Red Legacy Campaign Takes Over Abiy’s Green Legacy Campaign.
Amid the rise of the death toll over the killing of ethnic Amhara in the Oromia region last Friday, a social media campaign is calling for an end to a vicious cycle of killings that is wrecking the country over the past four years.
Unlike the previous attacks, Saturday killings have received a large amount of international media coverage and condemnation from the international community. Over 40 international media outlets have reported the incident. The killings have even brought Iranian and American officials to make a statement in a similar tone irrespective of their foreign policy agendas and views.
The ongoing social media campaign uses three hashtags #በቃ #ቀይአሻራ and #ዜግነት ክብር. The three hashtag keywords intend to address the following key points.
#በቃ( Enough)– Calls for an end, to the countless attack on civilians since Prime Minister Abiy took power four years ago.
#ቀይአሻራ (Red Legacy)- Counters Green Legacy tree planting campaign and calls for the government to prioritize its agenda in assuring peace and security. The issue of prioritization has also been addressed by renowned artist Teddy Afro, In his new single titled Neat. He highlights the government’s focus on glittery stuff. The song has received over 2.1 million views in just one day.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hMVeENjVew
#ዜግነትክብር (Citizenship Dignity) tends to challenge the amount of respect the government gives to its citizens. During this week’s parliament session the house of speaker Tagesse Chafo rejected parliament member Dr. Desalegn Chane’s request to set an agenda with regards to the Saturday killings. Despite the death of more than 500 civilians, the government has not called for national mourning.
