๐๐๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ค๐ by Teshome Beyene
1. Ashenda: A Living Tradition of Tigrai
Ashenda is one of the biggest and most tumultuous celebrations in Tigrai. It has endured centuries, and in all types of ups and downs of historical upheavals. When war pitched, when famine decimated populations, Ashenda survived and can, therefore, be termed as a strong Tigrean heritage.
It is usually celebrated for three days continuously, with girls coming out into the open in self-selected groups from each neighbourhood, fastening around their waists carefully knitted long leaves collected from nearby. It is a specific type of leave, and not all leave will do the job. It starts at the end of the short fasting season ofย Filseta, invariably from Nehassie 1 up to Nehassie 15 (in the Geez Calendar). The fasting period, even though short, is quite solemn as it is also devoted to Christian soul searching and direct communication with God, by going to the monasteries and staying for days there.
Theย Filsetaย fasting is supposed to be an ascetic period. Being short also makes it easy for kids to go through it in one gulp. Upon the completion of the season, one Christian season of fasting and prayer, the devotees commemorate the following days with a sense of accomplishment. The girls at the very end of the fasting season start by going to the church and going to see the elderly or the most important person in the village, and getting the blessing before going on a spree of songs and dancing for three days on end. It is a celebration that they would be expecting the whole year, and for which they devote time and effort to beautify themselves by putting on decorations and preparing Ashenda clothing for the short week in which they regale and enjoy their freedom.
On those three days, the Ashenda girl would mix and mingle with her peers, and the group would stick together while praising people who give them money, and curse (in jest) those who do not. And the variety of songs is incredible, and so mesmerizing. The girls, singing in unison and with harmony, are memorable for everyone, not to speak of the beauty they put on themselves. There is, in fact, a saying in Tigrai. Do not get engaged in the week of Ashenda, as every girl becomes beautiful and dainty.
The Ashenda festivities are seen in parts of Eritrea and the Amhara region, and most of Tigrai. But nowhere is it so consistently and delightfully celebrated as in Tambien province, which I surmise is the origin of it. In Tembien, the girls withย Aweris, a particular form of dancing unique to the place, get hilarious and run almost wild. The girls are at their most prolific with poems, poems that they use to taunt the establishment, or poke fun at individuals, or say something about any current ongoing thing related to the polity. In the old days, the ordinary laities would ask what the Ashenda girls had come with for poems. That was a litmus test for the period.
Moreover, when the chips were down for Ashenda, during the height of the 17 years of war, Tembien has maintained its flavour and its ancient form. And the fact that heads of the current regional government in Tigrai travelled to Tembien is a mark of appreciation for Tembien as the ultimate custodian, and that is quite laudable. This is as far as my personal view goes.
Ashenda has been a unifying factor for Tigrai. Recently, it has become a week that pulls Tegaru families and second-generation Tegaru from Diaspora to come to their roots to enjoy their culture and, at the same time, discover their heritage. Many families from Addis Ababa, other cities in the world come to Mekele to reunite and celebrate with their families in Tigrai.
And another change that has come to the fore recently is that it has taken a mass or concert-like form. It has also taken on commercial significance. No doubt that it is bound to happen with the monetization and commercialization of society and the expansion of social media. All along, it has become a tourism and market opportunity for businesses. Ashenda has become a time when artists, particularly the upstarts, show off their skills.
Besides, Ashenda may have gone beyond its religious relevance, and something that is to be expected when a society grows secular, and the number of serious believers declines. On another aspect of it, Ashenda has also dwindled in its symbolism for virginity and innocence. That is disheartening to note, given that these values cannot be better represented in society than by Ashenda, given that the festivity revolves around young girls. I would say it has become more of frolicking, joy, and merriment for all, and less of becoming the celebration of only the young girls, for whom Ashenda is the only gate to be outdoors and enjoy the company of each other, while singing and dancing in pure and unalloyed delight. In the past, the rest of the community was only supposed to keep themselves in check with awe and admiration for the girls.
