Week 1 - Assignment: Create an Annotated Bibliography for Selected Topic

CULT UR A L DI V ER SIT Y IN ET HIOPI A Between appreciation and suppression

Susanne Epple and Sophia Thubauville

A b st r Act. The aim of this collection of papers is to contribute to the discussion concerning the compatibility of cultural diversity with the concepts of human rights and development in the light of certain experiences in Ethiopia. Since the overthrow of the military and socialist regime in 1991, Ethiopia has undergone enormous changes with respect to the political process, devel- opment efforts and international relations. The introduction of ethnic federalism promises the equality of all of its more than eighty ethnic groups, and cultural diversity is publicly celebrated. However, it appears that the agenda of fast national development has led to apparent conflicts between continuity and change, as well as between tradition and modernity. This collection of papers highlights some contradictions and inconsistencies within Ethiopian laws and policies, as well as clashes between certain policies and particular cultural values and practices at the local level. The implementation of some of these policies caused resistance on the part of the local communities against certain – from their perspective – new developments, and this resistance led in turn to different forms of pressure applied by the government and non-governmental institu- tions to ensure compliance. The individual papers provide insights into local perspectives, expe- riences and reactions to perceived pressure and induced cultural change, ranging from smooth transition to new forms of life, to confusion and reluctance or partial involvement, to negotiated compromise and strict legal enforcement.

INTRODUCT ION

The title of the 2011 meetings of the German Anthropological Association (GAA) was “Wa(h)re Kultur”, ‘true’ or ‘commodity culture’.1 The wordplay between ‘wahr’ and ‘Ware’ referred to the increasing popularity of ‘local cultures’ in a time of expanding globalisation, including the revitalisation of certain traditions as a means of gaining international recognition and appreciation. Internationally, cultural diversity is being promoted as a ‘common heritage of humanity’ that ‘should be cherished and preserved for the benefit of all’ (UNESCO 2005). The GAA meetings were designed to investigate whether the new popularity of culture and cultural diversity should be attributed to diversity as a new global norm, or whether it is actually a means of self-marketing for local communities.

The call for papers inspired us to think about current developments in Ethiopia. More specifically, we felt the need to explore the seemingly conflicting projects of up- holding cultural diversity and ensuring the continuity of traditions on the one hand,

1 See the conference website (http://www.tagung2011.dgv-net.de).

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154 Susanne Epple and Sophia Thubauville

and promoting social transformation, and attaining modernity and a certain level of homogeneity on the other. The various papers in this collection point to the presence of manifest contradictions or inconsistencies in policy and practice. With the aim of providing a broader picture, this introduction sets out with the analysis of the policy context, particularly the relevant provisions in the constitution of Ethiopia and the cul- tural policy of the country.

ETH IOP I A ’S CULT UR A L POL IC Y: CONT EXT AND D I L EMMA S

After the overthrow of the Derg military regime in 1991, the new democratic govern- ment reorganised Ethiopia on the basis of ethnic federalism, giving full recognition to the autonomy of ethnic groups.2 Following a form of governance that was highly centralised and regimes that tried to emphasise the cultural unity of the country by focusing only on the highland Christian ‘great tradition’ (Clapham 2002:11), the fed- eral reorganisation brought promising perspectives, especially for the inhabitants of the former periphery. Having been neglected and even exploited by former regimes, now their rights were to be respected and representation was to be granted to all groups in the government.3

What constitutes an ethnic group was defined in Article 39,5 of the new constitu- tion of 1995:

A ‘Nation, Nationality or People’ for the purpose of this Constitution, is a group of peo- ple who have or share large measure of a common culture or similar customs, mutual intelligibility of language, belief in a common or related identities, a common psychologi- cal make-up, and who inhabit an identifiable, predominantly contiguous territory (http:// www.servat.unibe.ch/icl/et00000_html).

The new constitution grants respect and equality to all nations, nationalities and peo- ples. In Article 39 the ‘Rights of Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ are declared, fo-

2 The term ‘Derg’ (literally ‘committee’ in Ge’ez, an ancient South Semitic language today still used in the liturgy of the Ethiopian Church) is commonly used to refer to the military regime that ruled Ethiopia from 1974 to 1987 under the leadership of Major Mengistu Haile Mariam. He continued in power until in 1991 a coalition of rebel forces, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPDRF), finally overthrew his regime. The EPRDF, actually an alliance of four parties, is still in power today.

