At least 59 "bandits" were killed by a civilian defence force when they attacked a village in northwest Nigeria, security officials and locals said.
Local reports said the death toll could be even higher, after a local government official said 15 other bandits were killed in the nearby village of Danmarke, the AFP news agency reported on Thursday.
"We killed 59 of the bandits and we lost seven men in the fight, which lasted for almost four hours," Bube Shehu, a resident of Danjibga village in Zamfara state, said of the clashes on Wednesday.
Shehu's account was backed by a military officer in the state but there was no immediate corroboration from police.
The worsening security situation in the northwest, President Muhammadu Buhari's strongest regional support base, is one of a number of challenges to his re-election, as voters go to the polls on Saturday.
Farming and herding communities in the region have suffered increasing attacks from criminal gangs who raid villages, steal cattle and kidnap for ransom.
The local official in Danmarke said villagers were frustrated at the lack of protection from security forces and had been forced to take matters into their own hands.
"It is high time people stand up against criminals who attack their villages instead of succumbing to them," he said on condition of anonymity.
Danjibga is a commercial hub 35km south of the state capital Gusau and has been repeatedly attacked.
Threat to security
The attacks have led to a mass exodus of residents to the town of Tsafe, and even across into Buhari's home state of Katsina, which neighbours Zamfara.
Earlier this month bandits killed 26 people when they raided seven villages in the Mada district, according to police.
Last July, Amnesty International said Zamfara state was "at the mercy" of armed bandits who had killed at least 371 people in the first six months of 2018.
In December, an influential traditional chief in the state urged authorities to allow vigilantes to carry assault rifles to defend themselves against bandits.
Last month, Information Minister Lai Mohammed said bandits were mobilised to carry out attacks and "provoke massive chaos before, during and after the elections".
Security is an election issue given Buhari's pledge in 2015 to improve safety across the country, not least end Boko Haram's armed campaign.
Al Jazeera
Showing posts with label farmers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label farmers. Show all posts
Friday, February 22, 2019
Wednesday, January 23, 2019
Video - Unrest forces farmers off their land in Nigeria
Conflict between farmers and herders are affecting Nigeria's rising levels of poverty. Analysts say the violence is forcing millions of people, mostly poor farmers, from their lands.
Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Civilians are stepping in to keep the peace in the deadly feud between herders and farmers
Farmers and herders once lived harmoniously on Nigeria’s bucolic central plateau, but when Amos Lenji, a farmer, caught a young herdsman grazing cattle in his cornfields this October, he feared for his life.
His fear was rooted in a massacre that took place in June. More than 200 people, mostly farmers, were slaughtered by a gang of masked men dressed in black who marauded through the county of Barkin Ladi. Although no one was apprehended, the killers are suspected to be herdsmen.
It was the biggest bloodbath yet in a cycle of retaliatory killings between farmers and herders competing for space across Nigeria’s hinterlands. At least 1,300 were killed in just the first six months of 2018, according to the International Crisis Group. That is more than six times as many as were killed in Nigeria in the same period by Boko Haram, one of Africa’s deadliest terrorist groups.
Nigeria’s population has grown exponentially and is projected to surpass the United States’ by 2050, although Nigeria is 11 times smaller in area than the United States. Amid the boom, land has become increasingly scarce, and disputes over ownership are frequently turning bloody. New generations of farmers are planting on land traditionally used for grazing, and out of desperation, herders are grazing their cattle in fields still full of crops, destroying harvests. Many in the two groups now see each other as existential threats.
The near-constant violence has catapulted the farmer-herder crisis to the top of an already long list of security concerns in Nigeria. The country is roughly half Christian and half Muslim, and because farmers tend to be Christian and herders tend to be Muslim, the crisis has worsened the friction between the two religious communities. So far, Nigeria’s government has shown little capacity to prevent the fighting from spiraling further.
In the absence of an effective government response, locals have cobbled together groups of peacekeepers who have become the plateau’s de facto law enforcement. Barkin Ladi’s vigilantes, as they’re known, are particularly effective because they include farmers and herders. Bitrus Dung Pam, the local group leader, says he commands 30 times as many recruits as there are police in the whole county.
“When people see us, they trust us,” Pam said. “It’s not like the army or the police. We are the community.”
Pam was who Lenji thought of, standing there in the cornfield. He picked up his cellphone and asked for immediate help. The herdsman ran away.
“I had no other option,” Lenji said.
‘Vigilantes are our eyes’
Nigeria’s police and security forces are underequipped, underpaid and often deployed to unfamiliar areas of this diverse country of almost 200 million people.
Vigilante groups have proliferated out of necessity. They have formed a national umbrella organization that says it has nearly 350,000 members. They fill a giant law enforcement vacuum, but they also represent a homegrown approach to peacekeeping.
They build trust by settling not only potentially explosive disputes between farmers and herders, but also smaller ones. The process often resembles a court proceeding. On a recent day, vigilantes spent hours smoothing out a disagreement over money among women trying to raise chickens collectively.
The volunteers are everyday people, mechanics and bricklayers, men and women, and Muslims and Christians, and they represent all the plateau’s ethnic groups, including the two largest, the Berom and Fulani. Most farmers here are Christian and Berom, while most herders are Muslim and Fulani.
That inclusiveness commands the respect of local officials.
“No one will accuse them of being partisan or conniving with one tribe against the other,” said Yakubu Dati, a spokesman for the state government. “That is what we want, that is what this administration is all about, and we are doing everything to encourage other vigilante groups to emulate that so that peace can return permanently.”
But that doesn’t translate into any tangible state assistance. The volunteers pay for their own uniforms, and they carry hunting rifles and rubber pellets from home. In Barkin Ladi, they coordinate their patrols from donated office space in a small house and have just one vehicle.
They maintain a heavy presence along backcountry roads and man dozens of checkpoints in spots where violence has flared in the past. Since many are guarding their own villages, they simply walk to their posts. They are everywhere the police are not.
“If you call the police, they may tell you, ‘We don’t have fuel, give us some, and we will help you,’ ” said Edward G.M. Bot, the traditional leader of Barkin Ladi’s Berom community. “It is not like that with the vigilantes. The level of determination is totally different. They show up immediately. They stay overnight. They know who we are.”
Maj. Gen. Augustine Agundu, who commands Operation Safe Haven, the Nigerian military’s response to unrest on the plateau, said the volunteers were essential to his mission. The military, police and even aid groups have organized training for them, and Operation Safe Haven coordinates some of its patrolling activity with them.
The Nigerian government has struggled to come up with a comprehensive policy to address the crisis. In some states, grazing has been banned entirely, while in others, herders have been asked to move their cattle to ranges set aside for them. On the plateau, the main policy seems to be Operation Safe Haven’s military intervention and tacit support for the community-led effort.
