Eighteen years after the change of power and the ushering in of the second Ethiopian republic in 1991, the political process in Ethiopia has, according to most observers, rigidified and largely... Show moreEighteen years after the change of power and the ushering in of the second Ethiopian republic in 1991, the political process in Ethiopia has, according to most observers, rigidified and largely closed the space for representative democracy. This paper looks at the main organizing political ideas of Ethiopia's Second Republic and at the nature of its governance techniques in the face of domestic and international challenges, with reference to the debate on "failing" or "fragile" States. It argues that the new "social contract" defined after 1991 and codified in the 1994 Constitution is precarious. Dissent and ethno-regional resistance to federal policies are dealt with mainly by coercion and discursive isolation. Oppositional forces voice the need for a rethinking of the organizing ideas and institutions of the Second Republic in order to enhance political consensus and a shared political arena, but get little response. The paper sketches an interpretation of governance in Ethiopia, focusing on the dilemma of reconciling local and modernist political practices, and discusses the status of "republican" ideas, in name important in Ethiopia but mostly absent in practice. Explicit debate of these ideas is usually sidelined - also in academic commentaries - in favour of a focus on the ethno-federal ideology of the Ethiopian State. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. in English and German. [Journal abstract] Show less
This paper presents an updated genealogy of all Somali 'clans'. Somali kinship is based on patrilineal descent or 'tol', but there are no equivalents in the Somali language for the words 'clan'... Show moreThis paper presents an updated genealogy of all Somali 'clans'. Somali kinship is based on patrilineal descent or 'tol', but there are no equivalents in the Somali language for the words 'clan' and 'lineage'. The Somali terminology for the levels of social segmentation is complex, amongst others because of processes of territorial dispersion and social change. The author distinguishes the following levels of descent: clan-families, clan moieties or territorial divisions, clans, subclans, lineages, and sublineages. A separate section deals with groups 'outside' the clan framework. An appendix lists the main political organizations and/or 'warrior' or 'warlord' groups and their dominant (sub)clan since the 1991 central State collapse. Show less
