BUILDING NATIONAL

CONSENSUS IN DIVERSE
SOCIETIES
Brainstorming:
 Some scholars define a
nation as ‘an Imagined
Community’. How do
you imagine your
‘nation’? Do you think
we as a country need to
engage in acts of Re-
imagining our country?
Nation
 A nation is a group of people who:
(a) share demographic and cultural similarities
(b) possess a feeling of community (mutually
identify as a group distinct from other groups)
(c) want to control themselves politically.
 As such, a nation is intangible; it exists because its

members think it does.

 A state (country) is a tangible institution, but a

nation is “a soul, a spiritual quality”.

Nationalism
 Nationalism is the sense of political self that makes
people feel patriotic about their country, connected to
a “we-group”, and different from “they-groups”.
 Nationalism is an ideology. Like all ideologies,

nationalism is a set of related ideas that:

(1) establish values about what is good and bad
(2) direct adherents on how to act (patriotism)
(3) link together those who adhere to the ideology,
(4) distinguish them from those who do not.
Cont’d…
 Specifically, nationalism connects individuals
through links that are forged when people:
(1)become sentimentally attached to the
homeland
(2)gain a sense of identity and self-esteem
through their national identification
(3) are motivated to help their country
 As an ideology, nationalism holds that the nation

should be the primary political identity of

individuals.
Cont’d…
 Building a sense of nation took a very long time,
often hundreds of years
 It was the result not only of political leadership but
also of changes in technology and economic
processes (the agricultural and then industrial
revolutions), as well as issues of communication,
culture and civil society.
Contrasting faces of Nationalism
 Positive faces of Nationalism :
 promoting democracy
 discouraging imperialism
 allowing economic development
 allowing diversity and experimentation
 Negative faces of Nationalism:
a) Reluctance to Help Others
b) Exclusionism
c) Exceptionalism and Xenophobia
d) Cultural Discrimination and Oppression
E) Imperialism
Cont’d…
 State can be defined as an independent political
unit occupying a defined, permanently populated
territory and having full sovereign control over its
internal and foreign affairs
 Nation is a cultural concept defining a group of
people with a common culture occupying a
particular territory, bound together by a strong
sense of unity arising from shared beliefs and
customs
Conceptual clarification
 Nation-state properly refers to a state whose
territorial extent coincide with that occupied by a
distinct nation or people. Iceland, Denmark,
Poland, and Japan.
 A part-nation state is when a nation is dispersed
across and is predominant in two or more states,
Arab Nation
 A stateless nation are a people without state. The
Kurds are a nation of some 20 million people
divided among six states, Palestinians - Basques
Nation building
 Nation-building as a concept is vague
and there is no consensus about the
definition of “nation building.”
 However, as a starting point, “nation-
building" can be seen as a process
which leads to the formation of
countries in which the citizens feel a
sufficient amount of commonality of
interests, goals and preferences so that
they do not wish to separate from each
other.
 It is a process of sociopolitical
development that allows initially
loosely linked communities to become
a common society with a nation-state
corresponding to it.
Elements of Nation-building
 There are three core elements in all successful
nation-building processes, including:
A. a unifying, persuasive ideology
B. integration of loosely linked societies and
C. a functional state apparatus
 Nation-building will only be successful in the long
term if it stems from an integrative ideology or
produces this from a certain point on.
Cont’d…
• The process of nation building can involve extremely
different dimensions and instruments, such as:
• economic integration
• cultural integration
• political centralization
• bureaucratic control
• military conquest or subjugation
• creation of common interests
• democratization and establishment of common
citizenship or
• repression and acts of ‘ethnic cleansing’.
Nation-Building Policies
 There are multiple ways that one can conceptualize
nation-building policies. The more common way of
categorizing policies is by dichotomy:
◦ Inclusion
◦ Exclusion
 However, a more comprehensive classification
would be to put it in to three:
1. Assimilation
2. Accommodation
3. Exclusion
Assimilationist Policies:
 refer to educational, cultural, occupational,
matrimonial, demographic, political, and other
state policies aimed at the adoption of the core
group culture and way of life by the targeted non-
core group.
 Such policies aim at the acquisition of certain

