The Red Book: The Political Foundation of the Ethiopian National Defence Forces under the EPRDF

Abstract

Based on a thorough review and analysis of a document that has hitherto been kept secret, this article elucidates the political foundation of the Ethiopian National Defence Forces (ENDF) the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) aimed to build. In doing so, the article demonstrates how the EPRDF, contrary to the country's legal framework and socio-political context, attempted to create a partisan national army. The document outlines three things: firstly, the ultimate objective of the ENDF is to be the bastion of 'revolutionary democracy'—EPRDF's ideology. Secondly, in the absence of revolutionary democracy's hegemony within Ethiopian society, ENDF's loyalty to it should be attained through the political indoctrination of its members. Thirdly, since indoctrination alone may not be sufficient, there must be a systematic and integrated implementation scheme. This was expected to ensure the building of a revolutionary democratic army. The effect of these was that, despite the ENDF's image as a force of regional peace and stability outside the country, it dwarfed the possibility of it becoming a politically neutral and professional national army. In the context of a divided society where major political contestations are far from settled, building a partisan national defence force was a recipe for disaster, as attested by the ongoing politico-military crisis in Ethiopia (2020-2022).