Ethno religious conflicts have continued to besiege nigeria for decades. Do religious symbols exacerbate or mitigate conflict, especially during an electoral season. With the launching of sharia in kebbi state in december 2000, sharia laws were used to stringently establish the boundary for acceptablemoral and unacceptableimmoral sexual desire, behavior, and identity. Ethnoreligious conflicts and national security in nigeria. The paper concludes by suggesting how to curb ethnoreligious problems in nigeria in order to promote good governance. However, in all cases of ethno religious violence in nigeria, focus had been on reports on loss of lives and economic loss without adequate mention on its impact on housing delivery. Ethnic and religious crises in nigeria african journals online.
Department of political science, university of ibadan, nigeria. Ethnoreligious pluralism and sustainable national development in nigeria seem a paradox as well as an unattainable goal. Another ethno religious conflict that had far reaching impacts on the people of nigeria was the october 2000 lagoskano idiarabaokooba conflict which was caused by a misperception between the hausa inhabitants and the yoruba living in lagos over the use of a convenience by a man from hausa. In the past, any outbreak of violence would be promptly nipped in the bud by the institutions and agencies responsible for enforcing law and order without any qualms, without anybody reading something sinister into it. These contradictions has proved incurable especially as efforts to obliterate them have always been truncated aggressively by the custodians of power. The paper concludes by suggesting how to curb ethno religious problems in nigeria in order to promote good governance. In each of the conflict phases, an attempt will be made to identify the elements, causes sources or drivers and conditions that encourage ethno religious conflict in nigeria, the dynamics or patterns of the conflict and the intervention mechanisms or deescalation techniques previously employed to resolve these kinds of conflict. Ethnocentrism and ethnopolitical conflicts in northern.
Nigeria, as a nation, is bound by various ethnicities or ethnic groups, thus higazi noted that, the dominant discourses in the conflict refer to political exclusion on the basis of ethnicity and religion 14. This was a major factor in the biafran secession and the resulting civil war. This book is for those who want to understand the role of ethnic. Since independence, in 1960, nigeria has struggled to control ethno religious conflicts. While the identity mobilization themes in nigeria have not changed much during the post military era of 1999, the major transformation in the country regarding ethno religious identities has been that with regard to the reintroduction of the sharia islamic legal code or its expansion from personal to criminal matters. The revitalized implementation of sharia law and its expansion from the personal to criminal aspects in twelve northern states in the. In spite of nigeria s huge oil wealth, there have been shortages of fuel. The impact of ethnoreligious conflict on nigerian federalism.
Ethnoreligious conflict at tusung village in barkin ladi lga, plateau state. Ethnoreligious crisis and the challenges of sustainable development in nigeria. Causal diagnoses and strategic recommendations dispassionately analyse these conflict inducing elements of religious practice by both religious communities, without any intent to undermine the integrity of their principles or create a sense of bias. Understanding the dynamics of sharia in kaduna and. This paper aims to highlight some of the ethno religious conflicts that have taken place in nigeria and its impact on women. Sometimes religious difference compounds the problem. An ethnoreligious group or ethno religious group is an ethnic group whose members are also unified by a common religious background. Ntroduction nigeria presents a complex of individual as well as a conflation and recursive identities of which the ethnic, religious, regional and subethnic communal are the most salient and the main bases for violent conflicts in the country. Mar 06, 2019 religious crisis in nigeria causes and solutions religious crisis in nigeria is prevalent, owing to a number of reasons. Religious and ethnic nationalism has led to conflicts about control of state power. Nigeria has played host to different types of conflict, especially since the beginning of the fourth republic. Nigeria is a multiethnic country that provides a perfect countrycase study for ethno religious conflict salawu, 2010. Department of conflict resolution studies, nova southeastern university, fort.
Ethnoreligious conflicts have continued to besiege nigeria for decades. The paper is guided by four specific anchor questions. Posted 7 nov 2011 originally published 8 nov 2011 origin view original. The causes of ethno religious conflicts in nigeria are embedded in the basic foundations of the nationstate. In their work, azareem and saka 2007 demonstrate that a total of 36 different cases of violent conflicts were recorded in the country. Nigeria where religious conflicts have over the years, culminated in loss of. In spite of nigeria s huge oil wealth, there have been shortages of fuel, rationing of power and, in rural areas, the lack of suitable drinking water. Nov 03, 2017 the study relied on both primary and secondary data in its resolve to explain the role of media in ethnoreligious conflicts in kaduna state. Nigeria, if boko haram can accelerate nigeria s centrifugal forces ethnoreligious divides, power politics, and economic grievances sufficiently to cause the state to collapse from within.
