The Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Front ( am, የአፋር አብዮታዊ ዴሞክራሲያዊ አንድነት ግንባር;
abbreviated
An abbreviation (from Latin ''brevis'', meaning ''short'') is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method. It may consist of a group of letters or words taken from the full version of the word or phrase; for example, the word ''abbrevia ...
ARDUF) is an
Afar political party in
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
, founded in 1993. It had been a member of the
United Ethiopian Democratic Forces
The United Ethiopian Democratic Forces ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ዴሞክራሲዊ ኃይሎቸ ሕብረት) was a coalition of several political parties in Ethiopia which combined to compete for seats in the Ethiopian general elections held ...
(UEDF) coalition opposition party.
Its name in the
Afar language
The Afar language ( aa, Qafaraf, links=no; also known as ’Afar Af, Afaraf, Qafar af) is an Afroasiatic language belonging to the Cushitic branch. It is spoken by the Afar people inhabiting Djibouti, Eritrea and Ethiopia.
Classification
Afar ...
is ''Qafar Uguugumoh Demokrasiyyoh Inkiinoh Fooca'', often simplified to just Uguugumo (also spelled ''Uguguma'' or ''Ugogomo''),
[Report on Mission to Zone 2 (Afar National Regional State)](_blank)
, United Nations Development Program. Emergencies Unit for Ethiopia. meaning "Revolution", a term sometimes reserved for its militant wing and often confused as being a separate organization that is simply closely tied to ARDUF.
History
The party was founded in March 1993 as a coalition of three Afar organizations: the
Afar Revolutionary Democratic Unity Union
Afar may refer to:
Peoples and languages
* Afar language, an East Cushitic language
*Afar people, an ethnic group of Djibouti, Eritrea, and Ethiopia
Places Horn of Africa
*Afar Desert or Danakil Desert, a desert in Ethiopia
*Afar Region, a regio ...
(ARDUU), founded in 1991 and led by
Mohamooda Gaas (or Gaaz); the ''Afar Ummatah Demokrasiyyoh Focca'' (AUDF); and the
Afar Revolutionary Forces (ARF). Mohamooda Gaas was elected as its
Secretary General
Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...
in 1995, but refused the post, leaving it to his deputy
Muhyadin Mafatah, who was later extradited from
Djibouti
Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...
to
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...
, Ethiopia in August 1996, where he was jailed with two other Afar leaders,
Habib Mahammad Yayyo and
Jamal Abdulkadir Redo.
Activities
In March 1995, ARDUF was involved in the kidnapping of Italian tourists in the
Afar Region
The Afar Region (; aa, Qafar Rakaakayak; am, አፋር ክልል), formerly known as Region 2, is a regional state in northeastern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Afar people. Its capital is the planned city of Semera, which lies on the paved ...
of Ethiopia, resulting in an Ethiopian military campaign against the group, coordinated with the
Eritrean government
The Politics of Eritrea and the Government of Eritrea takes place in a framework of a single-party presidential republican totalitarian dictatorship. The President officially serves as both head of state and head of government. The People's F ...
. Travelers reported clashes between ARDUF and Ethiopian government forces in the
Dallol district through 1995, including attacks on the homes and property of
Afar People's Democratic Organization
Afar may refer to:
Peoples and languages
* Afar language, an East Cushitic language
*Afar people, an ethnic group of Djibouti, Eritrea, and Ethiopia
Places Horn of Africa
*Afar Desert or Danakil Desert, a desert in Ethiopia
*Afar Region, a regio ...
(APDO) members as "traitors", which led an end of all traffic on caravan trade routes through the Dallol area and resulting food shortages. Political attempts at reconciliation were made in October 1997 with the creation of an Afar conference, and again in November, though both of these failed. Mohamooda Gaas made a statement declaring unilateral cease-fire with government forces on 5 June 1998 after the beginning of the 1998-2000
Eritrean-Ethiopian War and an Eritrean attack on the town of
Alitena
Alitena ( Ge'ez: ዓሊተና) is a town in northern Ethiopia, located in the Misraqawi (Eastern) Zone of the Tigray Region. Alitena was the administrative center of Irob woreda until Dawhan was made the new center in 2003.
History
19th Ce ...
, inhabited primarily by
Irob people
The Irob people ( Ge'ez: ኢሮብ ''ʾirōb'', also spelled Erob) are an ethnic group who live in a predominantly highland, mountainous area by the same name in northeastern Tigray Region, Ethiopia. They speak the Saho language. Most of them pro ...
(an ethnicity closely related linguistically to Afars). As a result of the fighting's civilian casualties, ARDUF reconciled with the Ethiopian government to minimize civilian casualties in the region and condemned the Eritrean government's attacks.
