Subhead: Commissioner Zegeye Asfaw Abdi – lawyer, revolutionary, prisoner, minister, and servant of the people – leaves a nation in mourning

By: Daandii Ragabaa
Date: May 13, 2026
Dateline: ADDIS ABABA

---

LEAD PARAGRAPH

ADDIS ABABA – On May 11, 2026, Ethiopia lost one of its most consequential sons. Commissioner Zegeye Asfaw Abdi, the principal architect of the historic 1975 “Land to the Till er” proclamation, passed away at the age of 84. His death marks the end of an era – and the beginning of a long, collective reckoning with his extraordinary legacy.

Born in 1942 in West Shoa, Zegeye was a man of contradictions who resolved them through a lifetime of service. He was born into the nobility – a balabat, a member of the landowning class. Yet he dedicated his life to taking land from that class and giving it to the landless.

He was a lawyer trained at Haile Selassie I University and the University of Wisconsin–Madison. But his true classroom was the fields of Oromia, where he witnessed the daily humiliation of the gebar (serf) and the golle (tenant).

He was a minister under the Derg, a prisoner under the same regime, and later a minister again under the EPRDF. He served three radically different governments – but never wavered in his commitment to one principle: the land belongs to the tiller.

---

THE PROCLAMATION THAT CHANGED ETHIOPIA

Zegeye Asfaw will be remembered above all for his instrumental role in crafting the “Land to the Tiller” proclamation of 1975.

Before that proclamation, Ethiopia was a feudal society. In Oromia and the south, millions of farmers worked land they could never own. They paid tribute to landlords. They had no rights. They lived and died as serfs.

The 1975 proclamation changed everything. It transferred ownership from a tiny aristocracy to the millions who worked the soil. It broke feudalism’s backbone. And Zegeye Asfaw was the mastermind behind it.

He did not just sign it. He wrote it. He fought for it. And he paid for it – with ten years of imprisonment without trial, with exile from power, with decades of obscurity.

---

BEYOND PUBLIC OFFICE – A LIFE OF SERVICE

Zegeye served his country in several senior government positions during the Derg regime: the Ministry of Land Administration, the Ministry of Agriculture and Settlement, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.

But he was not a man who only served from the top down.

Through the local NGO Hunde, he worked tirelessly to combat poverty and improve the lives of vulnerable communities. He also founded Busa Gonfa, a microfinance institution focused on empowering rural women and expanding economic opportunities at the grassroots level.

He was equally committed to environmental protection, working closely with farmers and pastoralists on conservation initiatives and sustainable resource management.

---

THE FINAL CHAPTER – COMMISSIONER OF NATIONAL DIALOGUE

Since February 2021, Zegeye had served as a Commissioner of the Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission. He was in his late seventies when appointed – an age when most have long retired. But Zegeye served until his body would serve no more.

The National Dialogue Commission’s statement of condolence captures his character:

“Throughout his tenure, he distinguished himself through his integrity, diligence, humility, and unwavering commitment to the national dialogue process and the service of his country.”

He was, those who worked with him say, a man who could not be bought, could not be bent, and could not be silenced.

---

A DEATH THAT IS NOT AN END

Zegeye Asfaw is gone. But what remains?

• Every Ethiopian farmer who owns their land today – that is Zegeye.
• Every rural woman who has received a microfinance loan to start a business – that is Zegeye.
• Every tree planted by a pastoralist community learning sustainable land management – that is Zegeye.
• Every conversation at the National Dialogue Commission seeking common ground – that is Zegeye.

He is not erased. He is distributed – across the fields, the villages, the institutions he built, and the millions of lives he touched without ever meeting them.

---

FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS

The funeral service will take place on May 14, 2026 at 12:00 PM at Holy Trinity Cathedral, 4 Kilo, Addis Ababa. He will be laid to rest among Ethiopia’s great patriots – a fitting resting place for a man who never sought honor but earned it in abundance.

---

A FINAL FAREWELL

The Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission extended its deepest condolences to his family, friends, colleagues, and all those whose lives were touched by his service and generosity.

We add our own:

“Go in peace. May your soul find rest and refreshment in paradise.”

The land you freed remains free. The people you lifted remain standing. And your name – spoken with gratitude by millions you never met – will not be erased.

Rest in power, Zegeye Asfaw Abdi (1942 – May 11, 2026).

Quick Facts
Name: Commissioner Zegeye Asfaw Abdi
Born: 1942, West Shoa
Died: May 11, 2026 (age 84)
Education: Haile Selassie I University (Law), University of Wisconsin–Madison (Master’s in Law)
Key role: Architect of the 1975 “Land to the Tiller” proclamation
Government positions: Ministry of Land Administration, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs
Post-government service: Founder of NGO Hunde; founder of microfinance institution Busa Gonfa
Final position: Commissioner, Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission (Feb 2021 – May 2026)
Funeral: May 14, 2026, 12:00 PM, Holy Trinity Cathedral, 4 Kilo, Addis Ababa