Religion, social life, muslims, christians, sharia law introduction in nigeria mostly there are two types of religions, islam and christianity. Causes of religious conflicts in nigeria and possible. Religious violence in nigeria refers to christianmuslim strife in modern nigeria, which can be. The persistent religious conflicts and insecurity in nigeria has given meaningful nigerians a cause for deep concern in recent times. Thus, nwaomah 2010 observes conversion campaigns, as in nigeria, by opposing religion s and fanaticism arising from indoctrination of the adherents, mostly due to parochial education, can also reinforce religious hostilities and thus create a conflict. Religious conflicts in nigeria world socialist web site. Northern nigeria is little understood by those in the south, still less by the international community.
The importance, how to, effect causes relationship, comparison, history, role. Abstract the aim of this work is to identify the causes and implications of religious conflicts in nigeria s political system as well as proffer strategies to avoid future occurrence. The institute for peace and conflict resolution ipcr is the lead agency in this. By nonstructural factors we mean sources of conflict with the organization that are not a consequences of the organization that is causes of conflict not attributable to the way in which the set of work roles and administration. In fact, history indicates that conflict is an ongoing. Patterns and mapping 2 executive summary the notion that religious violence in nigeria is always characterised by conflicts between religions muslims versus christians is too simplistic. D school of arts and social sciences,national open university of nigeria,lagos. Intolerance is the main cause of religious riots and conflicts not only in nigeria but around the world. Judaism, christianity and islam all believe in the same god but they believe some different things about this god. Those conditions are the quest by ethnic and religious groups for ethnic conflict or religious dominance. Issues and solutionsproject topics and materials in nigeria. Many conflict events are never reported to authorities. Suleja to cause disruption in abuja in the event that jonathan loses the election.
Nigeria s first lady, dame patience goodluckjonathan was the chief host of the million naira event entitled, the african woman. Religious conflict in nigeria unisa institutional repository. Which dimensions have they assumed since 1980 when the. Ethnic conflict is defined as any episode of sustained violent conflict in which national, ethnic, and religious or other communal minorities challenge governments to seek major changes in status. A history of identities, violence, and stability in nigeria. Religious conflict in nigeria dates as far back as 1953.
Another sacrosanct point is noted by owutu as the cause of religious conflict which akowonjo described as the indigeneship and settlers division. Ttest results showed differences in the responses of farmers and nomads concerning the causes of the conflicts p less that 0. So the purpose of this article is to examine the causes of interand intra religious violence in nigeria. A critical look at nigeria s indigenesettler and ethno religious conflicts reveals a causal relationship among all the causes.
This article sets out to identify the causes of christianmuslim conflicts in northern. Conflict can be the result of a violation of shared expectations, or conflict can. Pdf conflict is a great predicament in any human society, and most times, it is predictable. The spate of ethno religious conflict in nigeria has however, increased with. Implications for national security ushe mike ushe, ph. Igbohausa feud that began after the military coup and countercoup of 1966, culminating in the civil war in 1967, efikibibio conflict, tivjukun debacle, fulanibirom clashes, and itsekiriurhoboijaw conflict in the niger delta. Pdf indigenesettler and ethnoreligious conflicts in. Nigeria watch data on the causes of deaths 20062018 records the three biggest causes of deaths to be. Conflicts between farmers and herders exist on a large scale, both within nigeria and the greater lake chad basin and sudanosahel region. Nigeria, if boko haram can accelerate nigeria s centrifugal forces ethno religious divides, power politics, and economic grievances sufficiently to cause the state to collapse from within. The final section 5 looks at state management of conflicts and its effects under the federal system in nigeria. Religious violence in nigeria the causes and solutions. Ntroduction nigeria presents a complex of individual as well as a conflation and recursive identities of which the ethnic, religious, regional and subethnic communal are the most salient and the main bases for violent conflicts in the country.
