Information About Oromo (Ethiopian) Singer/Songwriter And Activist Hachalu Hundessa

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part I of a two part pancocojams series on Oromo (Ethiopian) singer/songwriter Hachalu Hundessa.

Part I in this series provides some information about Oromo (Ethiopian) singer Hachalu Hundessa, with special focus on his 2013 song "Maalan Jira?"

Hachalu Hundessa was murdered on June 29, 2020. This pancocojams post includes excerpts from several articles about his murder and the subsequent protest in Ethiopia that occurred after that murder.  

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/07/oromo-etrhiopian-singer-hachalu.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. Part II showcases the official YouTube video of "Maalan Jira?" and presents some comments about song's meanings from that video's discussion thread.

The content of this post is presented for cultural, historical, inspirational, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owner.

Thanks to Hachalu Hundessa for his musical and cultural legacy. Thanks to all those who are associated with this video and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.

RIP Hachalu Hundessa . RIP all those who have been killed or injured as a result of the protests that have been held as a result of  murder.

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INFORMATION ABOUT HACHALU HUNDESSAExcerpt #1

https://qz.com/africa/1875617/ethiopia-oromos-protest-on-hachalu-hundesa-shooting-web-blocked/

Ethiopia is in uproar and its internet blocked over the shooting of a popular Oromo singer

Addis Ababa June 30, 2020

By Zecharias Zelalem

The shooting of Hachalu Hundesa on Monday night in Addis Ababa has shocked the nation, as millions of Ethiopians woke up to the news of the iconic Oromo singer song writer’s murder.

The shooting took place around 9:30 pm local time in the city’s Kality area. Addis Ababa Police said a number of suspects have been detained and that an investigation is ongoing. Thousands of outraged fans across the country have taken to the streets demanding justice. In an attempt to quell the riots and prevent news coverage of them, the Ethiopian government has shut down internet services nationwide.

[...]

Protesting Hachalu

For those who took to the streets, Hachalu was more than just a musician. He was an outspoken revolutionary who used his lyrics to echo the plight of Ethiopia’s long marginalized Oromo people. As such, for the ethnic Oromo, who form just over a third of Ethiopia’s 110 million-strong population, Hachalu was enshrined as a symbol of defiance and resistance.

Hachalu’s lyrics and voice, written in his native Afaan Oromo tongue, garnered him nationwide fame and sold out concerts across Ethiopia and North America whenever he toured. But by far, his most popular single is Maalan Jira, which translates loosely to “what existence is mine.” The song, which describes the displacement of Oromos, resonated at the time of its June 2015 release when the Oromo were campaigning against the planned expansion of the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

The relevance of Maalan Jira’s message resonated with protesters who only months later, launched the 2015-16 uprisings that would eventually force the resignation of prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn. It paved the way for Abiy, an Oromo himself, to ascend to the throne and implement the reform protesters across Ethiopia had demanded.

For renowned rights advocate Fatuma Bedhaso, who was a friend of Hachalu’s and is herself of Oromo ancestry, the loss of someone she refers to as the voice of her generation, is particularly painful.

“Hachalu weaved our sorrows and hopes together through his art and quite literally provided us with a road map,” she told Quartz Africa. “He did that with Maalan Jira, the soundtrack of the Oromo protest movement.”

Further endearing Hachalu to the masses, was his refusal to compromise on his beliefs. He remained an outspoken activist and human rights advocate until the very end, despite his success as an artist. In his final interview before his death, he lashed out at prime minister Abiy, likely out of frustration over reports of killings carried out against civilians, by Ethiopian army forces fighting a separatist militia in southern and western Oromia."...

****Excerpt #2

From  https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-53238206

"More than 80 people have been killed in two days of unrest in Ethiopia following the killing of prominent singer Hachalu Hundessa.

The 34-year-old had emerged as a powerful political voice of the Oromo ethnic group, and had made many enemies during his musical career.

Two suspects were arrested after he was shot dead while driving in the capital, Addis Ababa on Monday evening. However, police have not yet revealed a motive for the killing and no charges have been brought against the suspects.

