Daily Times

The political party that dominated Ethiopian politics for nearly three decades staged massive anniversary celebrations Wednesday that highlighted rising tensions with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government and neighbouring Eritrea.

The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) led the overthrow of the Marxist ruler Mengistu Haile Mariam in the early 1990s and controlled the ruling coalition that took over.

But the party’s influence plummeted after Abiy assumed office in 2018 — an ascent fuelled by several years of anti-government protests reflecting widespread frustration with the coalition’s rule.

Last year, the TPLF refused to go along with Abiy’s plan to merge the coalition into a single political party, meaning it is now effectively in the opposition.

In Tigray, the northernmost of nine regions in a country administratively divided along ethnic lines, the party is firmly in control.

On Wednesday, tens of thousands of supporters filled the streets of the regional capital, Mekele, for a military-style parade of local and regional security forces.

The event marked the 45th anniversary of the party’s founding in 1975.

Participants shouted fight songs and marched in the formation of maps of both Tigray and Ethiopia.

In a speech, TPLF chairman Debretsion Gebremichael accused Abiy of downplaying the TPLF’s achievements in a bid to consolidate power.

But he said Ethiopians supported the old coalition and respected the TPLF’s legacy.

“The sickness is in the leadership and not the people,” he said.

Yemane Amha, a 44-year-old former TPLF fighter, told AFP that this year’s anniversary came at a “critical time” for the party.