The Ethiopian Revolution of 1974–1975: Student Mobilization and the Political Voice of the Peasantry

Abstract

"Regional discontent regarding state elites in Ethiopia stemmed from the feudal land tenure systems in the Amharic-Tigre northern provinces and the conquest of Southern lands during the late 19th century through the mid-20th century (Chala, 2016, pp. 111-112). Throughout the reigns of Empress Zewditu and Haile Selassie, the land was commodified to expand and sustain a patronage network (Chege, 1979, p.362). This allowed elites to amass vast tracts of land without compensating Indigenous communities in the South, while simultaneously undermining peasant landownership in the north during the reign of Haile Selassie from 1930 to 1974 (Chala, 2016, p.112)" (p.113)