Saturday, July 20, 2019
Referendum for new Sidama region in Ethiopia announced amid protests
Tensions over the Sidama ethnic group’s attempt to form a semiautonomous state within Ethiopia boiled over into turmoil and violence this week with three deaths reported in Hawassa after officials announced a delay in the state’s creation. According to Reuters, a political party representing some of the Sidama said it would postpone the immediate creation of the semiautonomous state and instead wait for a referendum in five months. Notably, the country’s constitution requires that the government hold a referendum for “any ethnic group that wants to form a new entity,” but critics state that that timeline has already passed.
Author
Christina Golubski
Assistant Director – Africa Growth Initiative
The Sidama are the largest ethnic group in the multiethnic Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region, of which Hawassa is the capital. Notably, the decisions around this issue may have a domino effect: The Sidama, who make up 5 percent of Ethiopia’s population, are one of at least nine ethnic groups within the country pushing for their own regions.