ONLF leader speaks out

[SahanGalbeed]

Ethiopia, Africa's oldest independent country, is one of the West's closest allies in the Horn of Africa.

Bordering Kenya, South Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia, this vast nation is home to about 80 different ethnic groups, many with their own languages and customs.

Despite Ethiopia's demographic diversity, the country's power structure in mainly centralised in its capital Addis Ababa, located in the heart of the country.

And this is resented by some of Ethiopia's many different ethnic groups.

To the far east of the country lies Ethiopia's Somali region. The people there have Ethiopian nationality but identify as Somalis. Many there say that their desperately poor region is starved of resources.

This has led some to rise up and challenge the government.
Self-determination struggle

A movement for self-determination for Ogaden, which is officially known as the Somali region, led by the Ogaden National Liberation Force (ONLF), began in the mid-1980s. ONLF took up arms a decade later.

Their attacks led the Ethiopian government to send in troops and to carry out what many describe as a brutal crackdown on the some five million ethnic Somalis who live in this arid region.

Thousands of people have died in a struggle that few outsiders are allowed to witness. It's an invisible conflict that has cost lives and livelihoods, and despite several rounds of talks in recent years, has no end in sight.

After decades of conflict with little or no progress, should ONLF give up their fight?

"How long did South Africa [take to] defeat Apartheid? When you are fighting for your rights, time is not an issue," Abdirahman Mahdi, a founding member and the foreign secretary of ONLF, tells Al Jazeera.

The only policy in the Somali region they have is to dominate it, to exploit the oil, to consider the people as just a nuisance, and to exploit our resources and kill our people. Even if they allowed 10% of our rights in 1994, this fighting would not have started.

Abdirahman Mahdi, founding member and foreign secretary of the Ogaden National Liberation Force (ONLF)

"My father was fighting for our rights and my children will fight for our rights. So for us, justice is the only solution - there is no other way."

Madhi denies that ONLF wants to secede from Ethiopia and claims this is "a misconception that's being propagated by the Ethiopian regime".

ONLF's fight, he says, is about seeking the "right to decide our future".

The movement wants the "right to self-determination, including even leaving the country". ONLF "cannot decide what the Somali people want. What we are saying is let them be given their right to decide."

He says: "Free choice is not secession; free choice means you can choose the right to live together in peace and dignity."

ONLF's fight is not with federalism nor with ethnicity, Madhi says. "The issue is when one group wants to dominate the rest of the people in Ethiopia. So we are going to dismantle that."

Madhi speaks of the marginalisation of Ethiopia's Somali region. "[Until] recently, we had only one secondary school after 100 years of Ethiopian occupation, we had one hospital ... Our women have no maternity services."

The region, he says, suffers from a brutal trade and aid embargo and a military occupation, which he alleges has resulted in the rape of 30% of the region's women and more than 30,000 detentions.

"How can you develop people you are raping?" he asks.

Madhi says ONLF is an Africanist movement, the struggle is expanding and the group is now working with other ethnic groups in the country by staging "peaceful mass demonstrations".

"Our alliance is now expanding," he says. "Like the Arab Spring, we are going to start insurrection all over the place. Ethiopia is now boiling ... The regime is now in disarray; they're divided. The people of Ethiopia have now risen up. They want their rights. We are tired of one clique dominating the rest of Ethiopia."

On Talk to Al Jazeera, Madhi discusses the future and vision of ONLF, the criticism that he is out of touch with the needs and situation of the people in Ethiopia's Somali region now that he lives abroad, and he responds to allegations of human rights abuses committed by ONLF and that the group is armed and trained by Eritrea.

You can talk to Al Jazeera too. Join our Twitter conversation as we talk to world leaders and alternative voices shaping our times. You can also share your views and keep up to date with our latest interviews on Facebook.