Beyond ethnoreligious reading of violent conflicts, by prof. Considerable work has been done on the issue of ethnoreligious conflicts in. Therefore, the aim of the study is to examine the impact of ethno religious violence on housing delivery in nigeria. Another ethnoreligious conflict that had far reaching impacts on the people of nigeria was the october 2000 lagoskano idiarabaokooba conflict which was caused by a misperception between the hausa inhabitants and the yoruba living in lagos over the use of a convenience by a man from hausa. Religion and conflict in nigeria united states institute of. Ethnoreligious conflicts and democracy in nigeria dr. Religious dogmatism, prejudice and conflict in nigeria ssrn. Nigeria ethno religious and socio political violence and. Nigeria is by far the largest country in the worldwith a population of just over 180 millionevenly divided between muslims and christians. Nigeria lies in the fact that as a centripetal force, democracy is the only institutional arrangement that can guarantee the peaceful resolution or management of ethnic and religious conflicts olayode, 2007.
Nigeria, in view, is a country blessed with vast geographical landmarks, a nation with vast ethnic groups and many dialects with major languages, english, yoruba, igbo and hausa. The orgies in of violence precipitated by inter and intra religious, ethnoreligious or interethnic conflict ha ve become a recurrent phenomenon in africa. Furthermore, no religious conflict in the nation is purely religious without ethnicity playing its way in it. The roots of nigerias religious and ethnic conflict the.
Rhethorics and realities of managing ethnoreligious. Here we briefly examine the root causes of the religious crisis in nigeria. Democracy and ethnoreligious conflicts in jos, plateau state. As such, social identity theory of conflict developed by tajfel. Democracy and ethnoreligious conflicts in jos, plateau state 20072012 ogbuleke loveday enyinnaya peace and conflict studies programme, institute of african studies, university of ibadan, ibadan, nigeria abstract this study examined democracy and ethnoreligious conflicts in jos, plateau state in nigerias fourth republic. Nigeria has not been without its fair share of conflict. Nigeria, if boko haram can accelerate nigerias centrifugal forces ethnoreligious divides, power politics, and economic grievances sufficiently to cause the state to collapse from within. Religion, violence, and local powersharing in nigeria by. Introduction at the very start of nationhood, nigeria, like many other african countries faced ethnic, regional, and religious divisions. Kate meagher informality, religious conflict, and governance. Ethnicity, religion, ethno religious conflict, integration, good governance. Causes of ethnic conflict in nigeria are many but we will focus on primary ones that government should deal with to stop the menace at once. The north and the rest of nigeria ethnoreligious crisis. Ethnoreligious conflicts on nigerias social and political.
This essay studies the indigenesettler tensions in. Religious crisis in nigeria causes and solutions religious crisis in nigeria is prevalent, owing to a number of reasons. Jan 11, 2018 ethno religious violence is not a new phenomenon in nigeria. The 2011 presidential election split the country along ethnoreligious regional lines. Pdf the objective of this paper is to uncover the underlying factors that engendered ethnoreligious conflicts in nigeria over the years. Strategies for rebuilding state capacity to manage ethnic. Pdf ethnoreligious conflicts have continued to besiege nigeria for decades. This paper aims to highlight some of the ethnoreligious. With several coups, general strikes and a civil war, nigerians have had to experience some of the most sordid tragedies arising from difference of opinions and distrust. The igbo massacre of 1966 in the north that followed the countercoup of the same year had as a dual cause the igbo officers coup and preexisting sectarian tensions between the igbos and the local muslims. Another ethno religious conflict that left a remarkable mark in nigeria was the kadunaenugu riots. Good governance, conflicts, ethnoreligious identities, clashes of civilization and. Political, ethnoreligious or social conflicts often spring from the pursuance of divergent ideas, aspirations and interests expressed by a group of people or individuals under particular environmental conditions.