“The vigilantes are our eyes,” Agundu said.
Nigeria’s police and security forces are underequipped, underpaid and often deployed to unfamiliar areas of this diverse country of almost 200 million people.
Vigilante groups have proliferated out of necessity. They have formed a national umbrella organization that says it has nearly 350,000 members. They fill a giant law enforcement vacuum, but they also represent a homegrown approach to peacekeeping.
They build trust by settling not only potentially explosive disputes between farmers and herders, but also smaller ones. The process often resembles a court proceeding. On a recent day, vigilantes spent hours smoothing out a disagreement over money among women trying to raise chickens collectively.
The volunteers are everyday people, mechanics and bricklayers, men and women, and Muslims and Christians, and they represent all the plateau’s ethnic groups, including the two largest, the Berom and Fulani. Most farmers here are Christian and Berom, while most herders are Muslim and Fulani.
That inclusiveness commands the respect of local officials.
“No one will accuse them of being partisan or conniving with one tribe against the other,” said Yakubu Dati, a spokesman for the state government. “That is what we want, that is what this administration is all about, and we are doing everything to encourage other vigilante groups to emulate that so that peace can return permanently.”
But that doesn’t translate into any tangible state assistance. The volunteers pay for their own uniforms, and they carry hunting rifles and rubber pellets from home. In Barkin Ladi, they coordinate their patrols from donated office space in a small house and have just one vehicle.
They maintain a heavy presence along backcountry roads and man dozens of checkpoints in spots where violence has flared in the past. Since many are guarding their own villages, they simply walk to their posts. They are everywhere the police are not.
“If you call the police, they may tell you, ‘We don’t have fuel, give us some, and we will help you,’ ” said Edward G.M. Bot, the traditional leader of Barkin Ladi’s Berom community. “It is not like that with the vigilantes. The level of determination is totally different. They show up immediately. They stay overnight. They know who we are.”
Maj. Gen. Augustine Agundu, who commands Operation Safe Haven, the Nigerian military’s response to unrest on the plateau, said the volunteers were essential to his mission. The military, police and even aid groups have organized training for them, and Operation Safe Haven coordinates some of its patrolling activity with them.
The Nigerian government has struggled to come up with a comprehensive policy to address the crisis. In some states, grazing has been banned entirely, while in others, herders have been asked to move their cattle to ranges set aside for them. On the plateau, the main policy seems to be Operation Safe Haven’s military intervention and tacit support for the community-led effort.
“The vigilantes are our eyes,” Agundu said.
‘Poisoned relationships’
The violence between farmers and herders is Nigeria’s deadliest, but it is just one of three major conflicts exposing the fraying social fabric in this country.
For a decade, Boko Haram has terrorized the northeast, killing tens of thousands, burning entire villages and kidnapping an untold number of children. And in the Niger Delta in the country’s south, guerrilla groups continue to target foreign oil companies and the government, slowing Nigeria’s oil-dependent economy.
All these crises have led local communities to arm themselves against perceived enemies, while in the background, gargantuan challenges such as rapid population growth, climate change and religious rivalries deepen.
On the central plateau, Berom farmers are in the majority. Many believe that they are indigenous and that nomadic Fulani herders are either interlopers or invaders. The same dynamic is playing out across semiarid parts of Africa, but most violently here, where the plateau’s edges seem to provide a closed arena for battle.
“I won’t be sad if all the Fulani leave this place,” said Rose Mashinging, 36, a farmer who lives in a village that was attacked in June. “It is Berom land anyhow.”
The polarization has penetrated Nigeria’s politics. The country is set to hold a presidential election in February, and many in the mostly Christian south accuse President Muhammadu Buhari, an ethnic Fulani, of siding with herders.
His predecessor was voted out partly because he was perceived as weak against Boko Haram. Buhari’s reelection will partly rely on convincing skeptics that he is serious about peace in the Middle Belt, an ethnically diverse band across the country that is home to Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory, though his government has done little to intervene in the conflict so far.
On the plateau, Fulani leaders say that members of the state security forces, who are mostly Christian, actively discriminate against the herders, and the leaders also allege that security personnel have engaged in revenge attacks. (Agundu, the commander of Operation Safe Haven, denies those charges.) Local ardos, or Fulani traditional headmen, complained that police don’t take cases they file seriously. And reports of Berom farmers stealing cattle are common, and the subsequent clashes often result in the deaths of herdsmen.
“It is a mess of poisoned relationships — layers of grievance that accumulated for generations are exploding,” said Adam Higazi, an anthropological researcher at the University of Amsterdam who has been based on the plateau for more than a decade. “Most people on the plateau don’t think of anything else now except the animosity.”
‘They can’t save us’
The vigilantes’ biggest hurdle is that they don’t have the strongest tool available to state law enforcement: lethal weapons. Without them, they can be easily overrun by the kind of marauding gang that terrorized Barkin Ladi in June. With such weapons, however, they might become more like soldiers or bandits themselves and be implicated in the killings.
Idris Gidado, the ardo of the villages worst affected in June, said that he would ordinarily commend the civilian peacekeepers for their bravery but that a recent incident had disillusioned him.
A Fulani man from Gidado’s own village had robbed a family of farmers. The volunteers caught him and handed him over to the police. The police released him quickly, and the ardo suspects that money was exchanged. The man robbed another family, and the sequence of events was repeated. In late October, the man raped a woman in his village, the ardo says.
“We want the vigilantes to succeed,” Gidado said. “But there is no system of justice here to allow that.”
The local police commissioner, Austin Agbonlahor, said he did not doubt the ardo’s story, but he said no formal complaint had been lodged.
Most of the tens of thousands of people who have been displaced by the fighting are too fearful to return home. Maren Zachariah’s entire village, Garwaza, was abandoned in June. Garwaza was ransacked by the attackers, and its central church — with its fresco of Jesus and painted map of Africa — was left gutted and burned. It has been colonized by thousands of bees.
“We want to return, but the government doesn’t provide security. They only come as far as the nearest town. And our vigilantes can warn us, but they can’t save us,” Zachariah said. “The big trouble started on a sunny day like today. It can happen again any time.”
Amid the distrust, Barkin Ladi’s multiethnic vigilantes are setting an example for peaceful coexistence.
Mangwei Mashinging, the brother of the farmer who wishes the Fulani would leave the plateau, said he thinks peace is possible. That is why he joined the volunteer group.
“We thank God for the Fulani,” he said. He says Fulani neighbors saved many farmers during June’s massacre. “It is not as if the world is so simple — that Fulanis are bad and Beroms are good. Both groups have both kinds of people. We have to be on the side of peace.”
