Ethiopia: ONLF has suspended its participation in the Ethiopian National Dialogue. The announcement came from the Ogaden National Liberation Front through an official statement.
ONLF was established in 1984 to fight for the Somalis in the Ogaden for their right of self-determination. They demanded autonomy of this region and began an insurgency in 1994 aimed at Ethiopian forces in the area, which the government considers a region under the new federal system. The ONLF is composed mainly of members of the Somali Ogaden clan.
The armed wing of the ONLF was the Ogaden National Liberation Army (ONLA). Supporters of the ONLF generally aspire to create an independent, sovereign Somali-majority state consisting primarily of what is now Ethiopia’s Somalia Region. ONLF supporters generally refer to the entire area of this future state as Ogandea or Ogandenia even though the name is controversial among some groups because of its clan-affiliation.
In 2018, ONLF laid down arms and signed a peace deal with the Ethiopian government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The ONLF turned into a registered political party. But it has been accusing the federal government of Ethiopia of violating the 2018 peace agreement. It boycotted 2021 general election.
Ogaden National Liberation Front has announced its suspension from the Ethiopia’s National Dialogue process, effective from October 20, 2024, due to lack of inclusivity and transparency. This national dialogue has been ongoing in Ethiopia for over a year but major opposition parties in Ethiopia including Oromo Liberation Front and Oromo Federalist Congress etc are boycotting the dialogue.
One of the reasons mentioned by ONLF for its suspension from national dialogue is the current situation in the Somali region of Ethiopia. ONLF, in a statement last month, accused Prosperity Party of militarizing the entire Somali region and forcing tribal elders to deny their Somali identity. Earlier in a statement last month, ONLF demanded correction and explanation from Birhanu Jula, the Ethiopian military chief. The Ethiopian military chief recently claimed that Egypt formed and funded ONLF, OLA and other Ethiopian armed groups.
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