I grant that changes must certainly come with time. You cannot keep the purity of ancient practices and celebrations forever. You can only manicure them to the extent that they do not go awry, that they are not totally swamped by Western consumerism and materialism. For this, we have many well-meaning personalities and advocacy groups that are expressing their concerns and grave disappointments, trying to be the guardians of pure culture. Most even call a town hall meeting ahead of Ashenda to create consensus around the good values of Ashenda, and how those could be maintained.
Be that as it may, Ashenda has become the mark of unity and staying together as a society. Its echo far and wide is quite palpable. Just this year, in recognition of the celebration, four federal ministers have come to Mekele and mingled with the society, chiefly the minister for tourism and culture, and others. That is a welcome development. It was already there as a practice for a few years, and the fact that it is maintained amidst growing tensions is a source of hope. Happily, that again shows me that Ashenda can contribute towards healing at a country level. The big cleavage created between our society in Tigrai and that of others in the rest of Ethiopia could be remedied when we use Ashenda and other events for the noble end of restoring people-to-people relations and peace.
What is particularly gratifying is that security and order in Mekeleโand reportedly across much of the regionโis now steady and undisturbed. It is both heart-warming and profoundly humbling to see young girls, dressed in battle fatigues and carrying AK-47 rifles, standing guard around the celebration sites to ensure the safety of their peers. Many of these volunteer fighters in the TDF even adorn their uniforms with Ashendaโs ornamental headbands and beads, blending the spirit of festivity with the burden of duty. One cannot help but hope that, by next year, these girls will lay down their weapons and join the dances unencumbered. That moment would truly mark the arrival of genuine peace and stability.
Happy Days Ahead for Our Young Girls!
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2. Axum: A Week of Loss and Renewal
The city of Axum, Ethiopiaโs ancient and holiest city, has witnessed two contrasting developments this weekโone deeply tragic, the other quietly uplifting.
On the sorrowful side, Axum has lost one of its spiritual pillars:ย Nibre-Eid Belay Meresa, the long-serving head priest who guided the cityโs ecclesiastical life for decades. The title ofย Nibre-Eidโonce imbued with both spiritual and administrative authority, especially in imperial timesโremains one of the most revered in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo tradition. Belay Meresa, who began his service in the early 1960s, rose steadily through the ranks of church education and leadership, holding positions such asย Gira-Getaย andย Meri-Geta, before being invested asย Nibre-Eidย by the Patriarch himself.
His legacy is profound. He not only safeguarded Axumโs sacred traditions, holy books, and artifacts but also nurtured the Saint Yared School of Religious Learning, where he served since 1964/65, eventually becoming its head. Under his stewardship, Saint Yaredโs timeless hymns and writingsโthe very foundations of Ethiopian liturgical musicโwere carefully studied, reviewed, and transmitted to the next generation. Axum has thus lost not merely a leader but one of its cherished sons, a spiritual father whose devotion was unwavering.
May his soul rest in Peace.
Yet, amid this grief, there is also reason for hope. In a landmark ruling, theย Supreme Court of Tigraiย affirmed that wearing theย hijabย is a constitutional rightโone that no authority may strip away. The decision came after nearly a year-long dispute in Axum, where several hundred female students had been barred from school for refusing to remove their hijab. The Bureau of Education in Tigrai had stood firm in its ban, and the matter was long overshadowed by the regionโs wider crises. Thanks to the persistence of advocates such as journalist andย tegadalaiย Demura Yahya, the case finally reached the courts. His relief was evident as he welcomed the ruling as just in his latest FB post.
The judiciaryโs relative independenceโalready glimpsed in earlier rulings, including those concerning EFFORT and the case of Zewdi Haftuโhas once again shown itself, offering a measure of confidence in the rule of law. For their part, Muslim activists and community leaders deserve recognition for handling the issue with maturity. By keeping the case in proportion and resisting the temptation to inflame passions, they helped prevent further strain on an already fragile context. Their restraint is commendable, as is their commitment to principle.
Thus, in Axum this week, grief and consolation have walked side by side: the passing of a revered spiritual leader and the affirmation of a constitutional right.