traits such as language, dress, or behavioral

patterns by the whole population; the ultimate goal
of such policies is national integration
 Assimilation can take violent forms. Two such
types can be identified:
◦ Colonization of the territories inhabited by a non-core
group–often coupled with internal displacement of its
members; and/or
◦ Exclusion of the elites of a non-core group and
assimilation of the rest of the members.
 All in all, the goal of assimilationist policies is to
secure the loyalty of an individual or a community
by “conquering” their belief system and ensuring
their obedience to the national state.
Accommodation:
 refers to situations where the “differences” of a

non-core group are more or less respected and

institutions that regulate and perpetuate these
differences are put in place.
 The host state grants the status of “minority” to that

non-core group.
 The latter is allowed to have certain separate

institutions such as schools, churches, cultural

associations, and so forth.
 Accommodation produces national minorities.
Exclusionary Policies:
 refer to policies that aim at the physical removal of a non-core

group from the host state (or specific areas of it).

 Policies under this category include:

◦ population exchange,
◦ deportation,
◦ internal displacement,
◦ Segregation
◦ pogroms, or
◦ even mass killing.
 Although such policies constitute instances of exclusion they do
not physically remove the population from the state’s territory
but they might involve internal displacement. Exclusionary
policies produce refugees and victims of state violence.
 Two dominant modes of nation-building:
◦ Top-down/ state-induced
◦ Bottom-up/society induced
 Nation-building has always signified a process of
social mobilization, either from the bottom up or
from the top down.
 Historically, most cases of nation-building were

dominated from the top down rather than the nation-

state evolving naturally from society.
 Creating an independent nation-state with a flag,
an army, an anthem, newly minted money,
and freshly printed passports did not guarantee
that citizens identified with the nation or that
they accepted the authority of the state.
Four Stages of State Formation and Nation Building

1.State Formation: Penetration

Elite-driven unification of a given territory and people
2. Nation Building: Standardization
A common identity and sense of allegiance to the political
system
3. Mass Democracies: Equalization
Mass/public participation in government decision making
4. Welfare States: Redistribution
Strengthening economic solidarity between different parts of
the population
Nation building vs State building
• Usually, nation-building and state-building are
used interchangeably.
• However, state-building generally refers to the

construction of state institutions for a

functioning state while nation-building the
construction of a national identity, also for a
functioning state.
 State-building is a core aspect of successful

nation-building. It presupposes a range of

practical capabilities, such as:
Cont’d…
◦ Creating a financial basis for a functioning state
apparatus, that is an effective fiscal system,
◦ A state apparatus that must assert its monopoly of force
over the entire national territory (by organized police
and legal system)
◦ An administrative apparatus that are effective and
accepted throughout the country.
 The state needs loyal personnel that do not identify
primarily with individual social, ethnic or religious
communities but, rather, with the state and the
‘nation’.
Colonialism and the Creation of States in Africa

•Changing state names

•Changing capital cities’ names and locations

•Changing national currencies

•Conscription and national service

•Religious and linguistic homogenization

•Language and declaration of centralization of policies

•Ethnic Identities and Declaration of One-Party States

•Political parties and conducting non-ethnic censuses

land nationalization
•
Self-determination
 Self-determinism is not a mere phrase. It is an
imperative principle of action.”
 Moreover, the origins of many nation-states are rooted
in the demand for self-determination of their nation.
 In addition to the benefits of nationalism noted earlier,
self-determination ends many of the abuses that stem
from ethnic oppression.
 If all ethnic groups were allowed to peacefully found
their own sovereign units or join those of their ethnic
brethren, then the tragedies of many other strife-torn
peoples and countries would not have occurred.
Concerns about Self-Determination
 The principle of self-determination is becoming more
problematic in practice.
 The core problem is that there are thousands of ethnic
groups worldwide.
 Each has the potential to develop a national
consciousness and to seek independence or autonomy.
 The urge to break away from current political
arrangements and, often, to form smaller units potentially
involves several problems:
 Untangling Groups
 Microstates
 International Instability
 Day Two

