Nigeria: Religious Violence Fueled by Impunity

Nigeria: Religious Violence Fueled by Impunity
Government Must Bring Local Perpetrators and
Security Forces to Justice

(London, May 25, 2005) -- One year after some 900 people were
massacred in clashes between Muslims and Christians in northern and
central Nigeria, the Nigerian government has failed to prosecute those
responsible for this cycle of violence, Human Rights Watch said in a
report released today.

The 75-page report, "Revenge in the Name of Religion: The Cycle of
Violence in Plateau and Kano States," provides the first detailed
analysis of these incidents and the factors that continue to threaten the
stability of central and northern Nigeria. It provides detailed
documentation of two major outbreaks of violence in the town of
Yelwa, Plateau State, in February and May 2004, and a reprisal attack
in the northern city of Kano in May 2004.

In the central region that lies between the mainly Muslim north and
largely Christian south, armed Muslims on February 24, 2004 killed
more than 75 Christians in the town of Yelwa, at least 48 of them
inside a church compound. Then on May 2 and 3, hundreds of well-
armed Christians surrounded the town from different directions and
killed around 700 Muslims. They also abducted scores of women,
some of whom were raped. Both attacks were well-organized, and in
both instances, the victims were targeted on the basis of their
religion.

One week later, reacting to reports of the Yelwa attacks, Muslims in
the northern city of Kano on May 11 and 12 turned against Christian
residents of the city, killing more than 200. In addition, police and
soldiers deployed to restore order in Kano carried out dozens of
extrajudicial killings themselves. The victims included people who,
according to eyewitnesses, were not even involved in the violence.

"The Nigerian government bears a heavy responsibility for the
massive loss of life in these eruptions of violence fueled by religion,"
said Peter Takirambudde, director of Human Rights Watch?s Africa
Division. "The security forces were absent while hundreds of people
were being massacred in Yelwa. Instead of protecting those at risk and
trying to arrest the perpetrators, police and soldiers shot people on
sight in Kano."

There have been numerous other incidents in Plateau State over the
last four years, starting with the outbreak of violence in city of Jos in
September 2001, in which around 1,000 people were killed in less than
a week. In 2002 and 2003, violence spread to other parts of the state.
Human Rights Watch estimates that between 2,000 and 3,000 people
have died in communal violence in Plateau State since 2001.

"The warning signs were there for a long time," said Takirambudde.
"But the government chose to do nothing until the situation spiraled
out of the control."

Some two weeks after the massacre in Yelwa, President Olusegun
Obasanjo declared a state of emergency in Plateau State on May 18,
2004, and suspended the state governor. An interim administrator
launched an ambitious peace program, and relative calm was
restored.

Six months later, in November, the state of emergency was lifted, but
the peace program appears to have stalled. Various initiatives proposed
under the state of emergency ? notably a truth and reconciliation
commission ? have not been implemented. Dozens of people have
been arrested, but those responsible for planning and organizing the
violence have still not been prosecuted. Neither have the police or
soldiers responsible for the killings in Kano.

"The government needs to do much more to ensure lasting peace in the
affected areas," said Takirambudde. "The authorities need to send a
clear message that those responsible for these killings will be arrested
and prosecuted. The impunity protecting the perpetrators has only
encouraged further violence."

The report provides background information on the causes of the
violence in Plateau State and explains how a localized dispute between
ethnic groups competing for political control, land and economic
resources turned into a fully fledged religious conflict, extending well
beyond the boundaries of the state.

"Both Muslims and Christians have realized that religion is an
extremely effective way of mobilizing large numbers of people," said
Takirambudde. "Local leaders on both sides have cynically
manipulated religion with disastrous consequences."

At the heart of the conflict is the distinction between "indigenes"?
people who consider themselves as the original inhabitants of an
area?and those whom they view as "settlers." The concept of
"indigeneship" has been exploited and used to discriminate against
those termed as "settlers."

"The Nigerian government needs to remove the distinction between
?indigenes? and ?settlers?," said Takirambudde. "As long as this
distinction is given official recognition, the potential for further
conflict remains."

Human Rights Watch urged the Nigerian government to seize the
opportunity of the current calm in Plateau and Kano states to
implement a number of other measures aimed at preventing a
recurrence of the conflict. In particular, Nigerian authorities should
identify and bring to justice those who organized and planned the
violence, and should ensure the timely deployment of an adequate
security force presence in areas of tension, while ensuring that
members of the security forces do not carry out abuses themselves.

To view this document on the Human Rights Watch web site, please
go to: http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/05/23/nigeri10993.htm