3 For a critical discussion of Ethiopia’s ethnic federalism, see, for example, Abbink (1997), Turton (2006b). While ethnic differentiation as a main organising principle has often been criticised for be- ing artificial and fuelling ethnic conflicts, Ethiopia’s federalism has also been condemned for placing all power in the executive, while the Council of People’s Representatives (one of two chambers of the Federal Parliamentary Assembly, with one representative from each ethnic group) does not have any right of initiative (Abbink 1997). David Turton sees Ethiopia’s ethnic federalism at risk of failure ‘not because it is too ethnic, but because it is not sufficiently federal’ (2006a:29).

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cusing mainly on two issues: the ‘unconditional right to self-determination, including the right to secession’ (Article 39,1) and ‘the right [of a nation, nationality or people] to speak, to write and to develop its own language; to express, to develop and to promote its culture; and to preserve its history’ (Article 39,2) (http://www.servat.unibe.ch/icl/ et00000_html).

In line with Article 39,2, mentioned above, the Ethiopian government designed a ‘cultural policy’ which was endorsed in 1997. In this policy the government clearly dis- tances itself from previous governments, which had allegedly followed a discriminatory policy by seeding enmity among peoples and promoting the domination of the culture of one nation or nationality at the expense of others.4

To overcome the abuse and exploitation of one ethnic group by another, all cul- tures, defined as ‘the modes of life, beliefs, traditions and the whole set of the material and spiritual wealth which characterise a certain society as distinct from others’, should be considered equal.5 This is most clearly expressed in the first objective of the cultural policy, where it is said that the main aim is

to enable the languages, heritage history, handicraft, fine arts, oral literature, traditional lore, beliefs and other cultural features of the various nations, nationalities and peoples of Ethiopia to receive equal recognition and respect; to preserve and conserve these and pass them over to future generations.6

This paragraph gives the impression that all cultural practices deserve preservation. But reading further down, the fifth objective states that the existing cultures in Ethiopia should ideally be developed ‘in harmony with modern education, science, and technol- ogy’, and, according to the seventh objective, ‘traditional harmful practices should be eliminated step by step’.7

The next section, entitled “Contents of the policy”, specifies some of these issues, for example, under number 13, where it is said that any tradition that would ‘cause poverty, deter to development, violate human rights by causing physical or psychologi- cal harm or defy social values’ should be eliminated.8 In the section “General strategies for the implementation of the policy”, point 2.13, it is suggested that research should be carried out to identify ‘erroneous conceptions about women and the harmful tradi- tional practices’.9 In the same section, point 2.15, it is finally stated that ‘all studies and research activities in the cultural sector shall be directed to suit the country’s develop-

4 Cultural policy (cp), Introduction (http://www.ethioembassy.org.uk/fact%20file/a-z/culture.htm) 5 Cp, Introduction (http://www.ethioembassy.org.uk/fact%20file/a-z/culture.htm) 6 Cp, Objective 1 (http://www.ethioembassy.org.uk/fact%20file/a-z/culture.htm) 7 Cp, Objective 5 and 7 (http://www.ethioembassy.org.uk/fact%20file/a-z/culture.htm) 8 Cp, Contents of the policy, 13 (http://www.ethioembassy.org.uk/fact%20file/a-z/culture.htm) 9 Cp, General strategies for the implementation of the policy, 2.13 (http://www.ethioembassy.org.uk/

fact%20file/a-z/culture.htm)

156 Susanne Epple and Sophia Thubauville

ment endeavours and will be supervised to make sure that they are carried out in ac- cordance with professional ethics’.10

In day to day life one can witness some of the efforts being made to achieve ‘di- versity in unity’, which is not only proclaimed in the cultural policy: the diverse cultures and their languages, costumes and dances are celebrated daily on Ethiopian Television (ETV), which broadcasts programs not only in Amharic, the national language, but also in the languages of other ethnic groups, such as Oromo, Tigray, Afar and Somali. Increased efforts are made to provide primary schooling in local languages.11 During ‘cultural festivals’ people from the remotest areas are brought together to perform and celebrate on stage. During so-called ‘cultural days’ in kindergartens, schools and insti- tutions of higher learning, children and students dress up in their own or other peo- ple’s traditional dress to celebrate Ethiopia’s cultural diversity. In the same context, a commercialisation of culture can also be observed, especially in the areas of the folk- lorisation of culture through dances and music being broadcast on television, radio or cultural shows, and in the promotion of ‘cultural’ tourism.