In October, when the vigilantes brought together Amos Lenji, his farmer neighbors and the family of the herdsman whose livestock trampled their cornfields to discuss compensation, everyone was a bit surprised to find out that the opposing parties shared close family friends.
The tension lifted. The farmers proposed that instead of paying for the damaged crops, the herdsman’s kin pay their mediators for fuel to keep doing their work. The two sides shook hands and headed home.
This project was supported by a grant from the Pulitzer Center.
Tuesday, November 13, 2018
Video - China offers Nigeria's internally displaced persons relief items
The Chinese Government has donated relief items worth sixteen thousand dollars to internally displaced persons in Jos, Plateau State, North Central Nigeria. The Chinese Embassy, in collaboration with the Civil-Military Relief Initiative and the Nigeria Army, is providing the items worth sixteen thousand dollars to an IDP camp in Plateau. Violent conflicts between nomadic herders and farmers in North Central Nigeria has displaced about forty thousand people between June and October. Most of the displaced persons are living in deplorable conditions drawing the attention of the Chinese embassy in Nigeria.
Thursday, October 18, 2018
Video - Nigeria new initiatives helps farmers bypass banks to go directly to investors
A new initiative is helping farmers in Nigeria increase crop yields and connect with investors through a technology that combines peer-to-peer lending with a stream of videos and photographs of the type typically seen in crowdfunding campaigns.
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Video - Nigeria's epicentre of unrest over land and resources
The fight for fertile land and other resources between farmers and cattle herders in central Nigeria has forced hundreds from their homes. In Jos, central Nigeria's Plateau State, food shortages are feared as the economy suffers because of the rising violence and lack of investment.
Wednesday, July 4, 2018
Nigerian police arrest 11 suspected Plateau attackers
The police have arrested 11 suspects in connection with the recent killings in Barkin Ladi, Riyom and Jos South council areas of Plateau State.In a statement yesterday, the force said the suspects were assisting the investigating team with useful information.It said five AK47 rifles and two live cartridges were recovered from the arrested persons.
The release reads in part: “It would be recalled that the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, visited Plateau State on June 26, 2018. “While in the state, he assessed the security situation and police deployment. Since his visit, the security situation has improved. Peace and normalcy have been restored in the affected areas.
“The Police Special Investigation Team, comprising the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Special Tactical Squad (STS), and Technical Intelligence Unit (TIU), led by Commissioner of Police, IGP Monitoring Unit deployed to Plateau State, has commenced investigation and recorded significant progress in getting to the root of the killings of innocent people.
“The Nigeria Police Force is assuring the people of Plateau State of adequate security of lives and property.” In a related development, the force said it had also arrested eight bandits, including the Councillor for Fidi Ward, Makurdi, Benjamin Bagugba Tivfa, for allegedly admitting to have supplied arms to the criminals.It added said two AK47 rifles and 436 rounds of ammunition were also recovered from the suspects.
The police said: “The bandits confessed that the councillor is a member of their gang and is responsible for supply of arms and ammunition, including money to finance their operations. “The councillor admitted to have bought 15 rounds of AK 47 ammunition from the last suspect, Sunday Cheche, 34, and native of Guma Local Government Area of Benue State. He also confessed to have provided money to finance the operations of the gang.
“The bandits also admitted to have carried out several killings and armed robbery attacks in different locations in the state.”Meanwhile, troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) have denied involvement in the killing of six herdsmen and l50 cows as alleged by the Nasarawa State Chairman of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, Mohammed Hussein.The Acting Director, Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. John Ajim, who made the clarification yesterday in a statement, maintained that the claim was unfounded.
According to him, “the OPWS was established on May 8, 2018 by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin, in consultation with the service chiefs and commanders of other security agencies with the mandate to completely restore law, order and peace in four affected states, Benue, Nasarawa, Taraba and Zamfara.”
He added: “It is therefore the duty of OPWS to ensure that all the people in these states go about their lawful duties without fear or molestation. These we have done at great cost to the military, which include some paying the supreme price.”“I wish to make it abundantly clear that the Special Forces troops of OPWS did not kill herdsmen or cows as claimed by the MACBAN chairman in Lafia.”
The release reads in part: “It would be recalled that the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, visited Plateau State on June 26, 2018. “While in the state, he assessed the security situation and police deployment. Since his visit, the security situation has improved. Peace and normalcy have been restored in the affected areas.
“The Police Special Investigation Team, comprising the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Special Tactical Squad (STS), and Technical Intelligence Unit (TIU), led by Commissioner of Police, IGP Monitoring Unit deployed to Plateau State, has commenced investigation and recorded significant progress in getting to the root of the killings of innocent people.
“The Nigeria Police Force is assuring the people of Plateau State of adequate security of lives and property.” In a related development, the force said it had also arrested eight bandits, including the Councillor for Fidi Ward, Makurdi, Benjamin Bagugba Tivfa, for allegedly admitting to have supplied arms to the criminals.It added said two AK47 rifles and 436 rounds of ammunition were also recovered from the suspects.
The police said: “The bandits confessed that the councillor is a member of their gang and is responsible for supply of arms and ammunition, including money to finance their operations. “The councillor admitted to have bought 15 rounds of AK 47 ammunition from the last suspect, Sunday Cheche, 34, and native of Guma Local Government Area of Benue State. He also confessed to have provided money to finance the operations of the gang.
“The bandits also admitted to have carried out several killings and armed robbery attacks in different locations in the state.”Meanwhile, troops of Operation Whirl Stroke (OPWS) have denied involvement in the killing of six herdsmen and l50 cows as alleged by the Nasarawa State Chairman of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, Mohammed Hussein.The Acting Director, Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. John Ajim, who made the clarification yesterday in a statement, maintained that the claim was unfounded.
According to him, “the OPWS was established on May 8, 2018 by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin, in consultation with the service chiefs and commanders of other security agencies with the mandate to completely restore law, order and peace in four affected states, Benue, Nasarawa, Taraba and Zamfara.”
He added: “It is therefore the duty of OPWS to ensure that all the people in these states go about their lawful duties without fear or molestation. These we have done at great cost to the military, which include some paying the supreme price.”“I wish to make it abundantly clear that the Special Forces troops of OPWS did not kill herdsmen or cows as claimed by the MACBAN chairman in Lafia.”
Friday, June 29, 2018
Video - Nigerian police deploy special force to bring order in central plateau
The Nigerian government says it has deployed a Special Intervention Force to restore peace in the central plateau region that saw violence over the weekend.
Wednesday, June 27, 2018
Death toll increases to 200 after attacks in central Nigeria
Over 200 people have died in Nigeria's central state of Plateau where gunmen attacked many villages last weekend, according to a local lawmaker and the media on Wednesday.
Peter Gyedeng, a member of Plateau State's parliament, said over 200 of his constituents died in the attack.
