|
|
AEGIS European Conference on African Studies
11 - 14 July 2007
African Studies Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands
New Voices of the Horn: Dialogue to Challenge Common Problems
| Panel |
89. Makers of the Ethiopian Political Crisis
|
| Paper ID | 809 |
| Author(s) |
Ashenafi, Abiy
|
| Paper |
No paper submitted
|
| Abstract | The challenges and past and present experiences of refugees from the Horn have a great deal in common. Around 38 thousand people originally from the Horn currently reside in the Netherlands (CBS, 2006). A large number have been living here for quite a long time and a new generation is being born. There is a sense of communality they develop as they interact among themselves and with the Dutch society. People from the Horn have learned to speak the same language (Dutch). The common Dutch people ususally take one group for the other, although the Horn constitutes different countries. This aspect of relationship could have positive influence in developing the rationales to address challenges of common intersest. An attempt will be made to discuss the role of the Diaspora from the Horn to create a basis for dialogue where people could find a common ground for understanding each other and contribute to the stability of the region. Concurrently we shall ponder over the role of academicians, the Dutch government and the specific role of the concerned self-help organizations.
The experience of an Ethiopian umbrella self-help organization will be taken as a case in point. There is also a movement of Ethiopians, Somalis and Sudanese that aim to create a common platform and strengthen the bondage of the people from the region here in the Netherlands. Interestingly enough, the crisis in Somalia has accelerated the pace for creating such a platform. The potentials and experiences of such civic movement through which dialogue and understanding would evolve will be explored. |
|