On the other hand, also clearly stated in the cultural policy, Ethiopia is said to be striving for a rapid development. In its five year “Growth and Transformation Plan”, the major goals to be achieved include economic growth and major transformations in the agricultural sector, industrial growth in different areas, investment in infrastruc- ture (telecommunication, roads and railway), renewable energy (mainly hydropower, wind, bio-fuels and geothermal), as well as a focus on extractive industries (gold, oil and others). The plan projects growth in gross domestic product (GDP) of 11 to 15 per cent per year from 2010 to 2015.12

These development plans must at least to some extent be understood in the global context, and especially in the context of Ethiopia’s efforts to achieve the eight UN mil- lennium goals which are based on the UN millennium declaration as signed in 2000, the major goals of which are to combat poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environ- mental degradation, and discrimination against women.13 The economic development being promoted in Ethiopia thus includes social and cultural development as well. This means, for example, that certain traditions or cultural practices that are considered ‘backward’ or ‘harmful’ are being fought against, that gender equality and ‘education

10 Cp, General strategies for the implementation of the policy, 2.15 (http://www.ethioembassy.org.uk/ fact%20file/a-z/culture.htm)

11 See Seidel and Moritz (2009) on the multi-lingual approach to education. 12 For the complete Growth and Transformation Plan, see http://photos.state.gov/libraries/

ethiopia/427391/PDF%20files/GTP%20At-A-Glance.pdf. 13 The eight millennium development goals are: ‘1) to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; 2) to

achieve universal primary education; 3) to promote gender equality and empower women; 4) to re- duce child mortality; 5) to improve maternal health; 6) to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other dis- eases; 7) to ensure environmental sustainability; 8) to develop a global partnership for development’ (http://www.who.int/topics/millennium_development_goals/about/en/index.html).

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for all’ are being highly promoted and that traditional livelihood strategies are being replaced by modern agriculture to achieve local and national food security.

A question that comes up immediately is how development and the preservation of local indigenous cultures can be combined. Related to this is the problem of who should decide which practices are harmful and should be fought against, which are worth keep- ing and which should be developed ‘in harmony with modern science and technology’. And how would that be practically possible? Ethiopia is definitely not the only coun- try that is facing such dilemmas and clashes with reality. Contradictions between the interests of the local people and national economic interests, or between traditional practices, e.g. local cultural ideals, and national law and international human rights can be expected. In their volume “Cultural diversity, heritage and human rights”, William Logan, Michele Langfield and Nic Craith point out:

Human rights are often evoked when claims in favour of cultural diversity and heritage (particularly intangible) are at stake, but such claims are fraught with contradictions and inconsistencies. For instance, often groups claim a cultural practice as a human right, even though others may claim that the practice contravenes laws and or human rights instru- ments (2009:14).

The idea of ‘cultural rights’, i.e. the right to live according to one’s own traditions, as a form of human right as declared in the 2003 UNESCO “Convention for the safeguard- ing of intangible heritage” especially clashes with cultural practices that contradict other human rights that protect the rights of less powerful individuals, such as ‘women and children, stateless persons and the weak or destitute’ (quoted in Logan, Langfield, and Craith 2009:14). The Convention tries to minimise abuses of ‘cultural rights’ by stating that only cultural heritage that is ‘compatible with existing human rights instru- ments, as well as with the requirements of mutual respect among communities, groups and individuals, and of sustainable development’ should be protected (Logan, Lang- field, and Craith 2009:14). Nevertheless it has remained an issue for general debate as to how far respecting cultural rights should go. As the case studies edited by Langfield, Logan, and Craith (2009) reveal, since local concepts of what lies at the core of a given culture vary, one can expect that solutions will not be easy.

THE R E SE A RCH AR EA

The contributions in this collection are all case studies based on research in the South- ern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region (SNNPR). The SNNPR is one of nine largely ethnicity-based federal states of contemporary Ethiopia. In addition Ethiopia has two autonomous City Administrations (Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa). The SNNPR is unique in that it consists of 56 different ethnic groups brought together based on physical proximity rather than on common ethnic identity.

