SUMMARY
The Borana and Degodia inhabit a remote region that straddles the border between north-eastern Kenya and south-eastern Ethiopia. Given the fact that the groups are present in two countries, the dynamic behind their changing relationship is both driven by country-specific factors and more broad regional ones.
One over-arching factor influencing Borana – Degodia relations is the conflict-ridden relationship between the Somali and Oromo ethnic groups. The area inhabited by the Borana and Degodia is right on the border between these two ethnicities and is subsequently characterized by tensions between them. While Borana is one of the main Oromo groups, the Degodia by most accounts belongs to the Somali community. Accordingly, their relationship has over time been conflictual, with the two groups viewing each other as traditional enemies.
However, ascribing ethnic identity in the region is not uncomplicated, as some groups tend to shift group belonging strategically according to their own situational needs. This shift is rendered possible since some groups can be viewed as Oromo by one set of criteria (such as language) and Somali by another set of criteria (clanship and religion for instance). Subsequently, these groups can stress their affiliation to the two overarching groups more or less, depending on the context. The Degodia, while traditionally viewed as a Somali group, have at some points in time chosen to stress their link to the Borana and during these periods the two have forged an alliance against other groups. The latest time that this happened was during the mid- and late 1980s and first years of the 1990s.
Another non-country-specific factor that influences Borana – Degodia relations is the fact that they are both pastoralists and compete for the same scarce resources in both Ethiopia and Kenya. They have a long history of conflicts over access to pasture and water, with livestock raiding being a common occurrence over the years. This has strained relations and caused revenge attacks.
In both Ethiopia and Kenya the Degodia have expanded their territory westwards, which has been yet another reason behind the conflict between the two groups. Developments in Ethiopia since the mid-1990s have resulted in this expansion being perceived by the Borana as even more threatening. In late May 1991, the rebel forces of EPRDF (Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front) succeeded in overthrowing the military regime ruling the country after 16 years of armed conflict. The new government soon began to convert the country into an ethnic federation, redrawing Ethiopia's political map along ethnolinguistic divisions. Although not fully put into practice, the 1994 constitution granted ethnic groups unconditional right to self-determination up to and including secession. Ethnicity has subsequently become territorial in a completely new way and analysts have pointed out that since the introduction of federalism along ethnic lines, there has been a general pattern of conflicts arising as a consequence of groups scrambling to claim scarce land and other resources for themselves.
For the Borana and Degodia, the new constitution meant that they found themselves on opposite sides of the new administrative boundary between the Oromiya and Somali regional states. However, it was never decided exactly how the actual boundary should be demarcated, which meant that the areas that had previously been shared by the two groups became disputed. Subsequently, the nature of the inter-group conflict changed from revolving largely around competition for resources, to center more on administrative boundary issues. Furthermore, as the Degodia’s westward expansion continued, the Borana increasingly stressed their territoriality and expressed a need to defend their remaining lands from further encroachment by their neighbors.
Conflicts generally start as a confrontation between individuals that turn in to raids and counter-raids. While the two groups have a long history of conflict, the nature of the fighting, once escalated, has changed over the years and now involves large-scale mobilization and the use of modern arms and ammunition. This has resulted in more violent conflicts, with a high death toll, massive destruction of property, and displacement. Furthermore, massacres of different scales have been carried out in the context of the conflict.
The non-state conflict between the Borana and the Degodia was first included in UCDP data in 1992. Sometime during the second half of that year, a large battle was fought in what was then the Sidamo region, causing more than 50 battle-related deaths.
