Browsing by Author "Dessalegn, Beza"
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Item Ethiopia: Legal response to Covid-19(Oxford University Press, 2021) Ayele, Zemelak A; Fessha, Yonatan T; Dessalegn, BezaThe Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE),1 which was promulgated in 1995, is the supreme law of the country which, among other things, defines the Ethiopian state and government structures.2 It organized Ethiopia, a formerly unitary state, into a federation.3 The Ethiopian federation is composed of a federal government and 10 states, and one constitutionally recognised self-governing city (Addis Ababa).4 The states are Afar, Amhara, Benishangul-Gumuz, Gambella, Harari, Oromia, Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples (SNNP), Somali, Tigray, and Sidama. Dire Dawa, another selfgoverning federal city, does not have constitutional recognition. Ethiopia is a parliamentary system under which the Prime Minister is appointed by the lower house of parliament.The federal system is one that aims to accommodate the ethnic diversity of the Ethiopian people. The subnational units of the federation, save for the two federal cities, are structured along ethnic lines.6 Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa, the two largest and multi-ethnic cities, are under the jurisdiction of the federal government. Local government, not constitutionally recognised as a level of government, is within the exclusive competencies of the states.Item Freedom of religion and minority rights in South Africa(MPDI, 2021) Fessha, Yonatan T.; Dessalegn, BezaThe South African Constitution contains an extensive list of rights, several of which are relevant, directly or indirectly, to accommodate the needs of persons that belong to a religious minority group in South Africa. This article examines the extent to which these protections are utilized by individuals and courts and explores the interplay between these various sources of protection that religious minority groups and their members can rely on. It will examine the courts’ case law on freedom of religion to determine whether the courts have relied on one or all of the rights offered by the Constitution when dealing with claims made by persons belonging to a religious minority group. The reasons for and impacts of the choices that the courts have made will also be investigated. Equally important are the choices made by persons belonging to a religious minority group when approaching courts to vindicate their rights.Item Mobility and ethnic federalism in Ethiopia(Addis Ababa University, 2019) Dessalegn, Beza; Fessha, YonatanEthiopia’s federal dispensation, ushered under the 1995 Constitution, guarantees ethnic groups – constitutionally termed as “nations, nationalities and peoples” – a wide array of self-rule rights. The Constitution also provides for a number of individual rights, including the free movement of citizens within the country. In a federal setup where subnational and local boundaries are constructed along ethno-linguistic lines, the mobility of individuals presents both opportunities and challenges. While the free movement of citizens provides unique opportunities including fighting stereotypes, facilitating inter-cultural exchange, and reinforcing cultural bonds, it has also the potential to create tension with members of the host community that perceive mobility of individuals as a threat against their constitutionally recognized self-rule rights. This paper examines how the Ethiopian federal setup, without adequate legal framework, is struggling to address these competing demands and, as a result, has probably undermined both citizenship and ethnic rights.Item Origins, relevance and prospects of federalism and decentralization in the horn of Africa(2022) Fessha, Yonatan T.; Dessalegn, BezaThe Horn of Africa is the most conflict-ridden region in the African continent. Both inter-and intra-state conflicts have dominated the region. In a bid to check intra-state conflicts and accommodate ethno-national and religious diversity, federal or federal like models of governance have been proposed, discussed, and, in some cases, adopted across the region. Focusing on Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan and South Sudan, this article discusses the origin, reasons, and prospects of the federal idea in the Horn. The article argues that the major rationale for the federal idea in the Horn is the containment of communal tensions. Yet, the track record of federalism in alleviating communal tensions has not been encouraging. This is partly related to design issues that have undermined the efforts to use federalism to address communal tensions. More importantly, however, the commitment to genuinely implement the federal idea has largely been absent.