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The SNNPR and its zones (http://www.mursi.org/images/map-05.gif/image_view_fullscreen)

Many of the groups in the SNNPR, especially those living in the very south in the South Omo Zone, are known for their ‘traditional’ lifestyles that have been left unimpeded by globalisation and modernity until very recently. It is only in the last one or two decades that newly built roads, the introduction of markets, electricity, mobile networks, TV, community radio and other traces of modernity have brought formerly remote groups into contact with different forms of life, though until today most members of the of- ficially acknowledged sixteen ethnic groups in South Omo still rely on agro-pastoralism and adhere to their cultural practices and traditional beliefs.

Many tourists are attracted by the cultural diversity of the area, and in the last one or two decades the number of tourists travelling to SNNPR, especially to South Omo Region, has increased significantly.14 On many web pages of Ethiopian and foreign tour agents the peoples of South Omo are praised for their uniqueness, but the official website of the SNNPR Culture and Tourism Bureau also promises an exceptional expe-

14 According to the homepage of the SNNPR Culture and Tourism Bureau, in 1999 61374 domestic and foreign tourists travelled to the region; in 2008 the number was nearly five times higher, namely 332,863 (http://www.southtourism.gov.et/Home/tourism.html).

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rience for tourists, claiming that the ‘environment is harsh and wild but the people are welcoming and their life styles and tradition is untouched and unmixed for centuries’.15

The SNNPR today is also one of the regions in which major national development plans are localised. In the last decade, major investments have been made in the area of infrastructure (asphalt roads, telecommunication, public transport, health services), ed- ucation (building of new schools and the enrolment of children), and the modernisation of agriculture (for example, through the introduction of fertilisers, irrigation systems and modern forms of cattle breeding). Generally the SNNPR is open for investment, and the official homepage of the SNNPR advertises its land and people, saying that there is a ‘chance of getting land within short period’.16 In South Omo, more investment plans, both national and international, are currently being put into effect. These include pastoral development (ranches, introduction of camels), cash-crop production (sugar cane, cotton, sesame and other crops) and other irrigation projects, mainly along the Omo River. Two other major projects are the construction of the Gibe III dam, which is intended to produce electricity for local use as well as for export, and the exploitation of oil by international companies (Africa Oil, Tullow, and Agriterra), which are at present exploring for oil in the very south of Ethiopia.17 The plan to transform one of the remot- est areas of Ethiopia into a fast developing location was announced by the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, on the occasion of the 13th Pastoralist Day celebrated in Jinka, the capital city of South Omo Zone, in January 2011. In his speech, the Prime Minister expressed the determination of the Ethiopian government to develop the re- mote south, an area, he said, ‘known as backward in terms of civilization’ (Meles 2011). The investment plans would help to improve the lives of the pastoralist people by mod-

15 Http://www.southtourism.gov.et/Home/Destinations/ActualDestinations/Jinka.html. This so-called ‘cultural tourism’ and its effects on the images of local people in Ethiopia and the

world have been critically assessed by Jon Abbink (1999) and Turton (2004). Tourism so far has brought only little profit to the local people who are being paid for photographs and who sell some of their personal items to the tourists.

16 See http://www.debubomozoneti.gov.et/Tourism_Parks&Hotels.htm. 17 See, for example, the official report, “Environmental and social impact assessment executive sum-

mary”, of the Gibe III hydroelectric power project (http://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/ afdb/Documents/Project-and-Operations/Gibe%20III_EIA_%20Executive%20Summary%20 EBJK%2006-08-08.pdf). For information on the planned agricultural investment in South Omo, see the report by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (http://assets. survivalinternational.org/documents/194/SouthOmoAgrInvestmentAreas.pdf). For information on the exploration of oil, see, for example, the website of Africa Oil (http://www.africaoilcorp.com/s/ Ethiopia.asp?ReportID=352253). Such projects have also been widely mentioned in the Ethiopian Press, for example, in articles on planned sugarcane factories in South Omo (http://allafrica.com/ stories/201106281072.html), or on oil exploration (http://www.tigraionline.com/articles/article08017. html). For critical views, see, for example, a report published by the Oakland Institute (http://www. oaklandinstitute.org/sites/oaklandinstitute.org/files/Land_Deal_Brief_Ethiopia_Omo_Valley.pdf). Also, see Turton (2010) and websites of activist groups such as Survival International (http://www. survivalinternational.org/tribes/omovalley) for a critical assessment of the impact of the aforemen- tioned dam on the lives of the local people, who depend on flood retreat cultivation.