"Over 200 innocent citizens of my constituency were killed...this is barbaric and evil. This is happening even when we have security all over the state," Gyedeng told reporters in Jos, the state capital.
The lawmaker alleged "genocide and ethnic cleansing" against his constituents.
The attacks, which started on Saturday, continued on Monday in another area of the state, despite a dawn-to-dusk curfew imposed by the government.
Local police on Sunday confirmed only 86 people were killed and six others severely wounded. Meanwhile, 50 houses, two cars, and 15 motorcycles were razed, the police added. However, residents said more than 140 bodies were buried during a mass funeral on the same day.
More than 11 villages were targeted by the gunmen during these coordinated attacks, which mostly affected Razat, Nekan, Ruku, Nyarr, Kufang, Kura and Gana-Ropp villages of Gashish District in Barkin Ladi area of Plateau, Terna Tyopev, the spokesman for Plateau police, said.
The local Vanguard Newspaper on Wednesday reported that Ruku Village recorded more deaths in the attack, with at least 47 victims.
President of Nigeria's Senate Bukola Saraki on Wednesday arrived in the city of Jos to commiserate with Governor Simon Lalong and families of the victims.
Saraki's visit was also to do an on-the-spot assessment of the carnage.
On Tuesday, Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari was also in the city to mourn the victims. Buhari's condolence visit was preceded by that of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who led a federal government delegation to Plateau following the attacks.
Plateau State is located in Nigeria's middle belt where the Muslim-dominated north and the Christian-majority south meet.
There had been a long time strife in the central state between indigenous groups, mostly Christian or animist, and migrants and settlers from the Hausa-speaking Muslim over the control of fertile farmlands.
Earlier in the week, one regional head of a local cattle breeders group had opined that those who carried out the attacks in Plateau might be on a revenge mission.
Danladi Ciroma, the head of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) in the north-central region, said there had been recent reports of cow rustling and destruction of farms between local farmers and herdsmen.
"The people carrying out these criminal activities are well known to the communities but the communities are hiding them," Ciroma said in a statement.
This incident was not the first herdsmen-farmers conflict in the most populous African country, whose estimated nearly 200 million people are divided into at least 200 distinct ethnic groups and about evenly split between Muslims and Christians.
On March 7, 2010, members of local Muslim and Christian communities fought each other in revenge for previous killings.
In November 2008, clashes between Muslim and Christian gangs triggered by a disputed local government election killed hundreds of people in Jos and rendered thousands of people homeless.
According to media reports, hundreds of people died in clashes in the town of Yelwa in Plateau State in 2004, while in September 2001, ethnic and religious rioting in Jos had killed at least 915 people, according to official statistics.
On the other hand, Plateau has witnessed some bomb blasts, too, apart from the constant rifts between local farmers and herdsmen, with many, especially women and children, losing their lives.
The herders, pressured with the effects of climate change and others, are forced southward into the farming communities in search of better resources of grazing.
The threats posed by the fighting between herders and farmers as provided by some accounts have been more serious than those from Nigeria's Boko Haram extremist insurgency.
The conflict in the region has weighed upon the government and other political forces as general elections approach next year.
Peter Gyedeng, a member of Plateau State's parliament, said over 200 of his constituents died in the attack.
"Over 200 innocent citizens of my constituency were killed...this is barbaric and evil. This is happening even when we have security all over the state," Gyedeng told reporters in Jos, the state capital.
The lawmaker alleged "genocide and ethnic cleansing" against his constituents.
The attacks, which started on Saturday, continued on Monday in another area of the state, despite a dawn-to-dusk curfew imposed by the government.
Local police on Sunday confirmed only 86 people were killed and six others severely wounded. Meanwhile, 50 houses, two cars, and 15 motorcycles were razed, the police added. However, residents said more than 140 bodies were buried during a mass funeral on the same day.
More than 11 villages were targeted by the gunmen during these coordinated attacks, which mostly affected Razat, Nekan, Ruku, Nyarr, Kufang, Kura and Gana-Ropp villages of Gashish District in Barkin Ladi area of Plateau, Terna Tyopev, the spokesman for Plateau police, said.
The local Vanguard Newspaper on Wednesday reported that Ruku Village recorded more deaths in the attack, with at least 47 victims.
President of Nigeria's Senate Bukola Saraki on Wednesday arrived in the city of Jos to commiserate with Governor Simon Lalong and families of the victims.
Saraki's visit was also to do an on-the-spot assessment of the carnage.
On Tuesday, Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari was also in the city to mourn the victims. Buhari's condolence visit was preceded by that of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who led a federal government delegation to Plateau following the attacks.
Plateau State is located in Nigeria's middle belt where the Muslim-dominated north and the Christian-majority south meet.
There had been a long time strife in the central state between indigenous groups, mostly Christian or animist, and migrants and settlers from the Hausa-speaking Muslim over the control of fertile farmlands.
Earlier in the week, one regional head of a local cattle breeders group had opined that those who carried out the attacks in Plateau might be on a revenge mission.
Danladi Ciroma, the head of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) in the north-central region, said there had been recent reports of cow rustling and destruction of farms between local farmers and herdsmen.
"The people carrying out these criminal activities are well known to the communities but the communities are hiding them," Ciroma said in a statement.
This incident was not the first herdsmen-farmers conflict in the most populous African country, whose estimated nearly 200 million people are divided into at least 200 distinct ethnic groups and about evenly split between Muslims and Christians.
On March 7, 2010, members of local Muslim and Christian communities fought each other in revenge for previous killings.
In November 2008, clashes between Muslim and Christian gangs triggered by a disputed local government election killed hundreds of people in Jos and rendered thousands of people homeless.
According to media reports, hundreds of people died in clashes in the town of Yelwa in Plateau State in 2004, while in September 2001, ethnic and religious rioting in Jos had killed at least 915 people, according to official statistics.
On the other hand, Plateau has witnessed some bomb blasts, too, apart from the constant rifts between local farmers and herdsmen, with many, especially women and children, losing their lives.
The herders, pressured with the effects of climate change and others, are forced southward into the farming communities in search of better resources of grazing.
The threats posed by the fighting between herders and farmers as provided by some accounts have been more serious than those from Nigeria's Boko Haram extremist insurgency.
The conflict in the region has weighed upon the government and other political forces as general elections approach next year.
Video - Nigerian police deploy special force to bring order in central plateau
The Nigerian government says it has deployed a Special Intervention Force to restore peace in the central plateau region that saw violence over the weekend.
Monday, June 25, 2018
Farmers and Herders clash leaves 86 dead in Nigeria
At least 86 people have died in central Nigeria after violent clashes broke out between farmers and cattle herders, police in Plateau state said.
Some reports say fighting began on Thursday when ethnic Berom farmers attacked Fulani herders, killing five of them.
