The Derg regime that seized power in Ethiopia in 1974 ruled through fear, coercion, and absolute state control. It claimed Marxist-Leninist socialism as its ideology, but in practice it delivered repression, militarization, and economic destruction. The Red Terror stands as the darkest chapter of that era, where tens of thousands were imprisoned, tortured, or killed for real or imagined opposition. There was no political freedom, no press freedom, and no space for independent thought. The state was everything, the citizen nothing.
Under the Derg, socialism meant forced obedience. Young people were conscripted into the military, often against their will, to fight endless wars. Students were sent to rural areas under compulsory programs to “educate” peasants, not by choice but by force. Even elderly citizens were dragged into political education campaigns. Property was nationalized, private enterprise was crushed, and the market was replaced by state commands. Prices, production, and labor were dictated from above. This was pure dictatorship justified by ideology.
Today, Ethiopia is officially told it has moved on from that past, yet many of the same methods are quietly returning. Under Abiy Ahmed’s rule, merchants increasingly have no freedom to operate in a true market. Prices are imposed by the state in the name of controlling inflation. Businesses face heavy taxation and constant interference. Traders cannot freely set prices based on supply and demand. This is not capitalism by any serious definition.
A capitalist system requires a free market, predictable rules, and respect for private enterprise. Ethiopia under Abiy Ahmed has none of these. Instead of a market led economy, the state dictates outcomes. Merchants are blamed for inflation, punished for price changes, and threatened with closure. When the state controls prices while extracting high taxes, businesses suffocate. Calling this capitalism is misleading at best and dishonest at worst.
The echoes of the Derg grow louder with policies of forced service. University students are again compelled to work for free, ordered to teach after their third year not by choice but by decree. Youth are pushed into military conscription under pressure and coercion. These are not voluntary civic duties but state imposed obligations. The logic is the same as before: the individual exists to serve the state.
Press freedom has also sharply declined. Independent journalists are harassed, arrested, or silenced. Media outlets operate under fear, and self censorship has become routine. Criticism of power is framed as betrayal. This mirrors the Derg’s approach, where only one narrative was allowed and dissent was criminalized. A society without a free press cannot correct its own course.
What makes the current system even more dangerous is the absence of a clear ideology. The Derg at least claimed socialism, however brutally it applied it. Abiy Ahmed’s rule lacks even that. It is neither socialist nor capitalist. It has no coherent economic or political philosophy. Power is centralized, decisions are arbitrary, and policies change based on the interests of one man and his inner circle.
This is why many see the present moment as Derg 2.0, not in form but in function. State control without accountability, coercion without consent, and authority without ideology define the system. History does not repeat itself exactly, but it often rhymes. Ethiopia is once again drifting toward a familiar authoritarian path, one that sacrifices freedom, prosperity, and dignity for centralized power centered on one man.
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