14/06/2025
From Gadaa Ground to Global Diplomacy: The Untold Story of Finfinne – Capital of Oromia and Africa’s Political Heart, drawing from the powerful narrative of Chapter 2:
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Excerpt from the Introduction
From Gadaa Ground to Global Diplomacy: The Untold Story of Finfinne
Finfinne—known to the world as Addis Ababa—is not merely a seat of government or a diplomatic enclave. It is a living archive of an ancient worldview, a symbol of unbroken indigenous democracy, and the heartland of the Oromo people’s spiritual and political heritage. Before its transformation into a capital of empires and international alliances, Finfinne pulsed with the rhythm of the Gadaa system—the uniquely Oromo institution of egalitarian self-governance, ecological harmony, and cultural sovereignty.
At the center of this story stands the Tuulama Oromo, guardians of the highlands and stewards of the sacred springs. They nurtured Finfinne as a cultural and ecological sanctuary, where leaders were not crowned in palaces but selected under Odaa trees, where land was not owned but honored, and where justice flowed like the rivers that cradled their homeland.
This book traces Finfinne’s arc across centuries: from the cradle of the Gadaa assemblies to the contested terrain of imperial conquest; from a sacred Oromo center to a metropolis housing the African Union. It is a journey of memory, resistance, erasure, and revival. It begins not with foreign maps or royal decrees—but with the Tuulama clans, the Siinqee women, the hot springs of Hora Finfinne, and the songs still sung by those who remember.
To understand Finfinne today, one must begin with its first keepers. This is their story—and through it, the story of Africa’s political heart is reimagined from the ground up.
Oromia-My Country
