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Sifelani Tsiko

The recent 123rd commemoration of the Battle of Adwa where the Ethiopian forces defeated an invading Italian force on 1 March 1896 acts as an important contemporary reminder for us as Africans to wake up and celebrate the rich and diverse history of our continent and its people.

For far too long, we have either been forced to or willingly to celebrate the stories of our European colonisers. Our own African stories have been told by Europeans and Americans and a recent public lecture to commemorate the Battle of Adwa by the Ethiopian Community in Zimbabwe in collaboration with the UZ Department of History goes to demonstrate that we as Africans can tell our own story.

Knowingly or unknowingly Africans still celebrate European battles — World War 1 and II and numerous others without celebrating their own.

Their contributions have been pushed under the rag of selective amnesia. Very often the European media and its attendant narrative on Africa fails to understand the local complexities and base their narrative on sweeping and misleading generalisations. 

Most of the times, the historical narrative and reports are wrong or distorted. Critics even go on to suggest that their depictions and analysis are racist and mired in bigotry.

Our own Chimurenga wars, the Battle of Adwa, the Mau Mau war of liberation in Kenya and many others on our continent often go un-celebrated, with much focus being given to the European war stories.

And the first commemoration of the Adwa battle here in Zimbabwe, marks an important departure by Africans and among Africans.

In a small but big way, the event at the UZ helped us to sing our own war song and our own victory song.

The commemorations helped to contribute towards awareness of academics, students and other people about the positive contribution of the Adwa Battle to the struggle for national liberation not only in Ethiopia but on the continent as a whole.

For once, we celebrated the Ethiopian warriors – both men and women – who contributed to and shaped the history of our continent in its fight against imperialism.

History has tended to largely overlook African war victories. Many at this event, felt strongly that it is time that history starts to be rewritten and that Africa must sing its own song.

Said Dr Anusa Daimon, chairman of the UZ history department: “The Battle of Adwa is one of the most significant battles in the history of Africa and has become a symbol of African resistance against colonial encroachment and inspiration for Pan Africanism.”

Prof Itai Muhwati, a UZ Dean of the Faculty of Arts said it was important for Africans to understand that Europeans and people in the West will not readily praise Africans. 

He said Europe’s lust for a historical narrative stained by colonial and racial prejudice is still a reality of world affairs today. “People of Africa have come together to celebrate their own story,” he said. “It’s not very often that Africans come together to celebrate and share their own experiences. The African story has been mainly told by European missionaries and other white colonial settler. Their view of Africa has largely been reinforced by pure bigotry.”

He said the main purpose of the Eurocentric stories was to ridicule and denigrate the African.

“Our history was nullified and thoroughly rejected. In all ways they sought to erase Africa’s contribution to civilisation. The Battle of Adwa must be located in the context of victory against imperialism. The victory gives us a real sense of ourselves, it gives us pride and it restores our African dignity.”

With the Adwa battle victory, he argues: “We are able to spell our name that we are Africans. It’s a major symbol that restores our pride and dignity as Africans. Its not taboo to go back and take what we forgot, so goes wisdom in our African tradition.”

The event was rich in presentations and discussions on Ethiopianism, pan Africanism and the reality facing Africans today.

The traditional Ethiopian attire worn by the community and the traditional Ethiopian dish which included the popular “njera” added colour to the commemorations.

Acting UZ Vice Chancellor Prof Paul Mapfumo said the Adwa victory should be researched further and written upon to help the continent to celebrate its own stories.

“We should reflect on the lessons and implications of the Adwa victory in our common struggle against colonialism and its attendant injustices,” he said.

Dr Endris Seid, chairperson of the Ethiopian Community in Zimbabwe, said the Adwa victory should act as a rallying point for unity of purpose by all Africans.

“We should set aside our differences and join hands against our common enemy called poverty. Our battle is not over. We are still facing poverty and this victory should inspire us all to do more to tackle hunger and poverty,” he said.

Prof Mediel Hove, a UZ historian and Prof Girma Menelik gave presentations on the causes, course and implications of the battle of Adwa in which Ethiopian warriors routed an Italian force that sought to expand Rome’s fledgling 19th century colonial empire. 

It is this victory of 123 years ago that preserved Ethiopia’s independence in 1896 and became a rallying point for Africans a generation later in their fight against colonialism. 

The presenters focused on the lessons of the battle of Adwa and mentioned the treaty of Wuchale which caused the battle of Adwa.

While celebrating the victory of Adwa as a lifetime heritage and a precious jewel to African pride and resistance to colonialism and stereotypes is important, we should not be blinded to the challenges that still face us today. As Africans, like Dr Seid said, we need to continue pulling together in a bid to rid our continent of the legacy of colonialism and the poverty that we still face today.

We should impart the African history lessons to the young generations. They must understand that the Adwa Victory not only made Ethiopia an epitome of African nationalism but that it made this nation, which is the seat of the African Union – the moral and spiritual national resource for all Africans across the world struggling for equality and dignity.

It is an African victory with world significance that should inform us and strengthen our resolve to meet the challenges of the unfinished business of African unity and to confront new and emerging challenges that most pan Africanists say are more subtle and insidious than the challenges that were faced during slavery and colonialism.

Powerful narratives must be developed around the Adwa victory and numerous other significant resistance struggles on the continent to inform the debates on the current quest for African unity and resistance to new and subtly forms of imperialism.

At the promotion of such narratives should start with our children from pre-school to all in every sphere of our social, public, cultural and economic lives.