Through Oromiyaa’s Lens: Focusing on the Greatest Oromo Generation

By Leenjiso Horo* | November 2013

Introduction:
The years 1950s-1980s were the birth years of the greatest Oromo generation.  It was and still is the greatest generation as those generations that established the Gadaa system as well as the generation that fought in the defense of Oromiyaa against the Abyssinian colonialists, who was aided by the European powers of the time, among which were Great Britain, Czarist Russia, Switzerland, Italy, France, Khedive Ismail of Egypt and etc. The major factors that helped the Abyssinians in the conquest of Oromiyaa were summarized by Earl Lytton in his book The Stolen Desert as follow:

“Menelik seems to have operated with French technicians, French mapmakers, French advice on the management of a standing army, and more French advice as to holding captured province with permanent garrisons of conscripted colonial troops. The French also armed his troops with firearms and did much else to organize his campaigns.  The Galla (Oromo) were thus conquered by Habasha for the first time in recorded history. Without massive European help, the Galla (Oromo) would not have been conquered at all.”

The second factor, probably the most important one, that helped Abyssinians in the conquest of Oromiyaa, in addition to the above mentioned, was the decline of the Gadaa System and with it, the weakening of the central national leadership – the national Office of Abbaa Bokkuu/President and the national Chaffee/parliament – that oversee the security of the nation, and mobilize the nation and the army to defend the country in a case of an outside threat.  With the weakening of the national leadership, the periodic change of the Gadaa leadership in every eight years at every level was interrupted.  As a consequence, the regional Abbaa Duulaa’s stayed in power longer than a periodic term limit of eight years.  In the process, some of them became wealthy and powerful personalities, and used their wealth to raise their own army, and used the army to control more land. Then, through time, they gained political influence over the people in their regions.  Finally, using wealth, military power, and political influence, some of the Abbaa Gadaa’s usurped the power of the Gadaa office, and declared themselves kings in their respective regions.  With this, many kingdoms appeared for the first time in the history of the Oromo people, and the elective office of Gadaa officials became hereditary succession of the Kings’ and Queens’ families. With this, the Oromo people lost the right to elect their leaders. Hence, the establishment of kingdoms put to an end to the government of people, by the people, for people and from the people.  Not only this, some of these kingdoms became rivalries of each other.  Despite this, still others in other parts of Oromiyaa remained under Abbaa Duulaa’s.  However, each of them was not strong enough to defend its region.  Because of this, each of them was defeated separately one by one – region by region by the colonizing army of Menelik II of Abyssinia.Read more at Gadaa