The Legal and Practical Challenges in the Creation of New Regional States in Ethiopia: The Case of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Regional States (SNNPRS)
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Date
2023-02
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
This paper examines the legal and practical challenges of new regional state creation in
Ethiopia, with a particular emphasis on the SNNPRS. The study thus tried to investigate some
legal gaps relevant to new state creation and the practical challenges of new regional state
creation, such as referendums, minorities inside new states, border demarcation, property
distribution, and other concerns. By using qualitative methodology, this study analysed both
primary and secondary data sources. Moreover, the study tried to draw a comparative
analysis based on lessons learned from some countries regarding the challenges of new
regional state creation and how to handle them. Accordingly, the overall findings of the study
show that the FDRE Constitution, the revised SNNPRS Constitution, and other relevant
subsidiary laws lack a clear legal framework for dealing with some challenges relating to
new regional state creation, such as failure to consider the viability and minimum numerical
population, sharing/distribution of common property, protection for minority rights within
the newly created regional state, border demarcation and relating to the capital city the
newly formed regions, the findings also show the legal and practical challenges Based on
these findings, the paper concluded that the Ethiopian approach to the new regional state
creation in the SNNPR failed to address the above-mentioned legal and practical challenges.
Therefore, this paper proposes serious reconsideration of the Ethiopian approach to a new
regional state created in a way that averts the existing challenges on the matter.