A retaliatory attack on Saturday led to more deaths.
The area has a decades-long history of violence between ethnic groups competing for land.
Earlier, dozens of people were killed in a similar round of violence between Fulani herders and local hunters in Mali.
A curfew has now been imposed in three parts of Plateau state.
State police commissioner Undie Adie said a search of villages following the bloodshed revealed that 86 people had been killed, and six injured.
He said 50 houses had been burned, as well as 15 motorbikes and two vehicles.
The Plateau state government said the curfew would be in place between 18:00 and 06:00 local time (17:00 to 05:00 GMT) in the Riyom, Barikin Ladi and Jos South areas "to avert a breakdown of law and order".
The state's governor Simon Lalong said work was under way "to secure the affected communities and fish out perpetrators of these crimes".
"While we pray for God's guidance through this difficult time, we will do everything humanly possible to secure our state immediately," he said.
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari - himself a Fulani - is under increasing pressure to address the tensions ahead of elections in 2019.
In January he ordered the head of police to relocate to the country's middle belt to manage clashes there.
Special forces were also deployed to the central states of Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba to "secure vulnerable communities and prevent further attacks".
Some reports say fighting began on Thursday when ethnic Berom farmers attacked Fulani herders, killing five of them.
A retaliatory attack on Saturday led to more deaths.
The area has a decades-long history of violence between ethnic groups competing for land.
Earlier, dozens of people were killed in a similar round of violence between Fulani herders and local hunters in Mali.
A curfew has now been imposed in three parts of Plateau state.
State police commissioner Undie Adie said a search of villages following the bloodshed revealed that 86 people had been killed, and six injured.
He said 50 houses had been burned, as well as 15 motorbikes and two vehicles.
The Plateau state government said the curfew would be in place between 18:00 and 06:00 local time (17:00 to 05:00 GMT) in the Riyom, Barikin Ladi and Jos South areas "to avert a breakdown of law and order".
Tit-for-tat clashes erupt into warfare
Analysis by the BBC's Stephanie Hegarty, in Lagos
It's an age-old conflict that has recently taken on a new level of brutality.
In Nigeria's central region settled farming communities and nomadic cattle herders often clash - usually over access to land and grazing rights.
But these tit-for-tat clashes have erupted into inter-communal warfare, killing thousands in the last year.
This region, where the Muslim north meets the Christian south is prone to religious tension - herders are ethnic Fulani and mostly Muslim, while the farmers are mostly Christian.
But it's not clear why this spike in violence is happening right now. Nigeria's president has repeatedly blamed the escalation on an increase in gun-running from Libya.
Others blame security forces' failures in a country busy fighting two insurgences - Boko Haram in the north and militants in the oil-producing south.
Analysis by the BBC's Stephanie Hegarty, in Lagos
It's an age-old conflict that has recently taken on a new level of brutality.
In Nigeria's central region settled farming communities and nomadic cattle herders often clash - usually over access to land and grazing rights.
But these tit-for-tat clashes have erupted into inter-communal warfare, killing thousands in the last year.
This region, where the Muslim north meets the Christian south is prone to religious tension - herders are ethnic Fulani and mostly Muslim, while the farmers are mostly Christian.
But it's not clear why this spike in violence is happening right now. Nigeria's president has repeatedly blamed the escalation on an increase in gun-running from Libya.
Others blame security forces' failures in a country busy fighting two insurgences - Boko Haram in the north and militants in the oil-producing south.
The state's governor Simon Lalong said work was under way "to secure the affected communities and fish out perpetrators of these crimes".
"While we pray for God's guidance through this difficult time, we will do everything humanly possible to secure our state immediately," he said.
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari - himself a Fulani - is under increasing pressure to address the tensions ahead of elections in 2019.
In January he ordered the head of police to relocate to the country's middle belt to manage clashes there.
Special forces were also deployed to the central states of Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba to "secure vulnerable communities and prevent further attacks".
Who are the Fulani herdsmen?
They are believed to be the largest semi-nomadic group in the world, and are found across West and Central Africa - from Senegal to the Central African Republic.
In Nigeria, some continue to live as semi-nomadic herders, while other have moved to cities.
The nomadic groups spend most of their lives in the bush.
They herd their animals across vast areas, frequently clashing with farming communities.
They are believed to be the largest semi-nomadic group in the world, and are found across West and Central Africa - from Senegal to the Central African Republic.
In Nigeria, some continue to live as semi-nomadic herders, while other have moved to cities.
The nomadic groups spend most of their lives in the bush.
They herd their animals across vast areas, frequently clashing with farming communities.
Thursday, May 31, 2018
Video - Nigerian activists question state's capacity to protect communities
Nigerians have been converging in major cities across the country to mourn thousands of people killed over the past few years. The clashes -- linked to grazing rights and dwindling fertile land -- have raised questions about the government's capacity to protect communities and their property.
Friday, May 25, 2018
Video - Conflict in northern Nigeria partly linked to climate change
The African Union's Peace and Security Council is due to discuss the link between climate change and conflict in Africa. The problem's particularly acute in Nigeria, and has been blamed for the growing deadly conflict between herders and farmers, in recent months.
Monday, May 14, 2018
Video - Nigeria's Fulani-farmer conflict displaces many
Disputes over territory in central Nigeria have left hundreds of thousands of people displaced. Aid workers now fear a growing humanitarian crisis in Benue state.
Monday, May 7, 2018
Video - Fulani herdsmen in Nigeria blamed for attack on church
Disputes over territory are escalating elsewhere in Nigeria. President Muhammadu Buhari's government is under pressure to prevent such attacks, ahead of elections next year. Al Jazeera's Jamela Alindogan reports from Benue state, where an attack on a church is dividing a community that has lived peacefully for generations.
Monday, April 30, 2018
Regional leaders meet in Abuja, Nigeria seek end to land tensions
West African leaders are meeting for talks in the Nigerian capital Abuja. They're seeking solutions to the conflict over land resources in the region. One of the suggestions is banning the un-registered movement of animals across West Africa.
Friday, April 27, 2018
Video - Another deadly raid reported in Nigeria's Benue State
There has reportedly been another attack in Nigeria's Benue State. At least seven people have apparently been killed in a raid on a church and a primary school in the Logo area. It comes just a day after at least 16 people -- including two Catholic priests -- were killed in a church in the village of Ayar Mbalom, also in Benue state. The government has yet to confirm this latest raid. It's believed unknown gunmen opened fire at the victims, who had been taking refuge in the church after being displaced from their homes during earlier violence.
President Buhari summoned to Senate over church killings
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has been summoned by the Senate over a spate of killings in the country's middle belt.
