Ethiopia has endured scores of atrocities over the past three years that have resulted in the death of thousands, the displacement of millions and the destruction of both private and public properties.

After a brief respite the massacre of innocent civilians is once again making the headlines.

The report published by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) on January 1into the three-day unrest that rocked some parts of the Oromia Region in the wake of the murder on June 29, 2020 of the Oromo singing sensation Hachalu Hundessa makes for grim reading.

Ethiopia has rarely enjoyed sustained peace and stability throughout its history. For centuries citizens from all walks of life in every corner of the country have been subjected to all manners of suffering by despotic rulers and generally speaking the political class who have always put their interest and that of their cronies above the national interest.

Throughout its long history Ethiopia has faced numerous ups and downs that had exacted heavy tolls. Domestic strife and the sacrifices paid to repel foreign aggressors have resulted in the destruction of both human capital and material wealth.

One of the traits that ought to become a norm in Ethiopian politics is to respect the will of the ultimate repositories of sovereign power—the people.

Reluctance to learn from history is once again recurring in Ethiopia, a nation that keeps on wasting the opportunities that come its way.

Now that the law enforcement campaign that the federal government had been prosecuting in northern Ethiopia for three weeks is over the country needs to swivel immediately back to development endeavors.

The third and final phase of the law enforcement operation the federal government is undertaking in the Tigray Regional State has commenced following the expiry of the 72-hour deadline it gave to the leadership of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) as well as the Tigray Special Forces and militia to surrender.

The wave of nationalism currently sweeping through Ethiopia is a testament to the fact that the unshakeable patriotism of its people can never be eroded by radical ethno-centrism or of other centrifugal forces.