Getasfaw

The recent violence against Christians and Orthodox churches in Arsi isn't just another local clash or random violence. It is part of a clear, deliberate pattern that has become a primary governing framework in Ethiopia since 2018. When leaders in the federal government and Oromia region embrace an exclusionary Oromummaa political ideology as their guiding philosophy, anti-Orthodox hostility becomes official state practice across five key areas. 1. POLITICAL: The attacks in Arsi aren't accidental. Federal and regional officials have spent years labeling the Orthodox Church as a political tool of the past to turn people against it. The goal is simple: weaken the Church’s independence, silence its voice, and force it under complete state control. 2. CULTURAL: When top leaders and opinion makers talk about centuries-old Orthodox heritage, ancient manuscripts, holy sites, and traditions as symbols of oppression, they give a green light to destroy them. The burning and tearing down of churches and massing its followers is the direct result of this hateful narrative coming from the top leaders, the elites, and the opinion makers. 3. RELIGIOUS: Instead of addressing legitimate community needs in good faith, authorities are actively tearing the Church apart from within. Federal and state officials have hijacked internal church issues to split leadership, force out uncooperative clergy, and install figures who will do the government's political oromumma bidding. 4. ECONOMIC: Destroying homes, taking farms, and burning down local shops isn't just mindless destruction. It is meant to ruin lives permanently. By turning a blind eye to the economic destruction of Christians, state and federal leaders are trying to force people off their land and change the region's demographics forever. 5. PHYSICAL: The state’s primary job is to keep its people safe, but in the Oromia regional state, security forces stood by while innocent believers and priests were attacked or, in some cases, actively participated. Abiy Ahmed and Oromia’s regional leaders hold direct command-level responsibility for these security failures and the complete lack of justice for victims. We cannot let the government dismiss what happened in Arsi as an isolated incident or routine conflict. It is the direct result of an ideology that has been built into the highest levels of government since Abiy came to power in 2018. Abiy Ahmed, federal officials, and Oromia regional leaders are fully accountable for turning state power against Orthodox Christians and destroying their communities.