ETHIOPIA: ASHA INDIGENOUS CONFLICT RESOLUTION APPARATUS OF THE ME’EN COMMUNITY

Abstract

Every community has its own indigenous institutions meant to deal with its social, political, economic and peacemaking endeavors. Focus of this article is Asha indigenous conflict resolution institution of the Me’en community. For the studied community, Asha, signifies a payment for ‘blood’ and exhibits ritual restitution. Ritual restitution within Asha is administered by ritual chiefs known as Komoruts. Objective of this article is exploring the Asha approach for conflict resolution. To realize this objective, the researcher employed qualitative research design enhanced with twelve key-informant interview and two Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). Built up on such data, findings of the study revealed four conclusions. First, irrespective of the fact that Asha is an approach owned by Me’en communities, adjoining communities abide by it. Secondly, Asha is the only approach potent to solve conflicts that end up with human demise. Thirdly, notwithstanding the endeavor by local and regional governments to make Asha compatible with notion of human right principles, there is trivial acceptance by the study community members, especially by lowlanders. Fourthly, the research finding unpacked that Asha has weakness when it comes to promoting human right of the teenage girl given for reconciliation. Additionally, Asha also botched to respect due process of law. Generally speaking, the article concluded that Asha is as a doubled edged sword, vivacious and viral. On one side, Asha is the only approach for restoring broken social relationships and reconciling conflict cases that end up with human demise. On the other side, Asha is an approach that contravenes human right of the teenage girl. In glimpse of these, the researcher recommends neither deserting nor romanticizing Ethiopian indigenous conflict resolution mechanisms such as Asha without further research and remedial measures to make them compatible with Universal Human Right principles. Keywords: Asha, conflict, conflict resolution, Me’en, indigenous conflict resolution.