It is therefore patently clear that realistic measures to solve these problems are needed. Interethnic conflicts and their impact on national. Religious conflicts in nigeria by barry mason and chris talbot 28 february 2000 violent religious clashes broke out in the city of kaduna in northern nigeria on february 21 and have continued. Ethnic militias and the threat to democracy in posttransition nigeria. The study notes that the implementation of the post amnesty programme pap focused on armed militancy, which is only one dimension of the niger delta conflict. Briefly stated, these are the seven themes we intend to sketch in the following discussion of institutional design, ethnic conflict management, and democracy in nigeria.
Ethnic conflict is the conflict that is fought on the base of ethnicity. 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. Over the past few years thousands of people have been killed in ethnic clashes. Loyalty to ethnic groups impedes true nationalism and unity of the country. Actually, much of the material on nigeria has been inspired by the paradigms of the study of ethnicity in the social sciences generally. Managing conflict in nigeria introduction adamawa state experiences violence due to conflict between armed opposition groups aogs, the state and community militias and tensions between ethnolinguistic, religious and occupational groups caused by struggles for political power. Communal conflicts in nigeria can be divided into two broad categories.
Religious conflicts in nigeria world socialist web site. Pdf nigeria is one of the major democracies in african continent. The end of the cold war thus sparked interest in two important questions about ethnic conflict. While the source of the conflict may be political, social, economic or religions, the individuals in conflict must expressly fight for their ethnic group position within society wikipedia, 2018. Pdf this article focused on the historical survey of ethnic conflict in the nigerian society and its scope is vast in a way that it stresses the. The result is that the region has been enmeshed in inter ethnic conflicts over the past three decades marked by phenomenal increases in mayhem and the destruction of lives and property. An ethnic conflict is a conflict between two or more contending ethnic groups. Hence when ethnic conflicts are minimal, they may be regarded as dynamic forces which help to. Nigeria is an oil rich country, but nearly twothirds of the population lives in poverty and makes less. The key causes and solution to ethnic conflict in nigeria. An average nigerian often sees his own tribe as being superior to others. Plateau state is currently the main site of ethnic and religious violence in northern nigeria. This research hasnt been cited in any other publications. Although in nigeria, the present ethnic conflicts may be seen as lying also in what.
Conflicts between different ethnic groups in nigeria, are all examples of. The dominant discourses in the conflicts refer to political exclusion on the basis of ethnicity and religion, on the muslim side, and fears of religious and cultural. Often misrepresented as ethnic andor religious conflicts, they are the result of economic, political and environmental tensions in the country. Ethnic conflicts in nigeria and africa in general arise as result of scarcity of political resources, multiculturalism, religion, militarisation of ethnicity among others. Religious freedom conditions in nigeria trended negatively in 2018. The nigerian government at the national and state levels continued to tolerate violence and discrimination on the basis of religion or belief, and suppressed the freedom to manifest religion or belief. Resolving it will require a deep understanding of conflict dynamics, as well as the motivations and capabilities of various key actors. Causes and solution nigerians are very sensitive when it comes to their ethnic groups. China abstract no doubt, the polity nigeria is one of the most ethnically divided society globally with diverse ethnic cocoons and myriads of dialect. There is a general perception that africa is trapped in a neverending cycle of ethnic conflict. A historical analysis of ethnic conflict in nigeria osadola oluwaseun samuel research paper. Ethnic conflicts are very common and they bring about damage to lives and properties.
The causes of ethnic conflict in multiethnic societies. 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. The managing conflict in nigeria mcn programme commissioned this. Traditional chieftainship in peace building and the ethnic. Misinterpreting ethnic conflicts in africa africa center. Conflict one of the earliest deftnitions of conflicts was by karl max 1818 1883. I political cycles and inter ethnic outcomes in nigeria s postindependence history. To date, few such comprehensive analyses of the boko haram conflict have been. These violent ethnic conflicts were first witnessed in western nigeria when. A historical analysis of ethnic conflict in nigeria.
The roots of nigerias religious and ethnic conflict. Since nigeria is formed of so many ethnic groups, the nation is divided, and the country lacks real unity. Pdf a historical survey of ethnic conflict in nigeria researchgate. The study found that the federal government of nigeria failed to address the root causes. The past decade has seen recurrent crises across the state, in urban and rural areas. Causes of conflict in nigeria and ways of resolving them. Ethnic conflict and sustainable development in nigeria. A need for true federalism peaceful and prosperous in nigeria article pdf available november 20 with 9,836 reads how we measure reads. Christian ethnic groups in southern nigeria have been drawn into these religious conflicts, with their members in northern nigerian cities.
