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Africans in U.S. Frown at Religious Killings in Nigeria
- By Williams Ekanem
- Published September 6th, 2010
- Washington File
- Unrated
AT a new African focused magazine launch in New York City, USA recently, the issue of religious crisis in Nigeria took centre stage as speakers at the ceremony deliberated on problems besting Africa.
Publisher of the magazine, AfriImpact, Mr Andy Akala who set the mood of the occasion in his welcome speech regretted that at a time Africans should be more closely knitted together to tackle global challenges and blatant discrimination, those in the continent are busy killing and maiming one another through all sorts of problems.
In particular, the publisher, who pointed out the new magazine is out to address those positive attributes that impact Africa, stated that in most parts of Africa, using Nigeria as a good example, religious intolerance is dividing Africans apart instead of uniting them together.
Akala who is a Cameroonian, but a U.S based publisher pointed at the reoccurring religious crisis in Plateau State were hundreds have been killed as a problem Africans should fight against.
Another speaker, Jean Jacques said that religious intolerance has painted the image of Nigeria as a country that is steeply divided between religious divide so much that the Libya leader had to call for the division of the country on according to religious linings to avoid further future blood shed.
There are indications that the frequent religious clashes in Nigeria may have become a source of concern to the United States government and major institutions working in the area of religious tolerance in the country.
The recent Jos and Bauchi clashes have prompted questions on what steps the Nigerian government is taking to ensure long-term peace and tranquility, in a country considered an important US ally in the African continent the International Religious Freedom Caucus in the US Congress has shown interest in the Nigerian case. So far the Jos, Bauchi and Gombe crises were closely monitored resulting in close contacts between the group and the Nigerian Embassy in Washington, D.C. Discussions are also on going on how Nigeria, the largest black nation in the world, evenly split between Christians and Muslims can forge ahead.
Only a few weeks ago, no fewer than eight Christians were killed in Kaduna and Plateau States of Nigeria by some Moslem fundamentalists in a renewed violence on the Christian community, when their villages were attacked, while five Christian homes were burnt down.
In a statement Jonathan Racho, regional manager for Africa and South Asia, International Christian Concern (ICC), said that on the night of July 3, several Muslims attacked Kizachi village in Kaduna State and killed five Christians, including a primary school teacher and mother of six children.
“Nigerian sources told ICC that the police had stopped protecting the village on July 2 after the government failed to pay their salaries,” he stated.
He noted that in the second attack, on the night of July 4, Muslims armed with guns and machetes invaded Ganawuri community, near Jos adding that three Christians are feared dead.
Racho said that this latest violence came on the heels of a March 7 jihad attack against Christians in Jos in which over 500 mainly women and children were murdered. “It is estimated that many more thousands of Christians have been killed in northern Nigeria since the introduction of Sharia law in 2001,” he said.
“We are outraged by the latest killings of Christians in northern Nigeria. Once again, Nigerian officials have failed to provide needed security for the citizens of Kaduna and Plateau States. We urge Nigerian authorities to quickly bring all the perpetrators of the attacks to justice and fully investigate the lapse in security, Racho added.”
Publisher of the magazine, AfriImpact, Mr Andy Akala who set the mood of the occasion in his welcome speech regretted that at a time Africans should be more closely knitted together to tackle global challenges and blatant discrimination, those in the continent are busy killing and maiming one another through all sorts of problems.
In particular, the publisher, who pointed out the new magazine is out to address those positive attributes that impact Africa, stated that in most parts of Africa, using Nigeria as a good example, religious intolerance is dividing Africans apart instead of uniting them together.
Akala who is a Cameroonian, but a U.S based publisher pointed at the reoccurring religious crisis in Plateau State were hundreds have been killed as a problem Africans should fight against.
Another speaker, Jean Jacques said that religious intolerance has painted the image of Nigeria as a country that is steeply divided between religious divide so much that the Libya leader had to call for the division of the country on according to religious linings to avoid further future blood shed.
There are indications that the frequent religious clashes in Nigeria may have become a source of concern to the United States government and major institutions working in the area of religious tolerance in the country.
The recent Jos and Bauchi clashes have prompted questions on what steps the Nigerian government is taking to ensure long-term peace and tranquility, in a country considered an important US ally in the African continent the International Religious Freedom Caucus in the US Congress has shown interest in the Nigerian case. So far the Jos, Bauchi and Gombe crises were closely monitored resulting in close contacts between the group and the Nigerian Embassy in Washington, D.C. Discussions are also on going on how Nigeria, the largest black nation in the world, evenly split between Christians and Muslims can forge ahead.
Only a few weeks ago, no fewer than eight Christians were killed in Kaduna and Plateau States of Nigeria by some Moslem fundamentalists in a renewed violence on the Christian community, when their villages were attacked, while five Christian homes were burnt down.
In a statement Jonathan Racho, regional manager for Africa and South Asia, International Christian Concern (ICC), said that on the night of July 3, several Muslims attacked Kizachi village in Kaduna State and killed five Christians, including a primary school teacher and mother of six children.
“Nigerian sources told ICC that the police had stopped protecting the village on July 2 after the government failed to pay their salaries,” he stated.
He noted that in the second attack, on the night of July 4, Muslims armed with guns and machetes invaded Ganawuri community, near Jos adding that three Christians are feared dead.
Racho said that this latest violence came on the heels of a March 7 jihad attack against Christians in Jos in which over 500 mainly women and children were murdered. “It is estimated that many more thousands of Christians have been killed in northern Nigeria since the introduction of Sharia law in 2001,” he said.
“We are outraged by the latest killings of Christians in northern Nigeria. Once again, Nigerian officials have failed to provide needed security for the citizens of Kaduna and Plateau States. We urge Nigerian authorities to quickly bring all the perpetrators of the attacks to justice and fully investigate the lapse in security, Racho added.”