 Nation Building Process in Ethiopia

Brainstorming:

 Identify a leader that is

commonly associated with
the modern state formation
in Ethiopia!! Discuss why
there is no consensus on
the roles they played and
try to reach a common
ground on these and
Explain how!!
Nation Building during Imperial Period
 Historically, the project of building of a highly
centralized nation was started during the reign of
Emperor Minelik II and intensified during the reign
of Emperor Haile Selassie through his twin policies
of centralization and modernization
 During the 1960s and 70s, Ethiopian opposition
politics was dominated by such slogans as ‘land to
the tiller’ and the ‘nationalities problem.’
 Peasant rebellions and ethnically based liberation
fronts started campaigns in several parts of the
country posing great challenges for nation building
mission as well as for multi-ethnic Ethiopia.
Nation Building during the Dergue Regime
 Ethno-nationalist movements that took centre stage of
opposition after the 1974 revolution were vocal about their
unqualified right to exercise self-determination up to and
including secession
 The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), for example, in
its formative years ‘claimed that it was fighting for self-
determination which could result in anything from autonomy,
federation, confederation, up to and including independence’
 The Dergue regime pursued similar policy of assimilation as
the imperil regime did but with different means. It
acknowledged the cultural and religious diversity of the
country, but also wanted to solidify national unity by adding
to the already existing instruments of assimilation
Nation Building during the TPLF/EPRDF Regime

 Following TPLF/EPRDF’s accession to power, one can

observe that the nation-building strategy followed the
“primordial” approach underscoring “Nations, Nationalities
and Peoples” as the basis of Ethiopians’ identity.
 But this primordial ethnic organization led to the concern
about the fragmentation of the nation by prioritizing the right
of self administration up to and including secession.
 This circumstance as we observe now a day poses a major
threat of sustaining Ethiopia as a nation. Meles Zenawi once
reiterated that “Ethiopianess is a right not an obligation”.
 This speech excessively gave the radicals reason for aspiring
to build their own independent nation state thereby
threatening the sustainability of Ethiopia.
National Consensus

 The concept of national

consensus is perhaps
one of the most
discussed topics yet
remained poorly
understood
 Part of the problem
arises from defining the
concepts of nation
 Consensus
 Latin word Consentire
 con (together with) + sentire (to think and feel)
 Translation: to think and feel together
 Consensus is the process—a participatory process--by
which a group thinks and feels together en route to their
decision.
 Consensus is finding an acceptable proposal that all
members can support.
 Consensus is not…
 A unanimous vote
 A majority vote
 Everyone 100% satisfied
 Common decision rules
How do we know when we’ve made a decision?
 Unanimous agreement

 Majority vote

 Person-in-charge decides after discussion

 Delegation

 Person-in-charge decides without discussion

 “flip a coin”
Consensus requires…
 Time
 Active participation by all

 Good listening and communication

skills by all
 Open-mindedness

 Creative thinking
 Advantages of consensus:

1. It requires sharing of information, which leads to mutual

education, which, in turn provides the basis for crafting
workable and acceptable alternatives.
2. It promotes joint thinking of a diverse group, which leads to
creative solutions.
3. Because parties participate in the deliberation, they understand the
reasoning behind the chosen solution and are willing to support its
implementation.
 The principles of consensus:

 To achieve consensus, everyone in the group must

actively participate.
 To participate fully and freely, all group members
must have a common base of information and keep
up to date on the progress of the group.
 The group must create and maintain an atmosphere
in which everyone feels free to state his or her
views and to disagree.
 The principles of consensus:
(continued...)