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3. Beaten Before the Verdict: A Dark Scene in Tigrai
Just this week, three individuals were arrested by sheer chance, allegedly after hijacking a civilian for criminal purposes. In a rare show of cooperation, residents and police joined forces to pursue and apprehend the suspects. What followed, however, was a disturbing scene: an outbreak of mob justice. The suspects were beatenโresidents with their boots, police with their clubsโand paraded along the road, ostensibly on their way to a police station.
For a community worn down by relentless crime, such outbursts of rage may be understandable, even predictable. Yet, they remain troubling. The police, in particular, are bound by law to act with restraint. Beatings, torture, or any mistreatment of detainees are clear violations of the very principles the people of Tigrai have long prided themselves on as a populationโrespect for the rule of law and adherence to due process. Every person is presumed innocent until proven guilty, and justice must follow established legal procedures.
Mob justice is neither justice nor acceptable. It is crude, dangerous, and corrosive to the rule of law. If left unchecked, it could easily escalate into the kinds of atrocities witnessed elsewhere in Ethiopia, such as the appalling daylight lynching in Shashamene on August 13, 2018. Such barbarity has no place in the twenty-first centuryโand certainly not in Tigrai, a region with a deep political tradition, a God-fearing culture, and a history of law-abiding citizens.
If Tigrai is to uphold its proud legacy, then the answer to rising crime cannot be lawlessness in the name of justice. It must be the firm and fair application of the law.
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4. Art, Anger, and Accountability: Debebe Eshetu in Ethiopiaโs Spotlight
The passing of Artistย Debebe Eshetu,ย at the age of 83, has been one of the most notable events of the week. It coincided with the remembrance of Meles Zenawi in Mekeleโyet the events stood in stark contrast, each holding a different meaning for different people.
Debebe was, without doubt, one of Ethiopiaโs most celebrated artists, a household name whose performances entertained and inspired millions over decades. In this connection. Government media, the Prime Minister, the President, and even the U.S. Embassy expressed sorrow at the loss of a one-of-a-kind artist.
His death might ordinarily have been expected to unify the nation in grief, transcending political divides in a collective tribute to his artistry. But the public response was far from uniform. Ordinary citizens, by and large, did not mourn him in the way such a towering cultural figure might once have been mourned. Instead, many seized the moment to re-examine his legacyโparticularly his foray into politics.
Since openly joining the opposition in 2004 as a vocal supporter of theย Kinjitย party, Debebe became known for his uncompromising, even ruthless rhetoric. His words were especially harsh toward the people of Tigrai. On several occasions, in public and without restraint, he called for their extermination, excommunication, and submissionโlanguage that was brutal and dehumanizing. He never retracted or softened those words, nor showed signs of repentance.
This legacy haunted his passing. Contrary to Ethiopiaโs long-held custom of sparing the dead from harsh judgment, Debebe was openly demonized after his death. For some, his passing was even received as โgood news.โ Most strikingly, this reckoning was not confined to Tigreans, though they were the most vocal in condemning him. Others, too, either kept silent rather than offering praise or joined in voicing the uncomfortable truth: Debebe had used his platform to deepen division and hostility, working against unity and peace.
Even Meles Zenawi has been subject to serious reassessment by Tegaru intellectuals and activists. He did not enjoy universal adulation, and in fact, his legacy has attracted increasing criticism over time as the immediate weight of his death fades. In this sense, public figuresโwhether political leaders or artistsโare rarely beyond scrutiny, and historyโs judgment can be as complex as it is enduring.
Debebeโs death, therefore, has served as more than a moment of personal loss. It has become an occasion to confront, openly and boldly, the dangers of bigotry and hate speech. Let this moment be a lesson: that those who profit from sowing division will eventually face the verdict of history, if not in life, then in death. If anything enduring is to come from Debebeโs passing, may it be a renewed commitmentโamong all Ethiopiansโto heal fractured ties, especially between the Amhara and Tigrai communities, and to choose unity and peace over words of enmity.
Let him not find the peace that he so callously disturbed in others. Amen.