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ernising cattle herding and agriculture. The spirit of his speech was a clear emphasis on development and participation, but he did not mention how this would allow local cultures to continue to exist in their diversity.

The focus of the following papers is to examine the discrepancy between the ex- pressed wish to respect and enhance individual groups, the need to unify them in a nation state with common values and goals (some of which may not even necessarily be of Ethiopian origin but obviously relate to international or global ideas), and the agenda of the rapid development of contemporary Ethiopia.

LOCA L ADA P TAT ION AND R E S I S TANCE TO CHANGE

As explained above, the people of the SNNPR, especially those living in remote villag- es, have been experiencing more and more changes in the last two decades. Innovations aiming at fostering local cultures (e.g. cultural festivals, the use of local language as a medium of instruction, the promotion of tourism) have been embraced by local com- munities, and novel concepts such as formal education have also been partly accepted. But still many people tend to resist change when they suspect that the continuity and in- tegrity of their cultures and lifestyles are being threatened by it. The forms of resis tance range from partial acceptance to hidden disagreement, withdrawal, and open rejection.

Presently more and more tension is arising between new laws or policies and the particular customs of local communities. As already noted, with the introduction of ethnic federalism in 1991, equal rights were granted to all ethnic groups in Ethiopia. One of the first steps was to empower the different ethnic groups by de-centralising the state and forming nine regional states with several subunits (zones, districts and wards or peasant associations). According to Article 46 of the constitution, the regional states were delimited ‘on the basis of the settlement patterns, language, identity and consent of the peoples concerned’ (Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia 1995). By redefin- ing ethnic and territorial boundaries and by granting a specific status and certain rights and privileges to individual communities within the Ethiopian context, some groups were granted regional status based on their population or territorial size, while others, though equally numerous, were grouped together and have to share the same region. In Article 47 of the constitution the nine states are listed, SNNPR being the seventh. The same article grants the right of any nation, nationality or people (to be understood as ‘ethnic group’) to secede at any time and to form its own state following a certain proce- dure. The inconsistency with which Article 46 has been applied has caused discussion and conflicts, the Sidama being one group that is striving for an independent regional state.18

18 See the contribution by Ambaye Ogato in this collection.

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Other legal interventions include the prohibition of certain practices such as hunting, which has forced societies to seek new livelihood strategies.19 The labelling of numerous practices as ‘harmful’ and awareness-raising programs by governmental organisations (GOs) and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) on this issue have been forcing many societies to redefine their concepts of gender and gender relations, aesthetics, and also ritual practices – in some cases affecting core values of their cultural identity.20

The intensification of modern education and the increasing pressure to send all children to school leads to different problems. First, children’s contributions to the subsistence economy collide with school programs during certain seasons. Secondly, education means that socialisation is to some extent being taken out of the hands of families and local communities, especially when children attend school outside their home communities. This carries the risk that children identify more with the lifestyle and ideals of urban environments than with their original culture and as a consequence give up core cultural values. This may cause a gap between the generations and can lead to conflict between communities and government.21

The suspicion and also resistance of local communities to change has led to even more pressure from different sources (such as interventions from government, NGOs and missionaries) and has taken different forms. During awareness-raising programs and continuous meetings organised with government representatives and community elders, as well as in the formal educational system, traditional practices are questioned and at the same time new ideas introduced. Missionary schools in some regions have led to widespread conversions, while protestant missionaries forbid many local practices (Böll, Kaplan, and Martínez d’Alòs-Moner 2005). Finally, there are even cases where adherence to traditional values or practices has subjected individuals to imprisonment.22

THE C A SE S T U D I E S

The case studies in this collection provide different examples of how people experience the implementation of national law and policies at the local level and how they react and also resist changes that seem to threaten their cultural continuity.

In his paper “The revival and reconstruction of tradition and ethnic politics in Sidama”, Ambaye Ogato shows how the Sidama are trying to revitalise certain traditions in order to underpin their common identity and history. As the most populous ethnic group in the SNNPR, the Sidama have been demanding regional status, i.e. to be given

19 See the contribution by Fabienne Braukmann in this collection. 20 See the contributions by Shauna LaTosky and Kate Nialla Fayers-Kerr in this collection. 21 See the contibutions by Susanne Epple and Sophia Thubauville in this collection. 22 See the contribution by Thubauville in this collection.

