The Threat of Religious Fundamentalism to Ethiopian National Security

Abstract

Today, religious fundamentalism has become a major security threat to countries,
regions, and the world at large. Although Ethiopia has a long history of religious
tolerance and peaceful co-existence, nowadays the country is becoming one of the
victims of religious fundamentalism. The objective of this study was, therefore, to
assess the extent to which religious fundamentalism threatens the country's national
security and the major sources of this threat. To this end, the article employed a
qualitative research approach to get an in-depth understanding of the issue under
treatment. The study was conducted with a purposively selected sample of 45
professionals, commanders, and experts working in the fields of religious affairs
and national security. Accordingly, it was found out that religious fundamentalism
has posed a serious national security threat to Ethiopia by disturbing its economic,
political, and social structures, through false propaganda, fear and confusion,
selected assassinations, and other physical attacks. Wahabbiya, Kewargiwa, and
Selfya Jihadya Muslim sect fundamentalists have threatened the national security of
Ethiopia. Furthermore, some members of Mahibere-Qidusan from the Orthodox
Christian group have contributed to the crisis by aggravating the problems of
Muslim fundamentalists and undermining other religious groups. Thus, it is
recommended that in order to strengthen the national security environment, there is
an utmost need to dry up the inflow of resources (financial, material, and spiritual)
to fundamentalists operating in the country and to rebuild the social ties among
citizens of various religions and religious sects through continuous awareness
creation stages and secular education.