ARDUF claimed responsibility for a January 16, 2012
attack on a group of tourists at
Erta Ale
Erta Ale (or Ertale or Irta'ale; Amharic: ኤርታሌ) is a continuously active basaltic shield volcano in the Afar Region of northeastern Ethiopia. It is situated in the Afar Depression, a barren desert area. Erta Ale is the most active volcano ...
in which five were killed, some taken as hostages and others wounded. In March 2012 ARDUF released two tourists kidnapped in the attack.
As of 5 November 2021 the ARDUF announced that it had joined the
United Front of Ethiopian Federalist and Confederalist Forces
The United Front of Ethiopian Federalist and Confederalist Forces (UFEFCF) is a coalition of six Ethiopian rebel groups, including the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), created in November 2021 during the ...
.
On 31 January 2022 the ARDUF announced that it was distancing itself from the
United Front of Ethiopian Federalist and Confederalist Forces
The United Front of Ethiopian Federalist and Confederalist Forces (UFEFCF) is a coalition of six Ethiopian rebel groups, including the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), created in November 2021 during the ...
after accusing Tigrayan forces of killing civilians in the
Afar region
The Afar Region (; aa, Qafar Rakaakayak; am, አፋር ክልል), formerly known as Region 2, is a regional state in northeastern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Afar people. Its capital is the planned city of Semera, which lies on the paved ...
.
After joining UEDF
In July 2003 ARDUF became a member of the newly formed UEDF coalition, in opposition to the ruling EPRDF party.
UEDF and Andinnet
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070221043356/http://addistribune.com/Archives/2004/08/27-08-04/UEDF.htm , date=2007-02-21 , Andinnet Yilemlim, 27 August 2004.[ Nations In The Hood](_blank)
{{webarchive , url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928185154/http://www.awate.com/portal/content/view/2119/7/ , date=September 28, 2007 , 21 September 2003. Soon after, on 20 September 2003, it issued a warning against foreigners entering the northern area of Afar Region
The Afar Region (; aa, Qafar Rakaakayak; am, አፋር ክልል), formerly known as Region 2, is a regional state in northeastern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Afar people. Its capital is the planned city of Semera, which lies on the paved ...
for the purpose of demarcating the eastern part of the Ethiopian-Eritrean border, as it would be against the party's policy of Afar unity, who live on both sides of the eastern border:
Our twin enemies, Shabia ( Isayas Afewerki's) and Weyane (Meles Zenawi
Meles Zenawi Asres (Tigrinya and ; , born Legesse Zenawi Asres; 9 May 1955 – 20 August 2012) was an Ethiopian soldier and politician who served as President of Ethiopia from 1991 to 1995 and then Prime Minister of Ethiopia from 1995 until his ...
's), have been, under the auspices of the United Nations, carrying out illegal acts of brigandage against our people. Let the whole world know that ARDUF is reiterating its firm stand as it did in 1990, 1991, 1993 and 2000 that it is not only opposed to the illegal act of dividing our Afar people and demarcating our soil under the guise of "border demarcation" between Ethiopia and Eritrea, but also ready to render any demarcation exercise ineffective.
Views
The political party aims to unite all Afar people under one flag. Although in the past the mechanism was not clear, whether this entailed the reunion of Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...
and Ethiopia (as well as Afar lands in Djibouti) or a separate Afar state, the party claimed in 1998 to seek to unite Afars under an autonomous region of Ethiopia, similar to the present-day Afar Region
The Afar Region (; aa, Qafar Rakaakayak; am, አፋር ክልል), formerly known as Region 2, is a regional state in northeastern Ethiopia and the homeland of the Afar people. Its capital is the planned city of Semera, which lies on the paved ...
in Ethiopia in existence since 1996 (but with the addition of lands in Eritrea and Djibouti).[Organised Crime and Terrorism Report. Commitments in Respect of Organised Crime and Terrorists](_blank)
{{webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070510213857/http://www.africanreview.org/forum/docs/feb04partmeet/ISSCT%20draft%201.doc , date=2007-05-10 , African Human Security Initiative. Consequently, ARDUF does not recognize Eritrea as a sovereign
''Sovereign'' is a title which can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin , meaning 'above'.
The roles of a sovereign vary from monarch, ruler or ...
state.
References
{{Reflist, 2
{{Ethiopian political parties
1993 establishments in Ethiopia
Ethiopian civil conflict (2018–present)
Ethnic political parties in Ethiopia
National liberation movements in Africa
Political parties established in 1993
Political parties in Ethiopia
Rebel groups in Ethiopia
Socialist parties in Ethiopia