However in nigeria, religious conflict does not only carry religious motive but also politically inclined such that according to marshall, recently, the president of nigeria was forceful in saying the nigerian conflict has nothing to do intrinsically with religion, that is used as an excuse by politicians 10. This is the book for those who are seeking an understanding of the roots of the religious and political conflict in northern nigeria. You have a recipe ripe for conflict, and it just so happens to be christianmuslim. It has over 250 ethnic nationalities that on the whole are either christian or muslim. Ethnoreligious apparatus can, and has been used to chart sociopolitical causes. Jan 30, 2015 nigeria is by far the largest country in the worldwith a population of just over 180 millionevenly divided between muslims and christians.
Lives and properties have been wantonly destroyed with unabated zeal without due consideration to our common humanity. Informality, religious conflict and governance since the late 1980s, religious relations in northern nigeria have been marked by intensifying conflict, involving over 10,000 deaths as well as widespread economic disruption haynes 2009. Social identity theory is one of the important theories of conflict situated within behaviorist school which believe in human nature and human behavior to explain the root causes of conflict within microlevel of analysis. The nature of the nigerian state seems to be not only responsible for the regrettably deepening ethno religious crisis that have become endemic, pervasive and unfortunate, but also is increasingly proving incapable of evolving credible and competent strategies that should address this ugly. The 2011 presidential election split the country along ethnoreligiousregional lines. The jos crisis, book haram terrorist attacks are examples of the various religious crises that have plagued the country in recent times. A theoretical discourse on the mediatisation and framing. Trends of ethno religious conflicts in northern nigeria. Nigeria, like many african countries, is a multiethnic country with over 250 ethnic groups, where islam and christianity are the two predominant religious beliefs. This paper attempts to draw explanations on why ethnoreligious conflicts have become a permanent feature of nigeria. The study seeks to examine the influence of ethno religious conflict on.
Ethnoreligious conflicts these have arisen from distrust among various ethnic groups and among the major religions in the country. Ethnoreligious conflict in jos, nigeria, intensely dissected the ethnoreligious crisis in jos and proffered workable solutions. Aguwa jude c aguwa is professor of anthropology at abia state university, nigeria mercy college, new york. Colonial masters play a vital role in the growth of ethno religious conflicts, these colonial masters brought the christianity with them and try to penetrate the western values in the system of nigeria. While the identity mobilization themes in nigeria have not changed much during the post military era of 1999, the major transformation in the country regarding ethnoreligious identities has been that with regard to the reintroduction of the sharia islamic legal code or its expansion from personal to criminal matters. Religion and conflict in nigeria united states institute. Ethnoreligious conflict in nigeria international center for ethno. The spate of ethnoreligious conflict in nigeria has however, increased with the birth of fourth republic. Given these findings, we conclude that a new, more comprehensive approach by the nigerian governmentone that seeks to address political, economic, and. Lessons on sharia and pluralism from nigeria s kaduna and kebbi states eyene okpanachi. In fact, no decade of postindependent nigeria has been conflict free. Religion and conflict in nigeria united states institute of peace. Northern nigeria is little understood by those in the.
Motivators of students persistence on distance learning. The case of mikang local government area, plateau state. Since the return to democratic rule in 1999, nigeria has been characterised by different forms of conflict. The findings revealed that the media contributes effectively in ethnoreligious conflicts and also confirmed a significant success of media in ethnoreligious conflicts. Ethnoreligious conflict in jos, plateau state, nigeria source. Nigeriaits vast population evenly split between muslim and christianis counting down to another presidential election, scheduled for february 2015. Considerable work has been done on the issue of ethno religious conflicts in. This book is for those who want to understand the role of ethnic communities in peacemaking.
The root cause of this set of riot was the introduction of the islamic legal code sharia by some. English analysis on nigeria about peacekeeping and peacebuilding and protection and human rights. Conflict is a great predicament in any human society, and most times, it is predictable. This study examines the relationship between the sharia law, identity and conflict in nigeria. Nigeria today faces greater challenges to peace and stability than ever before. Religious conflicts in nigeria world socialist web site. In this article, we take a look at some of the major ethnic and religious ethnoreligious conflicts in nigeria, with particular emphasis on the ethnoreligious conflicts that occurred after return to civil rule in 1999. In causes and effects of conflicts in the southern zone of plateau state, nigeria, edited by best, shedrack gaya, 87 112. Mooneclipse crisis in borno 1996 tiv and others in. The roots of nigeria s religious and ethnic conflict.