A historical analysis of ethnic conflict in nigeria grin. However, what appears to be an ethnic conflict in nigeria is an actual fact of a struggle between the ruling class for the nations wealth. The renewed upsurge in ethnic and communal conflicts in nigeria has. The latter constitute nigeria s most numerous ethnic group. Socioeconomic drivers of conflict, instability, and resilience. The main reason for this is an intolerance between religious groups. The focus of this paper is on impact of ethnoreligious crises on socioeconomic activities in wukari local government area with a view to proffering useful recommendations as.
Nigeria is said to be a british creation by uniting the various nationalities into a single country today known as the federal republic of nigeria. Resource control this is another issue which causes ethnic conflicts in the country. The issue of ethnic conflict in nigeria has become a burning national issue with its attendant problems. At a global scale, the conflict presents itself in a way where there is a large economic impact. Thousands have beep annilulated during inter ethnic clashes in africa particularly in countries like somalia, rwanda, sierra leone, liberia, uganda, chad, niger republic, nigeria etc. The first major conflict started on the 1st of may 1953. The kind of ethnic conflict ravaging nigeria and other african countries can be appropriately situated at an extreme position in the continuum. Religion and conflict in nigeria united states institute of peace.
Ethnic rivalry is a major cause of africas backward states. Christian indigenes need only point to the discrimination against fellow christians in northern, predominantly muslim states to justify exclusion of the hausafulani in jos. The major causes of ethnic conflict in nigeria include. Before that, tensions between rivalry groups were covered and maintained by the colonial regime. Ethnic and religious crises in nigeria african journals online. Uncertainty, each ethnic conflict has its own unique characteristics and, in different contexts, some of these elements will be more prominent than the others, but all of them are the common denominators necessary for ethnic conflict to occur. A purview of mechanism for national integration olayiwola victor ojo school of social science, shanghai university, shanghai, p. Ethnic conflict and national stability in nigeria pdf. It was found that a number of violent events that had occurred in nigeria was due to the manipulations of the constitutional law in a process of decision making by muslims and christian leaders and political elites that cannot fulfill the expectations of their respective ethnic groups.
From the colonial times till date, leaders use ethnic biases to win election and divide the country. Nigeria s resource control is a real issue, which has been relevant because of the countrys environmental downfall, and the lack of development. While the origin while the origin of the conflict may be polit ical, social, economic or religious. In some colonial territories, for instance nigeria, the strategy of decolonization gave impetus to political ethnicity. Tribalism is one of the causes of ethnic conflict in nigeria. An ethnic conflict is a conflict between two or more rival ethnic groups. However, experiences have shown that intraethnic conflicts are as. In the spirit of indirect rule, the major administrative and political units of nigeria were made to coincide with the spatial locations of the three major ethnic groups. Historical background to the research nigeria has witnessed numerous violent communal conflicts since the mid1960s. In combination with more polarised communal politics, this has led to clashes. The former british colony is one of the worlds largest oil producers, but few nigerians, including those in oil.
Herderfarmer conflicts in nigeria have mainly involved disputes over land resources between herders and farmers across nigeria but more devastating in the middle belt north central since the return of democracy in 1999. The national question in nigeria is probably one of the most complicated in the world with over 120 languages spoken, three main ethnic groups, none of which constitutes a majority of the population, and the religious divide between christians in the south and muslims in the north. Theoretical perspective 79 languages, customs and traditions gives the country a rich cultural diversity. The roots of nigeria s religious and ethnic conflict. Nigeria s insecurity has added to its economic woes, hindering foreign investment. Traditional chieftainship in peace building and the ethnic conflict in kosofe local government area of lagos state, nigeria patrick ifechukwude okonji department of sociology university of lagos abstract in spite of the traditional avenue for reconciliatory mediation that truly assuages rancor, it is ironical to note. It is driven by a mix of historical, political, economic, and ethnic antagonisms. The struggle between religious groups in nigeria started in the middle of the 20th century. The african ejournals project has digitized full text of. Conflict, instability, and resilience in nigeria rapid. Furthermore, no religious conflict in the nation is purely religious without ethnicity playing its way in it.