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The Pro and Counter Narratives of Anoole Memorial Monument in the Ethiopian Polity

Received: 21 February 2017    Accepted: 8 March 2017    Published: 18 October 2017
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Abstract

Monuments play great role to transfer history from one generation to next generation. In Ethiopia, several memorial monuments have been constructed based on internal and external war histories. Historians usually wrote external war histories in which one country fought with another country or external power more or less in similar ways. On the histories of civil war, however, historians sometimes wrote either supporting or opposing, its good or bad side of the civil war. The narratives of civil war histories have been also reproduced by the victim and perpetrator side at different focal points. Accordingly, Anoole memorial monument was constructed based on civil war history happened during the monarchical regime in Ethiopia. The purpose of this study is to examine the Pro and Counter narratives of Anoole memorial monument in the Ethiopian polity. In-depth interview and document analysis are employed as means to generate data. The in-depth interview is held with professionals who have an opposite argument on the narratives of Anoole monument from academic arena (History, Political Science and Fine Art), and political sphere (Blue party, AEUP and OPDO). Three from Academics and three from political sphere in general six professionals are interviewed. Besides, four nongovernment magazines (Konjo, Addis Guday, Jano and Lomi) which gave high coverage for the issue of Anoole monument, and document of Oromia Culture and Tourism Bureau which take the initiation of Anoole memorial monument construction are selected for analysis. The collected data are analyzed qualitatively and the result of the study reveals that the main pro and counter narratives of Anoole memorial monument emphasize on its history that related to power and the design of Anoole statue. The study makes suggestions as to how these contradictory narratives about Anoole monument could be reconciled and the way statues based civil war histories as a commemorative text might be constructed in way that might reduce tensions among different groups.

Published in Advances in Sciences and Humanities (Volume 3, Issue 5)
DOI 10.11648/j.ash.20170305.11
Page(s) 43-49
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Anoole Statue, Civil War, History, Magazine

References
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[2] Alamayo Kano. (1901). The Oromo: An Ancient People in the State Of Menelik. Finfinnee. Oromia Culture and Tourism Bureau.
[3] Armstrong P and Choudhury B. (2006). Monument and Architecture in Shaping Bangladeshi National Identity. University of Sydney. Faculty of Architecture.
[4] Asafa Jallata. (2010). Celebrating Oromo Heroism and Commemorating the Oromo Marytrs' Day (Guyya Gootota Oromiyaa). Sociology Publications and Other Works. University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Retrieved on 12 March 2014 from http://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_socopubs/12
[5] Assefa Fissiha. (2006). Theory Versus Practice in the Implementation Ethiopia’s Ethnic Federalism. In Turton, D (ED), Ethnic Federalism: The Ethiopian Experience in Comparative Perspectives (pp 131-162). Oxford. James Currey.
[6] Bahru Zawde. (1991). A History of Modern Ethiopia, 1855-1974. London. James Currey.
[7] Baxter P. T. W, Hultin J. and Triulzi A. (1996). Being and Becoming OROMO: Historical and Anthropological Enquiries. USA. The Red Sea press, Inc.
[8] Bichaka Fayisa. (2004). The Journal of Oromo Studies. USA. Middle Tennessee State University.
[9] Cohen L, Manion L and Morrison K. (2005). Research Method in Education (5th ed). New York. Rutledge Falmer.
[10] Doresse, J. (1959). The Greatness of Ethiopia: Legends & Reality. In UNESCO report October, 1959, Africa’s Lost Past: The Startling Rediscovery of a Content (pp 30-32). France: UNESCO.
[11] Ezekiel Gabissa. (2014). Contested Terrain: The Oromo and Ethiopian Studies. USA. Lutheran University Press.
[12] Finneran N. (2012). Lucy to Lalibela: Heritage and Identity in Ethiopia in the Twenty-First Century. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 19:1, 41-61. Retrieved on 15 May 2014 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13527258.2011.633540
[13] Forest and Johnson. (2010). The Politics of Public Space: What Can Political Science Contribute to the Study of Monuments? Paper presented at Canadian Political Science Association; Montreal.
[14] Haji Abbas Ganamo. (1995). Menelik's Conquest as the Genesis of Ethiopian Crises. A case of the Arsi Oromo. The Oromo Commentary.
[15] Hashim Tewfik. (2010). Transition to Federalism: The Ethiopian Experience. Ottawa, Ontario. Forum of Federations.
[16] Kebede Tesema (1939 ). The Note of History. Addis Ababa.
[17] Keller J E. (1995). The Ethnogenesis of the Oromo Nation and Its Implications for Politics in Ethiopia. Journal of modern African studies, 33, 4, pp 621 – 634. Cambridge University press.
[18] Larsen L. (2013). Power, Politics and Public Monuments in Nairobi, Kenya. Retrieved on July 10, 2014 from http://www.opendemocracy.net
[19] Marcus H. (1994). A History of Ethiopia. Berkeley: University of California Press.
[20] Mekuria Bulcha. (1996). The Survival and Reconstruction of Oromo National Identity. In Being and Becoming OROMO: Historical and Anthropological Enquiries. (Ed.) by Baxter P. T. W, Hultin J. and Triulzi A. (1996). USA. The Red Sea press, Inc.
[21] Merera Gudina. (2003). Ethiopia: Competing Ethnic Nationalisms and the Quest for Democracy, 1960–2000. Addis Ababa. Chamber Printing House.
[22] Oromia Culture and Tourism Bureau. (2006). Culture and Tourism. 1st Ed. Finfinne.
[23] Tekletsadik Mekuria. (1951). The History of Ethiopia from Nubia- Aksum, Zagwue to the Atse Yiknoamilak Dynasty. Tinsea Printing Press. Addis Ababa.
[24] USIP. (2007). The Urge to Remember the Role of Memorials in Social Reconstruction and Transitional Justice. Stabilization and Reconstruction Series No. 5. Washington, DC. Retrieved on 8 April 2014 from www.usip.org
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    Mulualem Daba Tola. (2017). The Pro and Counter Narratives of Anoole Memorial Monument in the Ethiopian Polity. Advances in Sciences and Humanities, 3(5), 43-49. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20170305.11

