Zergaw, Alem (2015) Language Policy and its Impact on Rights of Individuals Belonging to Minorities to Job Opportunity under the Current Federal System: A Case Study of Abomsa Town in Merti Woreda of Oromia Region. Masters thesis, Addis Ababa University.
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Abstract
Many scholars define the term federalism in different ways. As noted by Elazar (1987), „federalism is a constitutional arrangement involving two or more orders of government combining elements of shared rule and self-rule. These shared rule through a common government for certain specified purposes and regional self -rule for constituent region units of government for other purposes. The objective of this is to combine and enhance unity and diversity by accommodating, preserving and promoting distinct identities within a large political union (Watts, 2013). Currently, the federal political systems are progressively used by states as a mechanism to accommodate ethnic diversities. This has happened from the potential of the federal ideas as a way of peacefully reconciling unity and diversity within a single political system. Hence, federal system help to prevent and manage ethnically inspired or associated conflicts and in this way ensure stability within the state (Beken, 2007). Today, there are around two dozen of countries including Ethiopia in the world with federal form of government and state structure. After the demise of the military regime in 1991, the new Ethiopian leaders of the Ethiopian People‟s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) declared their commitment to a clean break with the past and established a political system that ensure equality, rule of law, and the right to self-determination for all ethnically defined groups in the country. The recognition of Ethiopian ethnic diversity became the central principle of the new regime‟s policy (Getahun, 2007 and Assefa, 2006). The 1995 constitution establishes a federal and democratic state structure which gave autonomous right to federated units. It has acknowledged past operation and exploitation of ethnic groups. Furthermore, it clearly states that the constitution is an expression of sovereignty of nations, nationalities and peoples. As noted in the constitution, every nation nationality and people in Ethiopia has the right to speak, write and develop its own language, as well as to develop and to promote its culture and to preserve its history (art.39/1-4). The current federal system constitutes nine regional states and two city administrations of Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa. One can categories these constituent units into two in terms of ethnic composition. The first categories composed of Tigray, Afar, Amhara, Oromia and Somali. These states have one dominant ethnic group and their language as the working languages. Other minority ethnic groups live within these states. These minorities composed of both indigenous minorities with their defined territory and non-indigenous migrants who came in search of economic opportunities from other part of the country (Fiseha Haftesion 2008:10). The second categories are the multi-ethnic regions states such as, SNNPRS, Benishangul-Gumuz Gambella and Harari. These regional states are home to different ethnic groups. The first three states adopted Amharic as their official working languages; while the state of Harari uses the two languages spoken by the two major ethnic groups of the region i.e. Harari and Oromiffa. Both in terms of population and territorial size, the Oromia regional state is the most populous and largest region in the country. In this regional state, the Oromiffa is the working language of the region. This study examines the impacts of language policy under the current federal system up on minorities taking Abomsa town which is the administrative town of Merti Woreda in the Oromia region. The Merti Woreda found in the Arsi zone in Oromia regional state. In terms of ethnic composition in the woreda, the Oromo is the dominant nation followed by Amhara minority group. The Oromo constitutes 75.29% while the Amhara is 26.3 % in the Woreda. However, there are other minorities constitute 2.45% of the total population in the Woreda (CSA, 2007). The total population in Abomsa town is 14,564 (ibid). From this total population, minorities constitute 4,396 populations in the town. From different minorities, Amhara, Guragie and Tigrie minorities constitute highest number. Therefore, this study investigates the impacts of existing language policy under the current federal system on the job opportunities of those minorities in the study Woreda administrative town.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | A General Works > AZ History of Scholarship The Humanities H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform H Social Sciences > HT Communities. Classes. Races |
| Divisions: | Africana |
| Depositing User: | Tim Khabala |
| Date Deposited: | 24 May 2018 14:16 |
| Last Modified: | 24 May 2018 14:16 |
| URI: | http://thesisbank.jhia.ac.ke/id/eprint/4054 |
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