Under the powerful theme “Women’s Participation in Politics is Fundamental to Peace, Justice, Unity, and Nation-Building,” the Women’s Wing honors the indispensable role of women in the Oromo struggle.

GULLALLEE, March 7, 2026 — The Women’s and Children’s Affairs Wing (DDD) of the Oromo Liberation Front (ABO) celebrated International Women’s Day today at the ABO Main Office in Gullallee, gathering under a theme that left no doubt about the centrality of women to the liberation movement.

The event, held on March 7—one day ahead of the global observance—carried the resonant theme: “Women’s Participation in Politics is Fundamental to Peace, Justice, Unity, and Nation-Building.”

A Celebration of Recognition

The gathering in Gullallee brought together women fighters, community members, and leaders to honor not only International Women’s Day but specifically to recognize the contributions of Oromo women to the ongoing struggle for liberation.

The Women’s Wing organized the celebration with deliberate timing—ensuring that the message of women’s indispensable role would echo through the community before the world turned its attention to International Women’s Day on March 8.

The Theme: Participation as Foundation

The chosen theme reflects a profound understanding within the ABO: women are not merely participants in the struggle—they are its foundation. Without their full political participation, peace cannot be lasting, justice cannot be complete, unity cannot be achieved, and the nation cannot be properly built.

This recognition moves beyond rhetoric. It acknowledges that the liberation of Oromia cannot be separated from the liberation of Oromo women, and that any future Oromo state must be built with women’s full and equal participation from the ground up.

Women at the Heart of the Struggle

The celebration in Gullallee comes at a moment when the role of women in the Oromo liberation movement is receiving increasing attention. From the ancient Siinqee institution—a traditional women’s system of mutual protection and conflict resolution—to the Qarree movement of young women activists today, Oromo women have always been at the forefront of resistance.

Yet their contributions have too often been overlooked in historical accounts. Events like this International Women’s Day celebration serve as corrective acts—public acknowledgments that the struggle could not continue without the women who fight, organize, endure, and sacrifice alongside their male counterparts.

A Message to the World

By celebrating International Women’s Day with this particular theme, the Women’s and Children’s Affairs Wing sends a clear message to the international community: any engagement with the Oromo question must take seriously the role and rights of Oromo women. Peace processes that exclude women will fail. Political settlements that ignore gender equality are illegitimate. Nation-building that sidelines half the population builds on sand.

Looking Forward

As the world marks International Women’s Day on March 8, the women of the ABO and the broader Oromo community stand as living proof that the struggle for national liberation and the struggle for women’s liberation are one and the same. Their participation in politics is not a concession to be granted—it is a right to be recognized and a necessity to be embraced.

The celebration in Gullallee on March 7, 2026, will be remembered as a moment when the ABO affirmed, clearly and publicly, that the future Oromia they are fighting to build will be one where women’s voices are heard, their contributions honored, and their leadership embraced.

The Women’s and Children’s Affairs Wing (DDD) of the ABO extends warm International Women’s Day greetings to all Oromo women and to women around the world fighting for justice, equality, and liberation.