 Disagreements should be respected; they can illuminate

unrecognized problems and serve as a catalyst for
improving the decision.
 When someone objects or disagrees, the goal of the
group is to discover the unmet need that has produced
the objection and to find a way to meet that need in a
revised agreement, rather than to suppress the objection.
(continued...)
 This process is greatly facilitated when members keep in mind
and deliberately express themselves in terms of the following
optional stances:
 Expression of concern: Rather than taking a hard-and-fast
negative position, members express their concerns and the
reasons for them.
 Reservations: After fulsome deliberation, one or more
members may find a concern has not been satisfactorily
addressed, but that they consider that concern relatively
minor.
 Non-support or standing aside: This stance allows a
member to be clear that they do not agree with or support the
proposed decision, without leaving or blocking the group
from proceeding.
Fist to Five Strategy
 Five fingers = I like it
 Four fingers = Basically, I like it
 Three fingers = I can live with it
 Two fingers = I have no opinion
 One finger = I don’t like this but I don’t want to
hold up the group
 Fist = I disagree but I will support the decision
Consensus decision-making core values
 Full participation
 All members are encouraged to speak and say what’s on
their minds
 Members become more courageous in raising difficult
issues
 Can acknowledge the diversity of opinions and
backgrounds in their group
 Mutual understanding
 Members understand and accept the legitimacy of one
another’s needs and goals
 This allows people to develop innovative ideas that
incorporate everyone’s point of view
 Cont’d…
 Inclusive solutions
 Integration of everyone’s perspectives and needs leads to
wise solutions
 These solutions take advantage of range and vision of the
whole group
 Shared responsibility
 Members feel a strong sense of responsibility for creating
and developing sustainable agreements
 Members recognize that they must be willing and able to
implement the proposals they endorse so they make every
effort to give and receive input before final decisions are
made
The Role of Ethiopia’s Youth in Consensus Building

 The youth in any society are

the engine of growth and
development because they
provide the labor force for
production of goods and
service to take effect.
 Moreover, since they constitute
the critical masses of people,
their actions or inactions can
develop or destroy the
hegemonies/fabrics of their
society.
 Cont’d…

 The youth are considered to be at the

 The ‘nation-building’ process cannot
Brainstorming:
Mention few individuals that have
contributed greatly formation
building in Ethiopia during the
years of their youth? What roles
did they play? What roles and
responsibilities are expected to be
played by the youth in the
cotemporary period in Ethiopia?
forefront of processes of national
integration. the youth are the engines
of transformation, if harnessed and
utilized in the right direction it will
take society to higher heights.
be attained solely from the top-down
but requires the active participation
of ordinary citizens in the shaping of
a common political will. It is the
citizens who must provide the
necessary legitimacy to the new
state.
Case 1. The National Flag Day celebrations have created tremendous
effects up on the general public in terms of increasing mutual
understanding about the values the national flag. The previous
national flags used to represent either the ruling elites of the country
or the ideology the governing regime adheres to. However,
following the coming in to power of the Ethiopian People
Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) in 1991, a flag that
symbolize the diversity and equality of the Nation, Nationality and
Peoples of Ethiopia have come in to picture. Thus, the current
national flag represent the equal status citizens achieved over the
years. Discuss and report your common positions to the participants.
Case 2. A constitution should be a symbol of national consensus. This
consensus can only be established if a constitution is formulated in
full consultation with the people. Therefore, our current constitution
should be revised to accommodate emerging demands. Discuss in
Groups and present your findings to the Participants!!
Case 3. Since the coming to power of the EPRDF in 1991 the
Ethiopian state has been officially structured along the lines of
ethnic federalism. What does the future hold for ethnic
federalism in Ethiopia. Examine the contending perspectives
and report your common position on the matter.
Case 4. How would you explain the quest for self-determination
in Ethiopia in the future? Should there be a limit to Self-
Determination?
Case 5. Identify a prominent personality who could be
celebrated nationally as a national hero. Explain his qualities
and convince your group that he deserves to be celebrated
nationally.