The Gadaa Research Centre is an interdisciplinary research and advocacy program, hosted by the Advocacy for Oromia within the club of research and knowledge advancement. It is created to organise and coordinate research activity of the organisation.
The Two Historic Events of Gada System: Dismemberment and Renaissance
According to Gadaa chronology, there are two major historic events. These are: the decentralisation or dismemberment of Gadaa (Chinna Gadaa) and the renaissance of Gadaa (Haromsa Gadaa). The former designates the condition when the centralised sytem of Gadaa under Oda Nabe was decentralised to the extent that each Oromo clan
were left to be administered by clan assemblies traditionally known as Chaffe (general assembly).
It would be appropriate to question the factor(s) for the dismemberment of Gadaa. In this regard, the argument is that the Gadaa System was under threat from external forces from the pre-medieval period. The first potential threat, which the oral tradition maintains up to date, was the case of the expansion of Islam and Christian kingdom in
Ethiopia. Though it is not crystal clear as to the effect of this threat, some argue that the long conflict between the Christian kingdom and Muslim sultanates (from 14th century) on the land of the Oromo people had created instability in the region and necessitated for the dismemberment of the Gadaa system that ultimately resulted in dismemberment (Chinna) Gadaa. Moreover, the oral tradition maintains that the assassination of the religious leader (Qallu) known as Oditu Qallu had also accelerated the problem (ibid:56).
In Oromo society, guddifachaa practice has a long history and started during the time of Gada1 system commencement. According to four informants (Abbaa gadaas or gada experts, leaders), they celebrated the 70th gada with their gadaa grades in 2000 which is estimated to be 560 years. Six of the informants (five Abbaa gadaas and one community member) claimed that the gada system and the guddifachaa practices as an institution started together 2000 years ago. They report 360 gada stages or 2880 years in Oromo. There are no anthropological and historical research accounts that confirm this notion in the country and for the Oromo society in specific.
In Ethiopia, the term guddifachaa as a form of adoption was inherited from the Oromo language. It means adopting a child by fulfilling all the economic, psychological and social rights of a family member. The term was unanimously approved and incorporated in to the civil law at the parliament session that convened to promulgate the civil code as part of the modern legal system of Ethiopian empire in 1960 (Civil code, 1965; MOLSA, 1991).
In Oromo customary law, guddifachaa is a system of moving a child from his/her biological parents to another of the community’s social family members through ceremonial rituals of the guddifachaa institution. The systems created with such
customary procedures are irrevocable by the parties concerned or any other third party. The guddifachaa child has all the rights with regard to status, marriage, inheritances, and maintenance (Taka, 1983).
Advocacy for Oromia was established in 2010 with the purpose of enabling and empowering Oromo people by providing accurate and timely information that will help to make better choices to create the kind of future in which they wish to live.
It also provides information focus on the major issues facing us in the 21st century and it is going to try and bring a balanced approach with factual information that is positive and solution based.
The website has been in operation for the last nine years with the mission of promoting and advancing causes of Oromo people through advocacy, community education, information service, capacity building, awareness raising and promotion.
The website is also the official site of Advocacy for Oromia Association in Victoria Australia Inc., a non-profit organisation, registered under the Associations Incorporation Reform Act 2012 in Victoria as April 2014.
Our team already had considerable community development experience and expertise. Our various projects helped to develop our confidence and the capacity of our agency. Our team used every gained knowledge, skills and experiences as an opportunity to design and develop new approaches, to documenting progress, supporting positive employment outcomes, liaising with community stakeholders, and conduct evaluation.
Advocacy for Oromia is devoted to establishing Advocacy for Oromia organisation to close the gaps where we can stand for people who are disadvantaged and speaking out on their behalf in a way that represents the best interests of them. We are committed to supporting positive settlement and employment outcomes for Victoria’s Oromo community.
Advocacy for Oromia Office
Addresses:
39 Clow St,
Dandenong VIC 3175
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247-251 Flinders Lane
Melbourne VIC 3000
Activities Address
Springvale Neighbourhood House Inc
Address: 46-50 Queens Ave, Springvale VIC 3171
Postal Address:
P. O. Box 150
Noble Park, Vic 3174
With your support, we can continue to help community build a better future.
Advocacy for Oromia Mental Health Program
The aim of the program is to improving the mental health and well-being of Oromo community in Victoria. It aims to assist those experiencing, mental ill-health, their families and carers of all ages within this community to address the social determinants of mental health for Oromo community. It helps:
Identify and build protective factors,
Reduce stigma and discrimination
Build capacity for self-determination
Better understand mental wellbeing, mental ill-health and the impacts of trauma
The goal of the project is to increase mental health literacy of Oromo community that aims:
To assist people with mental health issues
To increase the capacity of mental health worker
To better understand mental wellbeing
To provide mental health education and information
To address the social and cultural causes of mental health issues
Advocacy for Oromia will organise information session, women performance, radio programs, culturally adopted conversations on Oromo Coffee Drinking ceremony, providing training for mental health guides and forum and producing educational materials on the selected groups and geographical area.
Human Rights Education Program
The Human Rights Education Program is a community based human rights program designed to develop an understanding of everyone’s common responsibility to make human rights a reality in each community.
Human rights can only be achieved through an informed and continued demand by people for their protection. Human rights education promotes values, beliefs and attitudes that encourage all individuals to uphold their own rights and those of others.
The aim of the program is to build an understanding and appreciation for human rights through learning about rights and learning through rights. We aimed at building a universal culture of human rights. Thus, we aimed:
To build an understanding and appreciation for human rights through learning about rights and learning through rights.
To build capacities and sharing good practice in the area of human rights education and training
To develop human rights education and training materials and resources
The goal of the project is to increase human rights literacy of Oromo community that aims:
To better understand human rights
To increase the capacity of human rights worker
To analyse situations in human rights terms
To provide human rights education and information
To develop solidarity
To strategize and implement appropriate responses to injustice.
The ultimate goal of education for human rights is empowerment, giving people the knowledge and skills to take control of their own lives and the decisions that affect them.
Human rights education constitutes an essential contribution to the long-term prevention of human rights abuses and represents an important investment in the endeavour to achieve a just society in which all human rights of all persons are valued and respected.
Advocacy for Oromia will organise information session, performance, radio programs, culturally adopted conversations on Oromo Coffee Drinking ceremony, providing training for Human Rights guides and forum and producing educational materials on the selected groups and geographical area.
Community Safety Program
The program aims to strengthen existing collaborations and identify opportunities for the development of partnerships aimed at community safety and crime prevention activities. This approach seeks to improve the individual and collective quality of life by addressing concerns regarding the wider physical and social environment. Importantly, community safety means addressing fear of crime and perceptions of safety as without this any actions to address the occurrence of crime and anti-social behaviour are of less value.
Advocacy for Oromia 
Gaafii wahiitu mataa keessa na dhufee na dhibe. namni deebii kana beektan anaa fi nama biraafis ni fayyada ibsa naa godhaa.
Akka dhagayetti maddi walaabuu madda oromooti yoo jedhan dhagaya. Gara biraatiin ammoo booranni hangafa oromooti jedhamama. Haala qubsumaa yoo laalan akka natti fakkaatutti naannoo maddawalaabuu ka qubataa ture oromoo arsiiti. Soo dubbii kana naa ibsaa
Galatoomaa
Gaafii biraa
Hangafa jechuun “ka jalaqabaa jechuu”.
Akkas yoo tahe namni oromoo jalqabaa sun saba biraarraa dhalatee maqaan oromoo jedhamu kennameef moo akkam.
San rabbitu beeka jedhee irra tara moo; deebiin isin qabdan jira?