Vicious circle of Ethiopian politics: Prospects and challenges of current political reform

Abstract

In Ethiopia, different political reforms have taken place. Following this, the country circled viciously into wars at many times. The Derg regime deposed Emperor Haile Selassie in 1974. And the Derg was defeated by the Ethiopian People Revolutionary Democratic Front coalition party in 1991. Albeit the coalition party ruled Ethiopia for more than 27 years, it obliged to make political reform because of high protest from Oromo youths. However, there are debates among scholars regarding the success of current political reforms in Ethiopia. It needs the attention of scholars and political scientists to examine the vicious circle of Ethiopian political reforms. This study addresses the knowledge gaps concerning the prospects and challenges of current political reform in Ethiopia. The finding of this research reveals that the beginning of the political reforms was hopeful because of released political prisoners, returned an exiled political opponents, Ethio-Eritrea rapprochement, and empowerment of women. Later, the constitutional crisis, detentions of many people and opponents, violations of fundamental rights, and war between the central government and the Tigray Region challenged the reforms. It concluded that the Ethiopian political reform circled viciously and could not realize the intended goals because there is mass detention, killing, and eviction like previous governments. The researcher recommended that the detained people and opposition political parties need to be released and come to the table discussion and debate to realize the reform and ensure democratization.