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Sheraton Hotel, Addis Ababa
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THE SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA PEOPLES’ DEMOCRATIC
COALITION (SEPDC)
Mission Statement
Ethiopia is often described as a cultural
mosaic because of the ethno-linguistic and cultural diversity of its
population. More than half of the estimated eighty different ethno-linguistic
groups in the nation resids in the Southern part of the country, currently
known as the Southern Nations’ Nationalities’ and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR). The
Southern Ethiopia Peoples' Democratic Coalition (SEPDC) is a political movement
established in March 1992 by 15 organizations representing about 20 million
people in Southern Ethiopia. It is some
times called in short form as 'Southern Coalition' or 'Debub Hibret'.
The need for an
organized struggle in the Southern region under the SEPDC was an outcome of the
longstanding political reality of domination, subjugation and neglect of the
region. The surfacing of the outstanding problem in a more sophisticated manner
camouflaged with the euphemism "self determination of nations, nationalities
and peoples" during the transitional period after TPLF/EPRDF seized power
made the need for an organized struggle even more eminent. Even though the
organization was formed to bring regional parity to the national political
scene, SEPDC’s principal objective is ending the historically and politically
entrenched inequalities in the country by empowering the peoples of Ethiopia to
democratically decide on their political and socio-economic fate. The SEPDC
pursues a non-violent means to bring about this change and favors the
resolution of conflicting societal interests democratically through
accommodation, bargaining and negotiations. The strategic goal of the coalition
is bringing a political climate conducive to unity, cooperation and the
peaceful coexistence of the Ethiopian people by facilitating equitable
socio-economic opportunities and genuine political representation of all major
interests in the society. SEPDC endeavors to bring lasting peace, political
stability and the rule of law in the country by advocating democratic
alternatives that can support a peaceful transfer of power.
In the spirit of
the foregoing ideals and political goals, SEPDC will lead a regional political
movement that will bring an end to the political alienation, socio-cultural subordination
and economic misappropriation of the peoples of Southern
Ethiopia by successive despotic regimes. SEPDC espouses the rights
of the Southern Ethiopian peoples to exercise self-administration within a
sovereign Ethiopian
State, under constitutional
provisions and consistent with the International Convention on Civil and
Political Rights. The Southern Coalition believes that such an endeavor in
tandem with its national political activities will bring national unity with
mutual respect, acceptance and a balanced socio-economic development by
removing socio-political contexts that engender civil strife, antagonism and
war.
The Southern Ethiopian Peoples’ Democratic Coalition (SEPDC)
consists of the following political parties.
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Lucy Ethiopian History
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