The lawmakers are yet to set a date for the president's appearance but said violence in Nigeria's central states could lead to "serious crisis" in the country.
"We all know that the dimension this is taking can lead to serious crisis in this country. It means we need to take drastic action. We must say 'no'. These daily killings, have to stop," said Bukola Saraki, Nigeria's Senate leader.
Members of the country's lower parliament who had invited the President Wednesday also passed a vote of no confidence in service chiefs and security advisers, calling for their dismissal over their inability to protect Nigerians.
The lawmakers said could no longer watch "our people are murdered in cold blood" and urged government to increase security measures in affected areas.
"We also resolved to summon the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces President Muhammadu Buhari in order to answer pertinent questions concerning what the Executive is doing to put a decisive end to the spate of killings in different states of the Federation," said Yakubu Dogara, speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives.
Buhari's media aide did not immediately respond to CNN's request for a comment.
The president is currently on a two-day working visit to Bauchi State, in north central Nigeria, where he is commissioning road projects and an air force medical facility, according to local media reports.
In the latest wave of violence to hit the middle belt region in recent months, two priests and 17 worshippers were killed Tuesday when armed men attacked a Catholic church during early morning mass in a remote village in Benue state.
The attackers razed over 50 houses in an attempt to take over the community, state police said. State police spokesman Terver Akase told CNN the attackers were thought to be Fulani cattle herdsmen,
Bello Bodejo, head of the cattle herders association, Miyetti Allah, denied the group's involvement in the attacks.
He called on the police and security agencies to investigate and reveal the identities of the attackers to put an end to speculation about his group's involvement.
"We are condemning Tuesday's attack because it is not acceptable. But we want a thorough investigation because every time there is an attack in the middle belt, they say it is Fulani people that caused it," he said in a phone interview with CNN.
"Many Fulani herdsman are not educated or organized enough to speak out against these accusations and this is why socio-cultural organizations like ours are appealing to Nigerians to assist us to get to the root of these attacks."
The violence between the Fulani herdsmen, who are mostly Muslims, and farmers, who are predominantly Christians, in the central state dates back to 2013. According to the Global Terrorism Index, Fulani extremists killed over 2,500 Nigerians between 2012 and 2016.
Cattle herders have evicted farmers by initiating deadly attacks in Nigeria's middle belt, the report from the Institute for Economics & Peace, a non-profit think tank, said.
The expanding conflict between herders and farmers in the region led to the enforcement of anti-grazing laws by local governments , a move that has exacerbated tensions in affected states.
At least 72 people were killed in January following weeks of violence between nomadic herdsmen and farmers in the central part of the West African country.
Buhari, who is ethnically Fulani, has been widely criticized by Nigerians for his perceived silence over previous attacks in Benue state.
He visited the state in March to console families and communities involved and has vowed to bring those responsible for Tuesday's attack to justice.
"This latest assault on innocent persons is particularly despicable. Violating a place of worship, killing priests and worshippers is not only vile, evil and satanic, it is clearly calculated to stoke up religious conflict and plunge our communities into endless bloodletting," Buhari said in a tweet.
International Christian rights organizations have also spoken out about what they see as persecution of some Nigerians because of their faith.
David Curry, president of Open Doors Christian Rights group, condemned Tuesday's attacks and stated that Christians are being targeted in north and central states in Nigeria.
He urged US President Donald Trump to discuss these "religious attacks" during his meeting with Buhari later this month.
"President Buhari has done nothing more than issue empty words of condolence as villages have been burned and thousands of religious minorities have been slaughtered.
Buhari will meet Trump in Washington April 30 to discuss ways of combating terrorism, promoting economic growth among other issues.
The lawmakers are yet to set a date for the president's appearance but said violence in Nigeria's central states could lead to "serious crisis" in the country.
"We all know that the dimension this is taking can lead to serious crisis in this country. It means we need to take drastic action. We must say 'no'. These daily killings, have to stop," said Bukola Saraki, Nigeria's Senate leader.
Members of the country's lower parliament who had invited the President Wednesday also passed a vote of no confidence in service chiefs and security advisers, calling for their dismissal over their inability to protect Nigerians.
The lawmakers said could no longer watch "our people are murdered in cold blood" and urged government to increase security measures in affected areas.
"We also resolved to summon the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces President Muhammadu Buhari in order to answer pertinent questions concerning what the Executive is doing to put a decisive end to the spate of killings in different states of the Federation," said Yakubu Dogara, speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives.
Buhari's media aide did not immediately respond to CNN's request for a comment.
The president is currently on a two-day working visit to Bauchi State, in north central Nigeria, where he is commissioning road projects and an air force medical facility, according to local media reports.
In the latest wave of violence to hit the middle belt region in recent months, two priests and 17 worshippers were killed Tuesday when armed men attacked a Catholic church during early morning mass in a remote village in Benue state.
The attackers razed over 50 houses in an attempt to take over the community, state police said. State police spokesman Terver Akase told CNN the attackers were thought to be Fulani cattle herdsmen,
Bello Bodejo, head of the cattle herders association, Miyetti Allah, denied the group's involvement in the attacks.
He called on the police and security agencies to investigate and reveal the identities of the attackers to put an end to speculation about his group's involvement.
"We are condemning Tuesday's attack because it is not acceptable. But we want a thorough investigation because every time there is an attack in the middle belt, they say it is Fulani people that caused it," he said in a phone interview with CNN.
"Many Fulani herdsman are not educated or organized enough to speak out against these accusations and this is why socio-cultural organizations like ours are appealing to Nigerians to assist us to get to the root of these attacks."
The violence between the Fulani herdsmen, who are mostly Muslims, and farmers, who are predominantly Christians, in the central state dates back to 2013. According to the Global Terrorism Index, Fulani extremists killed over 2,500 Nigerians between 2012 and 2016.
Cattle herders have evicted farmers by initiating deadly attacks in Nigeria's middle belt, the report from the Institute for Economics & Peace, a non-profit think tank, said.
The expanding conflict between herders and farmers in the region led to the enforcement of anti-grazing laws by local governments , a move that has exacerbated tensions in affected states.
At least 72 people were killed in January following weeks of violence between nomadic herdsmen and farmers in the central part of the West African country.
Buhari, who is ethnically Fulani, has been widely criticized by Nigerians for his perceived silence over previous attacks in Benue state.
He visited the state in March to console families and communities involved and has vowed to bring those responsible for Tuesday's attack to justice.
"This latest assault on innocent persons is particularly despicable. Violating a place of worship, killing priests and worshippers is not only vile, evil and satanic, it is clearly calculated to stoke up religious conflict and plunge our communities into endless bloodletting," Buhari said in a tweet.
International Christian rights organizations have also spoken out about what they see as persecution of some Nigerians because of their faith.
