awara Melka and Yalo farms

1.3 Settlements

1.4 IAR, Melka Werer Irrigation pasture project 1.5 Irrigated pasture project

Sub-total

15, 840 2,430 3,011 360 1,200 22,841 II. Wet-season grazing lost to:

2.1. Alledeghi Animal holding center 2.2. Northern part of Awash national park Subtotal

6,000 23, 000 29, 000

Grand total 51, 841

Source: Ali, 1997, p.126.

Generally, out of the total area of 130, 000 ha put under commercial farms in pastoral areas of Ethiopia, the Afar Region contributes 70, 000 ha (Beruk, 2003:5). Similarly a significant area of rangeland is designated for wildlife reserves, parks and sanctuaries in the Afar Region (see map 7 for major parks/ conservation areas).

Map 7 Parks/conservation Areas in the Afar region

A total of 466, 640 ha of range areas have been converted to wildlife parks and sanctuaries in Ethiopia (Beruk, 2003:5). Of this amount of rangeland, about 75% of the alienated pastoral land belongs to the Afar pastoralists¹³¹. This is shown in table 5.4 below.

Table 5.4 Parks, Wildlife Reserves and Sanctuaries in the Rangeland Area of Afar

Park/wildlife reserve/sanctuary Area (in hectare)

Awash National Park 7,560

Yangudi-rassa national Park 47,310

Alledeghi Wildlife Reserve 18,320

West Awash Wildlife Reserve 17,810

Gewane Wildlife Reserve 24,390

Mile-Serdo wildlife Reserve 87,660

Gewane Controlled Hunting Area 59,320

West Awash Controlled Hunting Area 91,360

Sub-total 353,730

Source: Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Organization (EWCO), 1993 cited in Beruk, 2003, p.5

Generally speaking all the interventions of the state were without the consent of the customary users. Compensatory measures such as irrigated pasture and resettlement schemes were attempted. But they could not satisfy pastoral groups who lost their key resource areas.

All compensation measures had proved failure for the reasons already mentioned in Chapter 3. Therefore, there were always series of resistance from the local people during and after the establishment of the commercial farms particularly during the Derg time. At times the pastoralists expressed their dissatisfaction and desperation in damaging mature crops and confronting with state authorities. Conversely they suffered from penalty, confiscation of stock, harassment, eviction and killing. The following incidence that occurred immediately after the 1975 land reform illustrates Afar pastoralists’ resistance to the central state:

Following the flight of the Sultan Ali Mirah, Afar grievances sparked a rebellion which culminated in the burning of a cotton plantation and killing of many non-Afars. As the Sultan left Asayita on June 2, 1975, his followers killed about 221 non-Afars the next day. The killing of the highlanders was provoked by the fears of the Afars that the government would hand over their land to those tilling it in accordance with the land proclamation since highlanders worked on Afar owned farms by being employed at the time. The Addis Ababa-Assab highway was also closed as result of the uprising. As it had serious implication for the country's economy, the Derg regime soon reacted harshly by sending troops to the area and began what Shehim (1985) called an “Afar genocide”. Asayita, the capital of Aussa Sultanate was destroyed and many Afars were murdered. The Sultan claimed that

“the government army killed as many as 1,000 Afars by using airplanes and armored cars” (Ottaway and David, 1978, Shehim, 1985 and Ali 1998 cited in Kebede, 2005:57-58)

131 The balance, 35% belongs to other pastoral areas (i.e. 62, 300 ha in SNNPR and 50,610 ha in Gambella Region have been converted to wildlife reserves, parks and sanctuaries).

The flight of Sultan Ali Mirah to Saudi Arabia marked the end of friendly relations between the central government and the Afar. It ushered in a period of open ethnic confrontation between the Afar and the central government (Ali, 1998:111). Therefore, state-local people relation was that of suspicion, distrust and conflict. This in turn combined with ecological marginality contributed to economic and political marginalization of the Afar pastoralists.