Hachalu's funeral has taken place in his hometown of Ambo.

BBC Afaan Oromoo's Bekele Atoma writes about the musician who was a thorn in the flesh of successive governments.

[…]

Jailed for five years

One of eight children, Hachalu was born in 1986 in Ambo - a city about 100km (60 miles) west of the capital, Addis Ababa.

It was at the forefront of the campaign by Oromos for self-rule in a nation where they felt repressed under a government that had banned opposition groups and jailed critics.

Hachalu went to school in Ambo, and joined student groups campaigning for freedom.

At the age of 17 in 2003, Hachalu was imprisoned for five years for his political activities.

His father kept his morale high in prison, telling him during visits that "prison makes a man stronger".

Hachalu became increasingly politicised in prison, as he increased his knowledge about Ethiopia's history, including its rule by emperors and autocrats.

[…]

Many other musicians and activists fled into exile fearing persecution under the rule of then-Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and his successor Hailemariam Desalegn but Hachalu remained in Ethiopia and encouraged the youth to stand up for their rights.

One of his songs was about how he fell in love with a girl who was proud of her identity and was willing to die for it.

'Gallant warriors and horsemen'

His second album Waa'ee Keenya (Our Plight) was released in 2013 while he was on a tour in the US. It became the best-selling African album on Amazon at the time.

Two years later, he released a powerful single, Maalan Jira? (What existence is mine?), referring to the eviction of Oromos from Addis Ababa and its surrounding areas, after the government decided to expand the boundaries of the city.

For Hachalu, the 2015 displacements showed that history was repeating itself.

He shared the view of Oromo historians that what is currently known as Addis Ababa was once the home of the Tulama clans of the Oromo, and they were forced out by Emperor Menelik II.

In June, Hachalu angered the emperor's supporters after he accused Menelik II of stealing the horses of Oromos - who see themselves as gallant warriors and horsemen - when he established Addis Ababa as his seat of power, and Ethiopia's capital in 1886.

Hachalu's songs became the anthem of the protest movement which emerged in 2015 to demand an end to the displacement of Oromos.

At a time of heightened protests at the end of 2017, Hachalu released another song.

"Do not wait for help to come from outside, a dream that doesn't come true. Rise, make your horse ready and fight, you are the one close to the palace," he sang, often to cheers from his fans.

'Singer was fearless'

The protests snowballed into a campaign for greater political freedom, culminating with Ahmed Abiy becoming the first Oromo to take the post of prime minister in 2018 with a promise to release all political prisoners, unban opposition groups and hold democratic elections.”

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Excerpt #3
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/30/world/africa/ethiopia-hachalu-hundessa-dead.html "Hachalu Hundessa, Ethiopian Singer and Activist, Is Shot Dead" By Abdi Latif Dahir

• June 30, 2020

The musician, 34, was known for political songs that provided support for the ethnic Oromo group’s fight against repression and a soundtrack for antigovernment protests

..."The killing drew condemnation from Ethiopian officials and citizens both inside and outside the country, with many remembering how his songs encouraged the country’s ethnic Oromo group to fight against repression. Even though they are Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromos have long complained of economic and political marginalization.

“Hachalu was the soundtrack of the Oromo revolution, a lyrical genius and an activist who embodied the hopes and aspirations of the Oromo public,” said Awol Allo, a senior law lecturer at Keele University in England who has written extensively about Mr. Hundessa's music.

 His songs, Mr. Allo said, were at the heart  of a groundswell of antigovernment resistance that began in 2015 with street protests in the Oromia region that eventually led to the resignation of the prime minister at the time, Hailemariam Desalegn. Through ballads like "Maalan Jira" (“What existence is mine”) and "Jirraa" (“We are here”), Mr. Hundessa was credited for capturing not just the struggle and frustrations of Oromo protesters but also their dreams for the country, Africa’s second-most populous nation after Nigeria.

“Hachalu was exceptionally courageous and a man of many great talents,” Mr. Allo said in an interview. “His songs mobilized millions of Oromos across Ethiopia.”"...
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This concludes Part I of this pancocojams series.
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