Ethnicity, Women and Governance at Local Level: The Case of the Kebena Community in Ethiopian Federalism

Abstract

The policy promoting multicultural accommodation in Ethiopian
federalism made ethnicity the main criteria to get territorial autonomy
either at regional or local level though several ethnic minorities,
including the Kebena, have not yet achieved this right. To exercise
the right to self-determination, elites of the Kebena ethno-cultural
community wrote the customary law of the community, which has
been preserved for long through oral traditions. The written customary
law prioritizes collective ethno-cultural rights both in the public
and personal spheres. This contravenes individual citizens’ rights,
which is vividly seen with regard to women’s marital rights. The
lived experiences of women in the community show that customary
and religious institutions are the main actors in the regulation of
marital rights. Since the introduction of ethnic federalism, the role
of these institutions is recognized by the state. Both the customary
and the state institutions at local level, without undermining the
significance of constitutional recognition of women’s rights, ignore its
implementation considering it primarily as part of collective rights.
The article concludes, without the provision of basic standard of
living and commitment of the state at local level to protect women’s
individual human rights, it would be difficult for a woman within
identity coffering community to exercise exit and claim marital rights.