The Ethiopian community in Uganda on Sunday gathered at their embassy in Kampala to commemorate the 127th anniversary of the ’Battle of Adwa’ which marks Ethiopia's victory over Italy.
Commemorated under the motto 'Unity, Bravery, and Perseverance', the Ethiopians celebrated a March 1896 historic victory over Italy in Adwa, as the European country tried to expand its colonial territory in the Horn of Africa.
Adwa's historic victory brought Ethiopian fighters from all over the country together in a patriotic spirit to fight against the heavily armed Italian army.
Speaking at the commemoration ceremony, Sara Melese, the chargé d’affairs of Public Diplomacy and Foreign Affairs at the Ethiopian Embassy in Uganda, said they organised the event to mark not only Ethiopia’s but also Africa’s victory over European colonialists.
”We organised today's event to mark Africa's first victory over European colonialists, the great battle fought and won by a black African country, Ethiopia, against the mighty Italians in a place named Adwa,” Melese said.
She also noted that Adwa is also a beacon of hope for black people who have been subjugated to prejudice and suffering, particularly in the Caribbean and the Americas.
”As proven by Marcus Garvey's "Back to Africa" movement and the evolution of Pan- Africanism, the Adwa victory had a profound effect on the black culture in general. This eventually led to the independence of several African nations, as well as the formation of the Organization of African Unity, today’s African Union,” she noted.
In his remarks, Richard Job Matua, a Ugandan Pan-Africanist observed that the battle of Adwa symbolised African determination to fight for themselves without external assistance and that it was important the battle be taught in all African schools.
“If African Union was serious, the Battle of Adwa should have been made compulsory in all curriculums in African countries. It defines the significance of our self mobilisation, our self resistance to the so-called superior people. The Battle of Adwa is an African victory, it is your victory as the people of Ethiopia,” Matua said.