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Drinking, Rumour, and Ethnicity in Jimma, Ethiopia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 March 2011

Daniel Mains
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Abstract

This paper is an investigation of the relationship between identity, politics, and rumours in Jimma, Ethiopia. The introduction of ethnic federalism in Ethiopia after the fall of the Marxist Derg regime in 1991 has been the topic of a significant amount of academic discussion, but little attention has been given to the day-to-day experience of this change. Consequently, post-1991 Ethiopian politics have been viewed primarily in terms of ethnic power struggles. An analysis of rumours that are circulated through casual conversation enables a better understanding of popular reactions to ethnic federalism. In particular, rumours regarding the drinking habits of Oromo Muslims and the political behaviour of Protestants reveal that ethnicity is closely intertwined with religion and nationalism. This analysis also demonstrates how a particularly Ethiopian form of discourse functions as a means both of resisting and coping with loss of political power and economic decline. Finally, it explores how international news media coverage of Christian–Muslim conflict and anxieties about globalisation are interrelated with local power struggles. In this paper, rumours are treated as a discourse that provides a window into the worldview of the speaker in order to explore how individuals negotiate political change and construct difference at the everyday level.

Résumé

Ce papier est une investigation sur la relation entre identité, politique et rumeurs à Jimma, en Éthiopie. L'introduction du fédéralisme ethnique en Éthiopie après la chute du régime marxiste Derg en 1991 a été le sujet de nombreuses discussions académiques, mais on s'est peu intéressé à l'expérience quotidienne de ce changement. C'est pourquoi la politique éthiopienne post- 1991 a été essentiellement considérée en termes de luttes ethniques pour le pouvoir. Une analyse des rumeurs véhiculées dans la conversation ordinaire permet de mieux comprendre les réactions populaires vis-à-vis du fédéralisme ethnique. En particulier, les rumeurs sur les habitudes de consommation d'alcool des musulmans oromo et le comportement politique des protestants révèlent que l'ethnicité est étroitement liée à la religion et au nationalisme. Cette analyse montre également la manière dont une forme particulièrement éthiopienne des fonctions du discours en tant que moyen à la fois de résistance et d'adaptation à la perte du pouvoir politique et au déclin économique. Enfin, il examine le lien entre, d'une part, le traitement par les organes d'information internationaux du conflit entre chrétiens et musulmans et des inquiétudes soulevées par la globalisation et, d'autre part, les luttes locales pour le pouvoir. Dans ce papier, les rumeurs sont traitées comme un discours qui ouvre une fenêtre sur la vision du monde du locuteur afin d'étudier la manière dont les individus négocient le changement politique et construisent la différence au quotidien.

Type
Research Article
Information
Africa , Volume 74 , Issue 3 , August 2004 , pp. 341 - 360
Copyright
Copyright © International African Institute 2004

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