An African Revolution

 “Ethiopia in Theory – Revolution and Knowledge Production, 1964-2016, by Elleni Centime Zeleke, 2019

This is an academic, social-science literature review of the Ethiopian Revolution, which occurred in 1974 with the overthrow of Haile Selassie, royal power and feudal relations in the countryside.  Subsequently, power was taken by a leftist, nationalist military called the Derg in 1975, which ruled until 1991 in the context of local rebellions by various ethnicities – Tigray, Oromo, Eritrean.  These ethno-nationalist rebellions were supported by parts of the student left under the banner of the right of self-determination, egalitarianism and support for the peasantry.  “Derg” is the Ethiopian word for ‘committee,’ which is how young officers in the Derg started within the military.

Zeleke is most concerned with the views of the world-wide Ethiopian student movement, which embraced forms of Marxism – mostly Maoism - as their ideology in the reshaping of Ethiopia.  Although her purpose – “My intellectual project is to open the future by seeking contradiction in ‘the air we breathe’” - is quite vague. The Derg itself was embraced by the USSR, as were many left nationalist revolts in Africa.  She sees three main actors in Ethiopia – the centralist military, the student ‘elite’ (“salitariat” by one writer) and the rural peasants of various ethnicities.  The military was based in Addis Ababa, mostly on the Amharic people and took a top-down approach to rule, which some called ‘Leninist.’

Notably absent in the book is any discussion of a working class or proletariat in the cities or countryside, which is a bit astonishing, as Marxism centers the proletariat.  Even the peasantry only goes by an ethnic role, not as an ‘Ethiopian’ peasantry.  

In actual fact what Zeleke describes seems to be a revolution creating a modern nation-state, cloaked in the anti-imperialist and egalitarian language of Marxism. This revolution used advanced state intervention to do it.  The Ethiopian government that came after the Derg has opened the country to imperial investment, while still not solving the ‘peripheral’ ethnic conflicts that have existed since Selassie’s time.  The present situation in Tigray is an example. The 1995 Constitution allows the ‘right of self-determination’ up to and including separation – if possible.  I have been told that the Tigrayan region could not have been economically viable until they took over neighboring areas.  Zeleke covers some writers who point out that there was no ‘Tigrayan’ identity until the civil war against the Derg shaped it.

Zeleke reviews various writers – some pro-Derg, some pro-secessionist or pro-student movement or pro-liberal/pro-conservative or pro-U.S. – who argue about the course of the revolution and its aftermath.  "Modernism" was one of the key terms of the initial discussions.  Later it became framed as ‘post-colonial theory.’ The Ethiopian student movement diaspora in the U.S., Algeria and Europe initially embraced Marxism or Maoism, and she focuses on the influence of these groupings most of all.  (She references their work as an “upgrading of Lenin through Maoist principles,” which should give pause.)  Later some of them inspired the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front (EPLF) and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) rebellions against the Derg.  

Zeleke is not a clear Marxist, but someone who wants to find out how ‘ideas’ influenced actual policy in Ethiopia.  She is really looking at how the students were ‘good’ or ‘bad’ social scientists.  She ‘seems’ to take a materialist view, so the focus on cultural or national ideas is put in that context.  The reason I am not so sure is because she also relies on stories and memories of loss – or ‘tizitka’ in Ethiopian.

1974 Ethiopian Revolution

One writer calls what happened in Ethiopia a ‘national democratic revolution’ akin to Maoist ‘new democracy.’  Another a ‘passive revolution;’ a third a ‘people’s democratic upsurge.’ In 1975 the Derg, a year after the upsurge, and under influence of the student movement, carried out land reform under the demand “land to the tiller.”  It nationalized housing and large banks and industries.  It created cooperatives for peasants and urbanites.  At the same time, elements of the student movement promoted Debrayist ‘focoism’ – guerilla war against the centralized and ethnically repressive Derg.  This split reflected the interests of various ethnic and national rural peasant communities, an approach also influenced by Maoism.  Some characterized the war as between ‘red terror’ (Derg) and ‘white terror’ (EPLF/TPLF).    

Zeleke describes the various individuals, periodicals and groups that backed each side in the debate, which actually had more than 2 sides, as there were also proletarian organizations that remained independent of the two.  These ideas led to ‘war making’ in her terminology.

(Review to be continued…)  Thanks to Solomon for loaning me the book!

Prior blog reviews on this subject, use blog search box, upper left, to search the 14 year archive of reviews:  “Amiable With Big Teeth,” “Land Grabbing,” “Slave States,” “Female Genital Mutilation,” “Comrade Harry McAllister,” “Dirty Wars,” or the word 'Africa.'

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Red Frog

June 1, 2021