Peasant Revolution in Ethiopia
The Tigray People's Liberation Front, 1975–1991

This book chronicles the rise to power of the student controlled Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) in the northern Ethiopian province of Tigray.

John Young (Author)

9780521591980, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 4 September 1997

290 pages, 2 maps
22.9 x 15.2 x 2.1 cm, 0.6 kg

"John Young has done a fine job presenting a most fascinating case." Stephen F. Burgess, Political Science Quarterly

In the wake of the overthrow of the Haile-Selassie regime in Ethiopia in 1974 and the coming to power of the military, a number of opposition forces launched insurrections. But only one movement, the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) triumphed, liberating Tigray in 1989, and in an ethnic-based coalition which it dominated, assuming state power in 1991. This is the first chronicle of the history of that struggle, and it is based largely on interviews with peasants who formed the core of the Tigrayan revolution and the TPLF leadership. It provides the necessary background to understanding post-1991 political developments in Ethiopia. It also offers an explanation of peasant-based revolution that contrasts with contemporary approaches by Marxists, Skocpol, and in particular the works of Wolf, Paige and Scott, all of whom largely ignore the political considerations and the role of the revolutionary party, which Dr Young identifies as a critical element in his study.

Acknowledgements
1. Peasants and revolutions: theoretical directions
2. Historical and social background
3. Tigray on the eve of insurrection
4. Struggle for opposition ascendancy: 1975–8
5. Challenges and advances: 1978–85
6. Triumph: 1985–91
7. TPLF and the peasants
8. Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Terrorism, armed struggle [JPWL]