Violence in nigeria causes and solutions 2020 information. The root cause of this set of riot was the introduction of the. The immediate and remote causes of the jos crises have been politicized along sectarian and. Ethnic conflict is defined as any episode of sustained violent conflict in which national, ethnic, and religious or other communal minorities challenge governments to seek major changes in status smith. It evolves over time, from the use of traditional weapons of warfare to more sophisticated weapons. The roots of nigerias religious and ethnic conflict the. Causes, effects and resolution of farmersnomadic cattle. The competition between these groups is impelled by economic disparity and perceptions of political under representation throughout nigeria s independent history. In the case of nigeria, it has been pointed out that there is a historical legacy of mistrust between. Thus they are like children fighting over the same toy, each claiming. The type of violent and crime related activities include.
While identifying both the remote sociopolitical and economic drivers as well as the immediate factors that generate religious violence in nigeria, he has failed to critically analyse how these factors generate religious disturbances. Indeed, this tripod is what carried the pot of religious conflicts in nigeria. Religious conflict in nigeria stems from an insatiable taste for one religion to dominate another. Causes of conflict in nigeria public organizations nonstructural causes of organizational conflict.
When it comes to religious conflicts in nigeria, the main cause is the intolerance towards representatives of a different religion. Religious crises can also come about when it seems the dominant religious group in a particular area is afraid of domination by the other. Numerous government programs exist to maintain social cohesion, peace and tolerance in nigeria. Causes of ethnic and religious conflicts in nigeria. Ethnoreligious conflicts and democracy in nigeria dr. Sani no date has made a comprehensive but unelaborated list of 70 causes of religious conflicts in nigeria. Another reason for religious conflict is when there are some basic beliefs or practices in common but there are differences of opinion over the specifics. These political leaders used religion as a fuel to keep the conflict going by burning each others places of worship as was seen during the 1980s.
Causes and implications of religious conflicts in nigeria s political system uwadi, m. One of the structural causes of conflict in the country is. The igbo massacre of 1966 in the north that followed the countercoup of the same year had as a dual cause the igbo officers coup and preexisting sectarian tensions between the igbos and the local muslims. This is approved for students in accountancy business computer science economics engineering arts.
Although lack of adequate statistical data has made it extremely difficult to estimate the exact number of religious conflicts in nigeria and their resultant fatalities salawu 2010. Causes of conflict in nigeria and ways of resolving them. Aug 04, 2020 fear of domination and intolerance are key causes of religious conflicts in nigeria. Religious violence in nigeria cannot be said to be entirely religious, that is because most have ethnic, economic, or political underpinnings. Resolving conflict was the primary action pastors wished they had taken sooner. Violent conflict in nigeria relates to a variety of different causes. Northern nigeria is little understood by those in the. From as early as the 1950s, the avid desire to favour members of ones tribe surfaced. More so, more than 50 out of the above conflicts occurred in the northern states of kano, benue, katsina, borno, adamawa, plateau, nassarawa, kaduna, taraba and kogi states. Violent religious clashes broke out in the city of kaduna in northern nigeria on february 21 and have continued throughout the week. Causes and implications of religious conflicts in nigeria. Abstract the persistent religious conflicts and insecurity in nigeria has given meaningful nigerians a cause.
The reason for this high proportion is not farfetched as it is closely associated with the dynamics of violent deaths caused by the boko haram crisis in northern. Islam started from arab and eventually spread throughout the world. A crises could begin as either as an ethnic or political conflict and metamorphose into a religious crises, or vice versa. Plateau state of nigeria and has for some years experienced several sectarian, ethnic and political clashes among which were the september 2001 and april 2004 conflicts leading to the imposition of state of emergency by the obasanjo led administration. Managing muslimchristian conflicts in northern nigeria. It will also examine the role of religious intellectuals in the unfolding disturbances witnessed in nigeria within the last. In spite of the fact that the country is blessed with both human and natural resources, the gap between the haves and the havenots is ever on the increase and this has led to frustration and disillusion. By nonstructural factors we mean sources of conflict with the organization that are not a consequences of the organization that is causes of conflict not attributable to the way in which the set of work roles and administration arrangement. Given these findings, we conclude that a new, more comprehensive approach by the nigerian governmentone that seeks to address political, economic, and. Usually, a number of human andor social factors serve as the underlying causes. Why is this region so susceptible to religious violence. Causes and implications of religious conflicts in nigerias.
