Ethiopia's National Youth Movement for Freedom and Democracy, popularly known as Qeerroo, is a

social movement A social movement is either a loosely or carefully organized effort by a large group of people to achieve a particular goal, typically a Social issue, social or Political movement, political one. This may be to carry out a social change, or to re ...

organized with ideology of

Oromo nationalism Oromo nationalism is an ethnic nationalism advocating the self-interest of Oromo people in Ethiopia and Kenya. Many Oromo elites, intellectuals and political leaders struggled to create an independent Oromia state throughout 19th and 20th century, ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

. In traditional Oromo culture the term means "bachelor" or youth but within the political movement that shares the same name, it symbolizes the Oromo struggle for increased political freedom, greater ethnic representation in government, "... an entire generation of newly assertive Ethiopian youth,". The

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

has described Qeerroo as being Ethiopia's National Youth Movement for Freedom and Democracy, which calls itself Qeerroo Bilisummaa Oromoo.

History

The Qeerroo, also known as the Qubee generation, "first emerged in 1991 with the participation of the

Oromo Liberation Front The Oromo Liberation Front (, abbreviated: ABO; English abbreviation: OLF) is an Oromo nationalist political party formed in 1973 to promote self-determination and the independence for the Oromo people inhabiting today's Oromia Region and Oromi ...

(OLF) in the transitional government of Ethiopia." Qeerroos also played a key role in the

2014–2016 Oromo protests The 2014–2016 Oromo protests were a series of protests and resistance in Oromia which first sparked on 25 April 2014. The initial actions were taken in opposition to the 2014 Addis Ababa Master Plan, Addis Ababa Master Plan, and resumed on 12 ...

Jawar Mohammed Jawar Mohammed (; ግእዝ፡ ጃዋር መሐመድ born 12 May 1986) is an Ethiopian political analyst and activist. One of the founders of the Oromia Media Network (OMN), Jawar was a leading organizer of the 2014–2016 Oromo protests. He h ...

, a qeerroo, played a key role in founding the ONYMFD. The Qeerroo movement inspired many marginalized ethnic to create youth movements, such as Ejjetto, Barbaarta and Zarma. The Somali Barbaarta's demand to end Abdi Illey's presidency of the

Somali Region The Somali Region (, , ), also known as Soomaali Galbeed () and officially the Somali Regional State, is a Regions of Ethiopia, regional state in eastern Ethiopia. It is the largest region of Ethiopia. The state borders the Ethiopian regions ...

and the

Sidama The Sidama () are an ethnic group traditionally inhabiting the Sidama Region, formerly part of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. On 23 November 2019, the Sidama Zone became the 10th regional state in Ethiopia ...

Ejjatto's demand of statehood for the

Sidama Region The Sidama Region (Sidama language, Sidama: ; ) is a Regions of Ethiopia, regional state in southern Ethiopia. It was formed on 18 June 2020 from the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR) and transformation of the Sidama ...

succeeded. They staged nationwide protest rallies in July 2020 following the assassination of Oromo musician

Hachalu Hundessa Hachalu Hundessa (; ; 1986 – 29 June 2020) was an Ethiopian singer, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Hachalu played a significant role in the 2014–2016 Oromo protests that led to Abiy Ahmed taking charge of the Oromo Democratic P ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Qeerroo 2011 establishments in Ethiopia Ethnic nationalism in Ethiopia Organizations established in 1991 Youth movements Oromo people Oromo Liberation Front