Apart from loss of pastoral key resource areas and conflicts between Afar and government authorities, the advent of large-scale development schemes in the Awash Valley also brought ecological crisis and socio-economic consequences. The following paragraphs briefly present some of these consequences.

iii. Ecological and Socio-economic Consequences: The arid and semi-arid areas of East Africa have rainfall patterns that are highly variable temporally and spatially making pasture and water availability for livestock unpredictable. Moreover, key ecological resources of such areas are characterized by small patches of seasonal grazing and important water points that are critical to support the entire livestock production system. When such key resources are degraded or lost, the production systems can be badly affected.

In the Afar Region huge areas used by the pastoralists during wet season have no permanent water supply. The great plains which support no human habitation during dry season are capable of providing grazing for several million animals during the wet season. In the dry season, with most people clustered around the Awash River, the density of population is high, whereas in the wet season people are very sparsely scattered on the land. Particularly pastoralists who inhibit the Middle and Lower Awash Valley stay close to the river much of the year (i.e. during the long dry period lasting from September to May). The only time they venture great distance is during the rainy season in the highlands when the river overflows its banks creating an area of rich soil for the rest of the year. Therefore, they are largely dependent on grazing near the Awash River banks. When a small area close to the Awash River is made unavailable for dry season grazing in the past four decades due to the establishment of irrigated farms, a much larger area away from the river is rendered useless (Flood, 1976).

Moreover, the regime of the Awash River has been changed drastically by the construction of Koka dam and dykes constructed for regulation of Awash River water. Land degradation that occurred at the upstream has caused a high run off and sedimentation at the Awash River bed.

An earlier study reported that Koka dam has reduced the peak flow of water from 700 m³ per second to 300 m³ per second (Flood, 1976:65). The reduction in river potential to flood has effects throughout the Middle and Lower Awash Valley. As the irrigation process takes much water from the river and allows it to drain away or evaporate in the fields, less water reaches inland delta. Therefore, vegetation balances have been disrupted and desertification is allowed to encroach (Flood, 1976).

Since much of the land taken for schemes had been good grassland, and the rest grasslands are no longer to provide sufficient pasture due to drought and conflict risks, cattle in particular have been hit by the consequence of external interventions and impacts of drought.

Consequently, a number of pastoralists have resorted to raising more goats. Goats and camels gradually came to dominant the pastoral economy, with resultant destruction of tree cover and topsoil in forest areas close to the River. The domination of pastoral economy by goats gives

in a short term the best chance for survival. But in the long term, concentration of goats destroys grazing. Lacking grass, pastoralists also had to lop trees for feeding animals with leaves. Moreover, due to the development of permanent settlements and small towns near commercial farms and plantations, a vast amount of trees were cut for both construction and for firewood. This in turn resulted in deforestation (Flood, 1976).

The consequences of external interventions on Afar people are not limited only to loss of prime pastoral resources and land degradation. The interventions also brought social and institutional consequences among the Afar pastoral groups. The advent of large-scale irrigated farms, parks and the subsequent establishment of civil bureaucracies have led to the formation of small towns and settlements with large numbers of highland migrants and government employees. These developments and migrants have brought an alien culture that undermines local people’s culture. For instance prostitution and thievery, which were unknown some years ago, are now widespread in towns. Many young Afar, both men and woman are absorbed into the urban-based irrigation scheme culture, and urban life. Clan integrity is also beginning to suffer, as the clan is unable to maintain all its members in one place due to

The consequences of external interventions on Afar people are not limited only to loss of prime pastoral resources and land degradation. The interventions also brought social and institutional consequences among the Afar pastoral groups. The advent of large-scale irrigated farms, parks and the subsequent establishment of civil bureaucracies have led to the formation of small towns and settlements with large numbers of highland migrants and government employees. These developments and migrants have brought an alien culture that undermines local people’s culture. For instance prostitution and thievery, which were unknown some years ago, are now widespread in towns. Many young Afar, both men and woman are absorbed into the urban-based irrigation scheme culture, and urban life. Clan integrity is also beginning to suffer, as the clan is unable to maintain all its members in one place due to