Jun 07, 2020 from ethnic conflicts to religious conflicts to terrorist attacks, violence seems to be a neverending trend without leaving out domestic violence in nigeria. Religious violence in nigeria african journals online. Religious violence and national security in nigeria, 1999 core. The impact of ethnoreligious conflict on nigerian federalism. The causes of ethnic conflict in multiethnic societies. Religion and conflict in nigeria united states institute of peace.
Causes of conflict in nigeria and ways of resolving them legit. The igbo massacre of 1966 in the north that followed the countercoup of the same year had as a dual cause the igbo officers coup and preexisting sectarian tensions between the igbos and the local. This refers to christianmuslim strife in modern nigeria, dating as far back as 1953. More fundamentally, preventing and resolving conflict in the far north will require far better management of public resources, an end to their distribution according to ethnic identity and jobcreating economic revival. Ethnicity, religion, ethno religious conflict, integration, good governance. A cursory look at the causes and effects socio religious conflicts are not natural disasters or naturally occurring events. In other words, what makes religious conflicts special are the unique effects of religious.
Religious conflicts have occurred at different times and. Abstract the persistent religious conflicts and insecurity in nigeria has given meaningful nigerians a cause for deep concern in recent times. Many will attest to it that the jos crisis vividly exemplifies or by locus classicus describes a rancorous experience against religious intolerance. This tripod is however fuelled by lack of education that is on a sound philosophic foundation. Another ethno religious conflict that left a remarkable mark in nigeria was the kadunaenugu riots. Nigeria and suggest strategies for peaceful coexistence among. The root of ethno religious not only conflicts, but also the rivalry in nigeria are traced to colonial amalgamation of 1914 from where the ethnic, religious groups and regions began to see one. Muslim northern nigerians have sometimes been targeted in revenge killings in southern nigeria. The second reason is the economic factor as a cause of religious violence in nigeria.
The nature and scope of nigeria s identity diversity. Religious conflict and its manifestations in nigeria before delving into the discussion of religious conflict in nigeria, it will be useful to devote some space to introduce the countrys religious communities that form the conflict parties. The root of the religious conflict in nigeria should be simply left to imagination. Religious conflict in nigeria goes as far back as 1953, and in the case of the town of tafawa balewa, to 1948. Religious conflict in nigeria goes as far back as 1953, and in the case of the town of tafawa. Mar 10, 2014 the roots of nigeria s religious and ethnic conflict. This paper explores the impact of ethnoreligious conflicts on nigerias federalism and sustainability, with. A major cause of what we now see as ethnoreligious conflicts in nigeria has to do. This was a major factor in the biafran secession and the resulting civil war. Ttest results showed differences in the responses of farmers and nomads concerning the causes of the conflicts. These are african religions afrel, christianity and islam.
Ajuluchukwu in his rejoinder to northern zone of the christian association of nigerias booklet leadership in nigeria observes. Section 4 draws our attention to the most salient identity cleavages in conflicts in the postcolonial era. Get free research paper on religious conflicts in nigeria. A cursory look at all these factors reveals religious intolerance, fundamentalism and extremism. There is no iota of doubt that the conflicts in sudan, nigeria, congo, rwanda, liberia, sierra leone just to mention but a few have had political, religious and economic undertone that triggered the conflicts. What started as an interethnic conflict soon widened into a national crisis. However in nigeria, religious conflict does not only carry religious motive but also politically inclined such that according to marshall, recently, the president of nigeria was forceful in saying the nigerian conflict has nothing to do intrinsically with religion, that is used as an excuse by politicians 10. The socioeconomic effects of the conflicts led to reduction in crop yield and income of farmersnomads displacement of farmers, loss of lives and properties and loss of products in the storage. And of course, corruption is considered to be one of the main causes of ethno religious conflicts nwankwo 2015. Pdf a historical survey of ethnic conflict in nigeria.
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