David Curry, president of Open Doors Christian Rights group, condemned Tuesday's attacks and stated that Christians are being targeted in north and central states in Nigeria.
He urged US President Donald Trump to discuss these "religious attacks" during his meeting with Buhari later this month.
"President Buhari has done nothing more than issue empty words of condolence as villages have been burned and thousands of religious minorities have been slaughtered.
His inaction has meant attacks by the Fulani are becoming more deadly and sophisticated," Curry said in a statement Wednesday.
Buhari will meet Trump in Washington April 30 to discuss ways of combating terrorism, promoting economic growth among other issues.
Wednesday, April 25, 2018
Video - Attack on church in Nigeria leaves 19 dead
At least 19 people were killed Tuesday after gunmen opened fire at a church in Nigeria's Middle Belt, police said.
Two priests and 17 worshippers were killed when armed men, believed to be cattle herders, stormed a Catholic church during early morning Mass on Tuesday in a remote village in Benue state.
State police spokesman Terver Akase told CNN the attackers, thought to be Fulani herdsmen, set many homes on fire.
"The herdsmen burnt nearly 50 houses during the attack and sacked the entire community, " Akase told CNN. "We expect arrests to be made because they (attackers) are becoming more brazen," he added.
According to Akase, 10 residents were killed by armed men a few days before Tuesday's attack.
Violent clashes between the Fulani herdsmen, who are mostly Muslims, and farmers, who are predominantly Christians, in the central state dates to 2013, according to local media reports.
Cattle herders have evicted farmers by initiating deadly attacks in Nigeria's Middle Belt, media reports say.
At least 72 people were killed in January following weeks of clashes between nomadic herdsmen and farmers in the central part of the West African country.
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari who visited the state last month to console families and communities that suffered from violent clashes, vowed those involved in Tuesday's attack will be apprehended and brought to justice.
"This latest assault on innocent persons is particularly despicable. Violating a place of worship, killing priests and worshippers is not only vile, evil and satanic, it is clearly calculated to stoke up religious conflict and plunge our communities into endless bloodletting," Buhari said in a tweet.
A local Benue group expressed concerns over the increased spate of killings, calling for an "end to senseless slaughter of unarmed defenseless people" in the country.
"We call on all humane persons and groups around the world to come to the aid of our farming and worship communities and end these terror attacks across Nigeria and especially in Benue, our food basket, which also threatens our collective food security," the Benue Valley Professional Network said in a statement.
Thursday, February 8, 2018
The 'cattle colony' problem in Nigeria
Since the New Year, more than 80 people have been killed in clashes between nomadic herdsmen and farmers in Nigeria's central Benue, Taraba and Nasarawa states. Herders, mostly from the Fulani ethnic group, and farmers often clash over the use of fertile land.
For a very long time, the Nigerian government did not offer a concrete plan to solve the problem, doing little more than giving cliche political sermons, condemning the killings and issuing palliatives.
But after the latest killing spree in early January, the government announced that they have finally found a solution that would end these clashes once and for all: "cattle colonies".
"We have to deal with an urgent problem, cattle rearing and the conflicts between farmers and herdsmen, and actually bring it to a halt … Let us do our own duty by eliminating the conflict by creating cattle colonies," the government's Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh said.
The Nigerian public's initial reaction to the announcement was one of disinterest and confusion, as no one seemed to understand what a "cattle colony" was. Eventually, many communities realised that implementing this policy could lead to a disaster and outright rejected it. While to the government it might make sense to allocate land for pastures to cattle herders, to many Nigerians it doesn't.
In their rejection of the policy, some Nigerians resorted to sarcasm. "What is cattle colony? We have been colonised by the colonial masters, and now we will be colonised by cows?" quipped Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Taraba state Yusufu Akirikwen.
So what is the "cattle colony" policy and why are many Nigerians rejecting it?
Why is there a conflict between farmers and herders?
Competition for land is fierce in Nigeria, and originally this had nothing to do with farmers or herders. In Nigeria's south, land ownership is a sign of wealth, prosperity and power. A man's possession of land can also be a measure of his authority. This perception is strong in rural communities, and so, fights and aggression over land acquisition have become common.
Now, cattle herders have introduced a new dimension to the issue. Over the past few decades, three parallel processes have put a huge strain on Nigeria's fertile land.
First, the population of Nigeria has doubled in the past decade and a half and will double again by the year 2050; this has increased the demand for agricultural products.
Second, the expansion of urban centres to accommodate internal migration and population growth has taken up huge swaths of arable land from farmers.
Third, gradual desertification in the north, due to climate change and other factors, has rendered massive tracts of land unusable for agriculture or cattle herding; currently, 11 out of 19 states in the north are severely threatened by soil erosion.
All this has not only shrunk the amount of land available for farming and pastures but has also pushed cattle herders further south.
In the past, farmers and herders were able to manage disputes, primarily through the community justice system that employs dialogue and small peace talks in village squares.
But that inter-community conflict resolution process no longer works because grievances have increased in number and dimension. Individual resentment transformed over timeinto large-scale violence. The issue eventually assumed an ethnic dimension and has been presented as a problem between the north and the south.
It is important here to point out that land disputes happen all over the country and are not necessarily always related to cattle-herding. For instance, in July 2017, clashes between two communities over land in River state - Nigeria's oil-producing delta - left close to 150 people dead and thousands displaced.
For a very long time, the Nigerian government did not offer a concrete plan to solve the problem, doing little more than giving cliche political sermons, condemning the killings and issuing palliatives.
But after the latest killing spree in early January, the government announced that they have finally found a solution that would end these clashes once and for all: "cattle colonies".
"We have to deal with an urgent problem, cattle rearing and the conflicts between farmers and herdsmen, and actually bring it to a halt … Let us do our own duty by eliminating the conflict by creating cattle colonies," the government's Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh said.
The Nigerian public's initial reaction to the announcement was one of disinterest and confusion, as no one seemed to understand what a "cattle colony" was. Eventually, many communities realised that implementing this policy could lead to a disaster and outright rejected it. While to the government it might make sense to allocate land for pastures to cattle herders, to many Nigerians it doesn't.
In their rejection of the policy, some Nigerians resorted to sarcasm. "What is cattle colony? We have been colonised by the colonial masters, and now we will be colonised by cows?" quipped Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Taraba state Yusufu Akirikwen.
So what is the "cattle colony" policy and why are many Nigerians rejecting it?
Why is there a conflict between farmers and herders?
Competition for land is fierce in Nigeria, and originally this had nothing to do with farmers or herders. In Nigeria's south, land ownership is a sign of wealth, prosperity and power. A man's possession of land can also be a measure of his authority. This perception is strong in rural communities, and so, fights and aggression over land acquisition have become common.