The focus of the paper is on the interface between ethno religious leaders, communication and ethno religious conflicts. In nigeria, especially in northern part of the country, ethno religious conflict has. The north and the rest of nigeria on august 8, 2009 5. Nigeria its vast population evenly split between muslim and christianis counting down to another presidential election, scheduled for february 2015.
Ethnoreligious identity and conflict in northern nigeria. Institutions, identity, and conflict in jos, nigeria. The various regions in the country, the northern part of the country, the south west, and the niger delta, are a volatile mix of insecurity, ethnoreligious conflict and political instability. Religious conflict in nigeria goes as far back as 1953, and in the case of the town of tafawa balewa, to 1948. Igbohausa feud that began after the military coup and countercoup of 1966, culminating in the civil war in 1967, efikibibio conflict, tivjukun debacle, fulanibirom clashes, and itsekiriurhoboijaw conflict in the niger delta. This paper aims to highlight some of the ethnoreligious conflicts that have taken place in nigeria and its impact on women. Among the most widely reported ethno religious conflict that occurred in the region are. Repeated clashes between the muslim majority and christian. Critical amongst these, is ethno religious conflict, whose centrifugal tendencies potent dangerous vortex for the corporate existence of the country. The conflict in jos, which has become interactable, is generally. Critical amongst these, is ethnoreligious conflict, whose centrifugal tendencies potent dangerous vortex for the corporate existence of the country. This essay studies the indigenesettler tensions in jos, the capital of plateau state. More fundamentally, preventing and resolving conflict in the far north will require far better management of public resources, an end to their distribution according to ethnic identity and jobcreating economic revival.
Good governance, conflicts, ethno religious identities, clashes of civilization and. Whats underneath the water is a much more complex sociopolitical situation, which cannot be explained just in terms of the religious divide. Ethnoreligious conflicts and the dilemma of democratic. You can trace causes of ethnic conflict to amalgamation, religious differences, inequality, lack of transparent governance, long military incursion in government and lack of vision or nigerian dream, to mention but a few. In nigeria the christianmuslim thing is the tip of the iceberg, he says. An evaluation of the role of media in ethnoreligious. This report raises a number of questions about the relationship of religious identity and internal conflict and the consequences of a polarized election.
Ibrahim and igbuzor 2002, hazen and horner, 2007, salawu 2010 and igbuzor, 2011 identified ethnoreligious conflict as a major causes of insecurity in nigeria. Ethnoreligious conflict and peace building in nigeria. Journal of sustainable development in africa, 124 2225. In fact, history indicates that conflict is an ongoing process in human relations and may occur within and among groups and communities at anytime. Ethnoreligious conflict in jos, nigeria philip ostien abstract conflict between. Ethnoreligious violence is not a new phenomenon in nigeria. In each of the conflict phases, an attempt will be made to identify the elements, causes sources or drivers and conditions that encourage ethnoreligious conflict in nigeria, the dynamics or patterns of the conflict and the intervention mechanisms or deescalation techniques previously employed to resolve these kinds of conflict. Understanding the dynamics of sharia in kaduna and kebbi states. This study examines the rhetoric and realities of managing ethno religious conflicts in nigeria.
In the case of nigeria, the frequency of religious conflicts in the northern. The frequent occurrence of ethnoreligious conflicts with the coming of democracy is due to. Among the most widely reported ethnoreligious conflict that occurred in the region are. Ethnicity, religion, ethnoreligious conflict, integration, good governance. Beyond ethnoreligious reading of violent conflicts, by. In order to put the conflict on the plateau in a proper perspective it would be worthwhile to highlight the recent political history of nigeria and to briefly illustrate the turmoil in the central states of nigeria otherwise called the middle belt, a geopolitical term with a lot of ethnoreligious connotations. Nigeria in the last decade has been characterized by crisis of ethnic and religious dimensions. An assessment of the february 21, 2000, kaduna metropolitan conflict, paper presented at the national conference on crisis and conflict management in nigeria since 1980, organized by the nigerian defence academy, kaduna, 1517 june. Nigeria, if a religious conflict starts anywhere, the igbo man will in one way or the other be made to bear an extra portion of the brunt of the conflict. The emergence and development of ethnic strongholds and. Mar 10, 2010 in nigeria the christianmuslim thing is the tip of the iceberg, he says.
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