Source: Al Jazeera

[smooth]

These guys need to put the resistance in the back burner, now is not the time for this struggle, the people in Somali Galbeed have gone through a lot of horrors because of them, now they are finally getting back on their feet developing their region which already surpasses much of Somalia outside of Xamar, they don't need war


Live to fight another day, a big ethnic conflict is looming in Ethiopia and the entire region, when that boils over, the whole Ogaden will become ONLF, for now this guy needs to disappear, because his actions will only get other Somali's killed for nothing, while those that escape will be returned by Siilaanyo and Gaas as both maamuls did before, you can't win now, the sign of a good general is to know his capabilities and save your people for when the time is ripe.

[MayDay777]

Develop your region and army. The Tigray have only Somalis as Allies and they can use them to develop and reach somewhere.

Wait for when Oromo and Amxaar overthrow the Tigray and use the perfect opportunity

[Strategic]

amxaaro are worst for somalis tigray must pay the share of the resources of the region.

[AwRastaale]

Develop your region and army. The Tigray have only Somalis as Allies and they can use them to develop and reach somewhere.

Wait for when Oromo and Amxaar overthrow the Tigray and use the perfect opportunity

Are you trying to say Tigrais prefer a Somali over Amhara?



Not true. They feud amongst themselves for power but their agenda towards Somalis is one and only one doesn't matter if Amhara is in Menelik palace or Tigrai.

The only difference is that Amhara sees Ethiopia as one entity in their eyes and one must accept Ethiopiawit or face the music. The Tigrai doesn't really try to enforce "Ethiopiawit" agenda on the populous but he does want everyone to pay him taxes and to do so means covering the tri-color flag all over the land. They see it as more wealth for themselves where as Amhara see it as their state, subjects and expansion of their influence and culture.

However, Amhara prefers Tigrai over you and Tigrai is the same. That is why Amhara party is a member of the so called EPRDF but you are not.

There is grievance and resentment between minority Tigrai and Amhara but there isn't much hate. Somalis don't know the difference between hate and rivalry.

Today TPLF is not gonna let go of Ogaden more than Amhara party. Tigrai just needs divide and conquer to keep power while Amhara is large enough to subdue all small groups with the help of Oromo.

If they loved you more than Amhara do then they do sign you out in the same manner as Eritrea, whom they share language, culture and history.

They both hate Somalis and Oromo with passion. I smartly ask them those questions without making anything about Somalis. When they hear Oromo their eyes go red. One day I was having conversation with some Amhara and they began yelling; "can you believe the nerves of Oromo...mother fokers!! How can they say they are not Ethiopian? The mother fokers go around the world saying they are not Ethiopians...I rather have TPLF any time at least they kill the anti-Ethiopians".

Tigrai just finances projects to increase his tax revenue. They perfected this game over centuries starting their own land based taxation and ownership as far back as the 11th century.

Today they tax everything from house, farm, goat, sheep, camel to barkad.

[MayDay777]

Amxaaro Tigray

[MayDay777]

Oromo and Amxaar are allies. It's time we allied ourselves too

[theyuusuf143]

They have no chance until Oromo or Amhara raises against the TPLF. African regimes falls only when they loose control of the capital and the tax generating areas. ONLF should keep the dhaanto now, and prepare to act as soon as it stars in Addis ababa. Simple.

[TJcombo]

Just be gratefull that the TPLF are still in charge and have been since the early 90's. If the Habasha and their Oromo slaves were in power during that period there would be no Somalia in 2016

Long live TPLF, Long live Axum

Somalis are too stupid to realise what is good for them or to be gratefully to Allah for holding back the hordes that want their destruction. Instead they calaacal 24/7 about Ethiopia this Ethiopia that without realising the true picture

[gegiroor]

Abdirahman Mahdi, founding member and foreign secretary of the Ogaden National Liberation Force (ONLF), has spoken very well. ONLF is now exporting their revolution to other ethnic groups. Good tactic.

[BigBreak]

ONLF are terrorists who are intent on ruining the development of DDSI under the leadership of the TPLF led regime

http://www.awrambatimes.com/?p=14708