Now, cattle herders have introduced a new dimension to the issue. Over the past few decades, three parallel processes have put a huge strain on Nigeria's fertile land.
First, the population of Nigeria has doubled in the past decade and a half and will double again by the year 2050; this has increased the demand for agricultural products.
Second, the expansion of urban centres to accommodate internal migration and population growth has taken up huge swaths of arable land from farmers.
Third, gradual desertification in the north, due to climate change and other factors, has rendered massive tracts of land unusable for agriculture or cattle herding; currently, 11 out of 19 states in the north are severely threatened by soil erosion.
All this has not only shrunk the amount of land available for farming and pastures but has also pushed cattle herders further south.
In the past, farmers and herders were able to manage disputes, primarily through the community justice system that employs dialogue and small peace talks in village squares.
But that inter-community conflict resolution process no longer works because grievances have increased in number and dimension. Individual resentment transformed over timeinto large-scale violence. The issue eventually assumed an ethnic dimension and has been presented as a problem between the north and the south.
It is important here to point out that land disputes happen all over the country and are not necessarily always related to cattle-herding. For instance, in July 2017, clashes between two communities over land in River state - Nigeria's oil-producing delta - left close to 150 people dead and thousands displaced.
What is the 'cattle colony' policy?
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the "cattle colony" policy is going to solve the ongoing problems between herdsmen and farmers by designating vast tracts of lands in each state as herding grounds.
Herdsmen will use these designated herding grounds, or "cattle colonies" to feed their livestock, and as a result will not feel the need to disturb the fertile agricultural lands that belong to farming communities.
Of course, the situation is not as simple as the government presents it to be. First of all, the government's proposal does not explain how it will prevent herdsmen from encroaching on farmlands as they move between "cattle colonies". Also, according to the proposal, every state retains the discretion to decline the federal government's call for land donation. In other words, local governments can simply refuse to host a "cattle colony" within their borders.
The government responded to these criticisms by saying that 16 of Nigeria's 36 states had already agreed to host cattle colonies. Yet, in Nigeria, local authorities only have limited control over farmland and indigenous populations, and in the end, local groups can simply refuse to comply with decisions taken by state governments.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the "cattle colony" policy is going to solve the ongoing problems between herdsmen and farmers by designating vast tracts of lands in each state as herding grounds.
Herdsmen will use these designated herding grounds, or "cattle colonies" to feed their livestock, and as a result will not feel the need to disturb the fertile agricultural lands that belong to farming communities.
Of course, the situation is not as simple as the government presents it to be. First of all, the government's proposal does not explain how it will prevent herdsmen from encroaching on farmlands as they move between "cattle colonies". Also, according to the proposal, every state retains the discretion to decline the federal government's call for land donation. In other words, local governments can simply refuse to host a "cattle colony" within their borders.
The government responded to these criticisms by saying that 16 of Nigeria's 36 states had already agreed to host cattle colonies. Yet, in Nigeria, local authorities only have limited control over farmland and indigenous populations, and in the end, local groups can simply refuse to comply with decisions taken by state governments.
Why will the 'cattle colony' policy not work?
Beyond these obvious reasons that are driving the rebellion against the policy, there is also another grievous problem with this policy.
In most communities in Nigeria, the land is fundamentally managed by families and communities, although the government has enacted laws to try to weaken the grip of tradition on land-related issues.
For many, land is sacred and no single person, in most customs, can sell, transfer or use lands without violating societal norms in the process. This spiritual dimension to land in Nigeria sometimes even warrants that certain rituals be involved in land transfer or acquisition. So, ceding land to any person other than a community kinsman, especially in rural communities, requires a careful, long, and relatively sacred process.
The Land Use Act of 1978 that regulates land acquisition, ownership and transfer in Nigeria has not truly replaced these customs because - like most government policies - it failed to reach rural communities in any meaningful way. Sadly, federal law in Nigeria is mostly seen as a collection of "elitist" texts that have little influence on the status-quo on the ground.
Local community leaders from some states that seemingly subscribed to this policy have already warned the state governments to "stay clear of their land". In Kogi state, a community leader, Chief Alhassan Ejike, said the governor "cannot allocate a land that doesn't belong to [him] to foreigners."
In a separate petition, Igala Project - an association of one of Nigeria's largest tribes - warned, "our people, who are largely farmers, are not prepared to host herdsmen or cattle colony masters in our land."
Beyond these obvious reasons that are driving the rebellion against the policy, there is also another grievous problem with this policy.
In most communities in Nigeria, the land is fundamentally managed by families and communities, although the government has enacted laws to try to weaken the grip of tradition on land-related issues.
For many, land is sacred and no single person, in most customs, can sell, transfer or use lands without violating societal norms in the process. This spiritual dimension to land in Nigeria sometimes even warrants that certain rituals be involved in land transfer or acquisition. So, ceding land to any person other than a community kinsman, especially in rural communities, requires a careful, long, and relatively sacred process.
The Land Use Act of 1978 that regulates land acquisition, ownership and transfer in Nigeria has not truly replaced these customs because - like most government policies - it failed to reach rural communities in any meaningful way. Sadly, federal law in Nigeria is mostly seen as a collection of "elitist" texts that have little influence on the status-quo on the ground.
Local community leaders from some states that seemingly subscribed to this policy have already warned the state governments to "stay clear of their land". In Kogi state, a community leader, Chief Alhassan Ejike, said the governor "cannot allocate a land that doesn't belong to [him] to foreigners."
In a separate petition, Igala Project - an association of one of Nigeria's largest tribes - warned, "our people, who are largely farmers, are not prepared to host herdsmen or cattle colony masters in our land."
What should the government do?
The government can explore alternatives other than the "cattle colony" policy, including cattle ranching. Northern states could build ranches for herders, facilitate acquisition of cattle fodder and implement land reclamation projects for desert areas.
This would alleviate migration to the south and limit clashes. Besides, it makes more economic sense with potential job creation and other incentives for middlemen and farmers. It would also calm ethnic tensions and disputes between the south and north.
In the end, whether the government opts for cattle ranching or another solution, it should give up the "cattle colonies" idea. Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari pleading "I ask you in the name of God to accommodate your country men" will not convince the Nigerian people.
The government can explore alternatives other than the "cattle colony" policy, including cattle ranching. Northern states could build ranches for herders, facilitate acquisition of cattle fodder and implement land reclamation projects for desert areas.
This would alleviate migration to the south and limit clashes. Besides, it makes more economic sense with potential job creation and other incentives for middlemen and farmers. It would also calm ethnic tensions and disputes between the south and north.
In the end, whether the government opts for cattle ranching or another solution, it should give up the "cattle colonies" idea. Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari pleading "I ask you in the name of God to accommodate your country men" will not convince the Nigerian people.
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