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Opposition Questions Ethiopia’s Ruling Party’s ‘Developmental Democracy’ Policy Despite Evidence of Growth

Redwan Hussein

Redwan Hussein

The ruling party in Ethiopia often describes the country as a “developmental democracy” and its policy as “revolutionary democracy.” But opponents question what these policies mean, and say the country is not enjoying much democracy or development at all.

The Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front has governed Ethiopia for the past 24 years. For most of that time, the party has promoted the ideologies known as “revolutionary democracy” and “developmental democracy.”

Under these policies, the country has experienced double-digit economic growth after the grueling famine of the mid-1980s.

“You can opt for democracy to be built evolutionary, gradually.

You could also opt for a democracy, which must be revolutionary, radically, all the system, all the thinking must be changed, root and branch completely and fast. So this is revolutionary,” explained Redwan Hussein, a government spokesman who also used to head the ruling party’s secretariat.

According to the government, “developmental democracy” means there will be no development without democracy, or democracy without development.

Hallelujah Lulie of the Institute of Security Studies says there is a built-in tension between the two ideologies.

“But the government in development state or democratic developmental state, the role in the economy and the public life, it will decrease through time. But in revolutionary democracy it will increase through time. So that is the difference between the two, in my interpretation,” said Lulie.

Read the full story at voanews.com

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