Bulcha demeksa biography of william

Oromo and Ethiopian communities in Minnesota and across the globe lost a moral leader earlier this week with the death of Bulcha Demeksa at the age of

Bulcha was a notable economist (graduating from Addis Ababa and Syracuse Universities) who served in the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance in and as the African director at the World Bank and founded the Awash International Bank. He also worked at the United Nations, where he highlighted discrimination facing black African officials in the organization. 

Bulcha later became a member of the House of People&#;s Representatives in as the founder and leader of the Oromo Federalist Democratic Movement.

Almost 20 years ago, Bulcha was the first high-profile leader to be interviewed by Yeroo magazine, supporting the first private Qubee Oromo newspaper in Ethiopia. 

While in parliament, he bravely spoke in front of dictator Meles Zenawi, highlighting atrocities committed by the then-ruling TPLF party. In a diverse country like Ethiopia, where injustice often has ethnic dimensions, it is impossible to ignore ethnic grievances as a civil servant. Accordingly, Bulcha carried a healthy dose of both civic and ethnic nationalism, being a voice for marginalized Oromo people while promoting Ethiopian unity. Even at an old age, Bulcha remained an outspoken critic of the status quo. 

In this momentous period in the history of the Horn of Africa, Ethiopians worldwide — including those in Minnesota, which has one of the largest Ethiopian communities in the United States, including many people from the African nation’s ethnic Oromo region —

will miss a staunch defender of the non-violent struggle for democracy. 

The cycle of violence continues in Ethiopia today as Oromo, Amhara, Tigray and other militant groups use “armed struggle” to solve irreconcilable territorial disputes that require land sharing. Unlike Bulcha, even diaspora intellectuals today justify and romanticize the concept of using “armed struggle” as a strategic tool to gain leverage at the next negotiating table. 

Western diplomats and foreign policymakers who truly care about human rights should urge all political actors in Ethiopia (and in the diaspora) to honor Bulcha’s legacy by adopting unconditional and peaceful political competition at the ballot box. 

Teshome M. Borago is a New York-based political analyst and writer.