Old video of former Ethiopian official used out of context in connection with 2023 protests

"Gedu Andargachew: why are we disarming farmers? They are our shield," reads the Amharic caption of a Facebook post published on April 5, 2023.

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Screenshot of the misleading post taken on April 12, 2023

The post, which has been shared more than 990 times, also includes an 11-minute-long video.

The first few seconds of the video show Gedu saying: "Why would we disarm the farmers? What did they do?"

A narrator is then heard saying: "Degu’s speech about disarming regional forces is included in the news video."

The narrator goes on to discuss the recent protests in Amhara regional state while showing military imagery.

Around the seven-minute mark, Gedu speaks again: "There are rumours that the government wants to disarm farmers. But why do we disarm the farmers? They are safeguarding their country and maintaining peace. The country is being protected by the farmers. They are also our shields."

Gedu Andargachew has previously served (archived here) as foreign affairs minister, president of the Amhara region and national security advisor to the prime minister.

In June 2022, he was replaced as advisor by Redwan Hussien, the government's lead negotiator in the war in northern Ethiopia (news story archived here).

Since then, Gedu has not held an official position.

The claim that the video shows him commenting on the government’s decision to disband regional forces in April 2023 is misleading.

Protest in Amhara

The Ethiopian government decided to dismantle the regional security forces in April 2023.

Members of the regional security forces would be integrated into the federal army, police or civilian life based on their preference, according to a federal spokeswoman.

In a statement on April 9, 2023, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said he recognised the vital role that regional security forces played in maintaining law and order during crises but added that they also pose a major threat to the country’s overall security.

“The regional security arrangements have compromised our national security and sovereignty multiple times. Moreover, the arrangements created unnecessary competition between the regional states”, the prime minister said in a statement shared on Twitter in Amharic.

However, the decision sparked fierce protests (archived here) in Ethiopia’s Amhara region, the country’s second most populous state.

Protesters claimed that the move to dismantle regional security forces would leave their region defenceless against potential security threats.

Amhara’s local forces fought alongside the federal government against the Tigray People's Liberation Front in the recent war.

Although the current Ethiopian constitution gives power to regional states to organize their own police forces, reports indicate (archive here) that most of the regions established “special forces” that sometimes engage in inter-regional conflicts.

Old video

In December 2018, while he was president of Amhara regional state, Gedu visited members of the Amhara diaspora in the United States (archived here).

Using InVID-WeVerify to conduct reverse image searches on keyframes from the footage, AFP Fact Check found the original video of Gedu’s speech.

Amhara Media Corporation, a broadcaster owned by the regional state, originally published it in December 2018.

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Screenshot of the original video taken on April 12, 2023

Around two minutes into the video, Gedu responded to a participant asking if the government intends to disarm farmers in the Amhara region as part of political reforms in the country at the time.

He replied that there was no such plan in place because the farmers helped safeguard their country and maintain peace.

Gedu did not mention disarming regional forces at any point in the speech.