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    Mulualem Daba Tola. The Pro and Counter Narratives of Anoole Memorial Monument in the Ethiopian Polity. Adv. Sci. Humanit. 2017, 3(5), 43-49. doi: 10.11648/j.ash.20170305.11

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    AMA Style

    Mulualem Daba Tola. The Pro and Counter Narratives of Anoole Memorial Monument in the Ethiopian Polity. Adv Sci Humanit. 2017;3(5):43-49. doi: 10.11648/j.ash.20170305.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ash.20170305.11,
      author = {Mulualem Daba Tola},
      title = {The Pro and Counter Narratives of Anoole Memorial Monument in the Ethiopian Polity},
      journal = {Advances in Sciences and Humanities},
      volume = {3},
      number = {5},
      pages = {43-49},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ash.20170305.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ash.20170305.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ash.20170305.11},
      abstract = {Monuments play great role to transfer history from one generation to next generation. In Ethiopia, several memorial monuments have been constructed based on internal and external war histories. Historians usually wrote external war histories in which one country fought with another country or external power more or less in similar ways. On the histories of civil war, however, historians sometimes wrote either supporting or opposing, its good or bad side of the civil war. The narratives of civil war histories have been also reproduced by the victim and perpetrator side at different focal points. Accordingly, Anoole memorial monument was constructed based on civil war history happened during the monarchical regime in Ethiopia. The purpose of this study is to examine the Pro and Counter narratives of Anoole memorial monument in the Ethiopian polity. In-depth interview and document analysis are employed as means to generate data. The in-depth interview is held with professionals who have an opposite argument on the narratives of Anoole monument from academic arena (History, Political Science and Fine Art), and political sphere (Blue party, AEUP and OPDO). Three from Academics and three from political sphere in general six professionals are interviewed. Besides, four nongovernment magazines (Konjo, Addis Guday, Jano and Lomi) which gave high coverage for the issue of Anoole monument, and document of Oromia Culture and Tourism Bureau which take the initiation of Anoole memorial monument construction are selected for analysis. The collected data are analyzed qualitatively and the result of the study reveals that the main pro and counter narratives of Anoole memorial monument emphasize on its history that related to power and the design of Anoole statue. The study makes suggestions as to how these contradictory narratives about Anoole monument could be reconciled and the way statues based civil war histories as a commemorative text might be constructed in way that might reduce tensions among different groups.},
     year = {2017}
    }
    

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    AB  - Monuments play great role to transfer history from one generation to next generation. In Ethiopia, several memorial monuments have been constructed based on internal and external war histories. Historians usually wrote external war histories in which one country fought with another country or external power more or less in similar ways. On the histories of civil war, however, historians sometimes wrote either supporting or opposing, its good or bad side of the civil war. The narratives of civil war histories have been also reproduced by the victim and perpetrator side at different focal points. Accordingly, Anoole memorial monument was constructed based on civil war history happened during the monarchical regime in Ethiopia. The purpose of this study is to examine the Pro and Counter narratives of Anoole memorial monument in the Ethiopian polity. In-depth interview and document analysis are employed as means to generate data. The in-depth interview is held with professionals who have an opposite argument on the narratives of Anoole monument from academic arena (History, Political Science and Fine Art), and political sphere (Blue party, AEUP and OPDO). Three from Academics and three from political sphere in general six professionals are interviewed. Besides, four nongovernment magazines (Konjo, Addis Guday, Jano and Lomi) which gave high coverage for the issue of Anoole monument, and document of Oromia Culture and Tourism Bureau which take the initiation of Anoole memorial monument construction are selected for analysis. The collected data are analyzed qualitatively and the result of the study reveals that the main pro and counter narratives of Anoole memorial monument emphasize on its history that related to power and the design of Anoole statue. The study makes suggestions as to how these contradictory narratives about Anoole monument could be reconciled and the way statues based civil war histories as a commemorative text might be constructed in way that might reduce tensions among different groups.
    VL  - 3
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    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Public Relation and Communication Studies, College of Social Sciences and Humanities, Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita Sodo, Ethiopia

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