162 Susanne Epple and Sophia Thubauville

their own region based on ethnicity. So far this has been denied. The paper argues that criteria used to draw regional boundaries and to depict certain ethnic groups as ‘nations’, and others as ‘nationalities’ or ‘peoples’, have not been applied consistently and clearly. This has led to confusion, protests and also competition among different groups over rights, privileges and resources, and, as in the case of the Sidama, to an emphasis on ethnic identity and distinctiveness from neighbouring groups. Ogato’s pa- per is therefore an important contemporary document of this cultural revival by a local anthropologist.

Our own papers give examples of how people resist formal education when they feel that their cultural integrity is being threatened. Susanne Epple shows that the Bashada, a small agro-pastoral group living in South Omo Zone, deal with the intro- duction of formal education actively by discussing and influencing the way in which education is provided to their children. Fearing that their children are not being treated respectfully and taken care of properly in government institutions, the Bashada have long resisted sending any of their children to school. Since conditions have changed and schools have been built closer to their homes in the past one or two decades, they have become more cooperative with the government, and more and more children are being educated. However, when core values of their culture, such as the continuation of their lineages, are under threat, they do not hesitate to take their children out of school again.

The Maale (also Male, Malle) of the South Omo Zone do not generally resist edu- cation, but they do experience clashes in culture when married females are not allowed to go into seclusion as brides – a central part of the female rite of passage into adult- hood. Sophia Thubauville explains how bride seclusion is recently being disturbed as girls who have been attending school are not allowed to leave for the time of their seclu- sion. This has lately led to conflicts between families and the police, and might result, on the long run, in a change to this initiation rite, as well as in the loss of important cultural knowledge that is transmitted to brides during their seclusion.

These two papers show that the government’s efforts to achieve access to educa- tion for all clearly collide with local perceptions of gender roles and safe socialisation, as well as with the felt need to continue certain practices that lie at the core of one’s own culture. After a time of confrontational encounters with police and government officials who prevent children from being forcefully taken out of school by their parents, the Bashada seem to have entered a phase of negotiation and compromise with the govern- ment, while the Maale are presently experiencing forced police intervention in cases where female students stay away from school to undergo bridal seclusion.

The Haro, a small group of formerly hippopotamus hunters living on Gidicho Island in Lake Abaya, have been under pressure to adapt to new laws for decades. In her paper “Marginalised hunters?”, Fabienne Braukmann shows how the Haro have been very inventive in their economic and livelihood strategies since game hunting and the possession of firearms were prohibited and penalised by previous Ethiopian govern-

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ments. The Haro were greatly affected by these prohibitions and had to develop new livelihood strategies. Their example shows the ability of a small, rather marginalised group to change, but at the same time reveals that adaptation can also mean that cul- tural practices that lie at the heart of a given society may continue to exist hidden from the public to avoid legal confrontation – as the Haro still secretly hunt hippopotamus on a smaller scale. This also exemplifies the inconsistency with which wildlife issues have been treated: while the local communities were not allowed to hunt anymore, wealthy foreigners were given special licenses to do so.

The papers by Shauna LaTosky and Kate Fayers-Kerr both focus on the Mursi (also Mun), a small agro-pastoral group of the South Omo Zone, which is best known for the clay discs which women insert into their lower lips. Both authors discuss the issue of so-called ‘traditional harmful practices’, showing the obvious contradictions between local identity and core cultural values on the one hand, and international and national concepts of human rights and development on the other. In “The ‘miranda’ and the ‘cultural archive’”, Fayers-Kerr explains the lip-plates of women within the wider context of body painting and the people’s generally earth-centred habitus. The labelling of the lip-plates as harmful practice and their prohibition has led to mixed reactions among the Mursi. In her paper “A form of self-harm?”, LaTosky provides a detailed in- sight into the world of Mursi women and the current local discourse on the wearing of lip-plates, which to some extent seems to be marked by confusion. The pressure caused by awareness-raising programs and threats by the government to imprison girls with fresh wounds seems to give rise to mixed feelings, causing some women to cling even more strongly to tradition, while others are deciding to have their lips sewn.

The different case studies in this collection show the variety of possible responses to the various forms of tension between state policy and particular cultures in Ethiopia. They range from the acceptance of innovation, partial adaptation, negotiation or com- promise and confusion to open resistance, the emphasis on one’s own culture and the revitalisation of cultural practices or symbols that had been given up.

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