TPLF: reform or decline?

Abstract

Founded and led by the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) came to power in 1991, after a sixteen-year armed struggle against the military regime that had ruled Ethiopia since 1974. While not formally a marxist-leninist party, the TPLF nonetheless was devoted to these ideals and they figured prominently in the structure and functioning of the organisation. While the TPLF's base represented the peasantry of Tigray, its leadership was dominated by young, radical intellectuals. Itself representing an ethnic group of relatively modest size, the TPLF formed a coalition of ethnically based organisations, the EPRDF, in 1989, to give itself Ethiopia-wide political scope and legitimacy. Once it came to power, the Front faced serious problems of adjustment, but managed to overcome them thanks to the coherence of its programme, the commitment of its cadres, and the cohesiveness of its leadership. In the face of dramatically changed international circumstances, the EPRDF moderated its policies, abandoning marxism and embracing the free market. It weathered an insurrection by the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) in 1992-93, contained Islamist incursions from Sudan and Somalia, won the war against Eritrea (1998-2000), achieved a measure of economic progress, and took large steps towards state decentralisation and smaller ones towards democratisation.

Social Protection in an Aspiring 'Developmental State': The Political Drivers of Ethiopia's PSNP

“…A key rupture within the ruling coalition occurred in 2001, leading to a split in the TPLF and purge of dissidents from EPRDF parties (Milkias 2003, Tadesse andYoung 2003). While the flashpoint was the handling of the Eritrean war (1998)(1999)(2000), the rupture became a more fundamental debate about the future of the party, with dissidents concerned about the move away from the socialist ideology that had guided the liberation struggle.…”

A Fiscal History of Ethiopia: Taxation and Aid Dependence 1960-2010

“…A central characteristic of the Imperial style of government, which remained a trait of Ethiopian political culture more generally, is related to distrust, secretiveness and suspicion (Levine, 1961;Clapham, 1988;Medhane Tadesse and Young, 2003). Levine (1961) describes this system of mutual spying and constant shu✏ing of political appointments, which was aimed at minimising organised dissent and ensuring loyalty to the emperor.…”

“…Second, some of the traditional practices of the EPRDF, such as the system of evaluation of the leadership, 9 found opposition amongst bureaucrats at the national level. Third, the rise to power of EPRDF resulted in a gradual distancing of its leadership from its peasant base, which was ever more anxious to see its demands met as well as improvements on poverty and development (Young, 1997;Medhane Tadesse and Young, 2003).…”

“…The first one, led by Meles and eventually prevailing, was more sensitive to international pressure and was thus in favour of a conciliatory approach that would lead to an early ending to the conflict. The second faction was in favour of a full-scale o↵ensive against Eritrea (Medhane Tadesse and Young, 2003). The war was certainly one of the causes of the 2001 TPLF crisis, but not the only one.…”

Ambiguous elections: the influence of non-electoral politics in Ethiopian democratisation

“…The leadership has its own understanding of democracy, which differs significantly from liberal democracy (see also Milkias 2001). The EPRDF's perception of democracy is formed partly by ideological conditioning (Marxist and Maoist precepts of mass political mobilisation), and partly by historical experience during the TPLF's seventeen-year struggle to liberate Tigray from the yoke of the Derg regime (Tadesse & Young 2003). Indeed, the EPRDF has considered liberal democracy to be a misfit under the social, economic and political conditions prevailing in Ethiopia.…”