Federalism and the Accommodation of Diversity in Ethiopia - Research Paper Example

Federalism and the Accommodation of Diversity in Ethiopia: Comparative Study Assefa (2006) emphasizesthe purpose of federalism in sustenance of the peaceful coexistence among the people of ethnic diversities. The comparative study reflects on the political viability of the federalism for resource optimization and power sharing between representatives of multicultural federations. The federal system in Ethiopia provides the expedient case study for understanding the political concept as the reconciling unit for diverse populations.

The suppressive policy of Derg regime in Ethiopia could not bring the people together. Assefa finds the role of federal system into decentralizing power addresses the issues of nationality through accommodation of nation's diverse ethno linguistic groups in Ethiopia. The distribution of power on the basis of legislative, executive, and judicial dimension among the federal government and states assists in creating strategic framework for economic, social, and development policies. The constituent units of federalism in Ethiopia are the House of Peoples Representatives (HoPR) and the House of Federation (HoF).

The HoF acts as the balancing agent on the contentious issues between states represented by HoPR. Although the systematic design of federalism in Ethiopia resembles with the multicultural federation in other countries, the inclusion of the Nations and Nationalities along with people distinguishes it from the traditional standards of including only people. The constitution requires the congruity between all these three elements- nations, nationality, and people. This raises the concern for official recognition of the languages from various section of population at both state and federal level to protect their identity.

The 1995 Federal Constitution defines Amharic as the official language of the federal and empowers the members of states to choose their languages to preserve the cultural identity along with maintaining national unity. The success of federalism in Ethiopia requires the emergence of political stabilizing will to act in diverse groups to raise the feeling of national unity. The creation and recognition of agencies to maintain the law and order at the national and state level is necessary for resolving the conflict among forces of diverse nature.

The federalism must safeguard the interest of minorities. Assefa (2006) affirms the selection of federalism in Ethiopia as the right steps in providing autonomy to states for pursuing the interest of different ethnic groups and leverage the capability of resources in open and all-inclusive political space to accommodate the diversity. Works CitedAssefa, Fiseha. Federalism and the Accommodation of Diversity in Ethiopia: Comparative Study. Addis Ababa: Artistic Printing Enterprise, 2006. Print.