Oromia Dispatch 23-B - From Empire to Freedom: A Roadmap for Oromia’s Transition

(Published as part of the “Oromia Rising: Essays on Freedom and the Future” series. Everyone is invited to contribute. Send your contributions to bantii.qixxeessaa@gmail.com.)

By Bantii Qixxeessaa

To those asking, “What comes after independence?”—this document offers the answer.

🎧 Listen to the Audio Version (4.5 minutes)

This is Part B of a two-part series titled From Empire to Freedom: A Roadmap for Oromia’s Transition. While Part A laid the political and security foundations of statehood, Part B offers a practical blueprint for building a self-reliant, recognized, and cohesive Oromo state. If you haven't read Part A, we encourage you to do so first, as this section builds directly upon it. IV. Legal and Economic Transition: Reclaiming Sovereignty and Building Stability Sovereignty cannot be complete without legal and economic autonomy. The legal system must be decolonized and restructured to align with international human rights standards and Oromo indigenous systems like Gadaa. Timor-Leste’s post-independence legal framework provides a compelling precedent for this hybrid approach.

Economic sovereignty must include control over land, natural resources, and taxation. A Transitional Economic Council should oversee:

• Auditing and renegotiating foreign contracts,
• Preventing exploitative practices,
• Laying the groundwork for a national currency.

Namibia’s post-1990 model of asserting control over its resources serves as a valuable reference point.

Additionally, humanitarian coordination is critical in the early transition phase. Collaborating with international aid agencies and Oromo diaspora networks will help ensure access to essential services like food, healthcare, and shelter.

V. Diplomatic Strategy: Gaining Recognition and Building Alliances

Global recognition is crucial for survival and legitimacy.

Oromia must proactively pursue:

• Recognition from sympathetic states,
• Observer status at the United Nations,
• Membership in international legal and economic institutions.

Palestine’s successful bid for UN observer status in 2012—even without full territorial control—shows how diplomacy can transcend physical limitations.

Engagement with African institutions like the AU and IGAD will strengthen Oromia’s legal standing, though regional resistance should be anticipated and managed diplomatically.

The Oromo diaspora must be mobilized as a diplomatic force. Eritrea’s diaspora was instrumental in achieving international recognition in the early 1990s; Oromia’s global community can play a similar role through lobbying, media campaigns, and multilateral outreach.

VI. Nation-Building and Social Reconciliation

True independence is social and cultural, not just political.

A national healing process must begin with community-based dialogues to resolve intercommunal grievances. Rwanda’s Gacaca system, despite criticisms, provides a useful model for participatory justice and reconciliation.

Civic education should be institutionalized through schools, media, and civil society, promoting democratic values, rule of law, and national unity.

A cultural revival should celebrate and strengthen Oromo identity through language, storytelling, historical consciousness, and the arts. Tanzania’s Ujamaa campaigns, while politically flawed, demonstrate how cultural policy can unify a diverse population under a shared national narrative.

Conclusion: Independence Is the Start—Not the Finish Line

Declaring independence marks the beginning of the Oromo nation’s next chapter—not the end of its struggle. Oromia’s statehood must be built with integrity, strategic foresight, and collective vision.

Part A introduced the foundational stages—asserting sovereignty, ensuring political and security stability. This Part B has expanded the vision, detailing how to consolidate legal authority, achieve economic self-sufficiency, gain global recognition, and build a unified society.

To the world: Oromia is not simply demanding freedom—it is preparing to lead responsibly and contribute meaningfully to regional and global peace.
To the Oromo people: This roadmap is more than aspiration—it is a plan.
And to ourselves: The path to freedom is not a leap of emotion, but a journey of discipline, unity, and vision.

Let us walk it—together.