Blitz Bureau
ADDIS ABABA: Thousands of people have been gathering in southern Ethiopia for one of the country’s biggest cultural events. The week-long Gada ceremony sees the official transfer of power from one customary ruler to his successor – something that happens every eight years, reported BBC News.
The tradition of regularly appointing a new Abbaa Gadaa has been practiced by the Borana community for centuries – and sees them gather at the rural site of Arda Jila Badhasa, near the Ethiopian town of Arero, added the BBC report.
It is a time to celebrate their special form of democracy as well as their cultural heritage, with each age-group taking the opportunity to wear their different traditional outfits.
These are paraded the day before the official handover during a procession when married women march with wooden batons, called ‘siinqee’. The batons have symbolic values of protection for women, who use them during conflict.
If a siinqee stick is placed on the ground by a married woman between two quarrelling parties, it means the conflict must stop immediately out of respect. During the procession, younger women walk at the front, distinguished from the married women by the different colour of their clothing.
