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Nigeria: Church Meeting, 1
Nigeria: Church Meeting, 1
Date distributed (ymd): 970102
Document reposted by WOA
WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
REPORT OF THE INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY MEETING ON
NIGERIA
20-24 November 1996
For more information, contact Dr. Deborah Robinson, World
Council of Churches, Unit III, P.O. Box 2100, 1211 Geneva 2,
Switzerland; tel: +41-22-791-6111; fax: +41-22-791-0361;
e-mail: [email protected].
"...What does the Lord require of you but to act justly, and
to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"
Micah 6:8 (NIV)
"...In this country which God has endowed with an abundance
of human and material resources, Nigerians are faced with
starvation and destitution of incredible magnitude. Workers
do not earn enough to live above starvation level; one can
only imagine the deplorable conditions of the teeming
population of the unemployed. The nightmarish condition of
the roads in this country, the insecurity of life and
property experienced in the upsurge of armed robbery and
hired assassinations make life extremely difficult and
precarious for the people of this country. Greed,
corruption, sectionalism, gross abuse of human rights and
militarisation of the Nigerian psyche continue unabated.
..."
Communique of the Second Plenary Meeting of the Catholic
Bishops Conference of Nigeria, Benin City, September 1996.
The World Council of Churches has a history and tradition of
commitment to work for the realization of human rights for
all people and justice in particular for Indigenous Peoples
and minorities. This commitment has found expression in the
life and work of the churches throughout the world. Due to
extensive militarisation of societies in Asia and Africa
during the last two decades, thousands of people including
Christians have been imprisoned, tortured or killed in the
service of God and humanity. Indigenous Peoples globally
face the destruction of their environments and some groups
are discriminated against given their minority status.
While the local communities and churches have carried out
the struggle at the grassroots level, the international
ecumenical community has offered its support through
concrete expressions of solidarity in the struggle for human
dignity.
While the churches worldwide have continued to work for
justice, their efforts have been rendered more difficult as
the violations of human rights in many parts of the world
have become more widespread and severe. In the post cold
war period, there has been a marked increase in human rights
violations, particularly on the African continent.
Underlying these human rights violations are concerns about
the deepening poverty of the mass of African people and the
marginalization of the continent as a whole in light of
globalization and economic restructuring.
One situation which has been the cause of particular concern
for the international community, is Nigeria, Africa's most
populous nation. That country's democratic process has been
repeatedly thwarted by military intervention. Since the
annulment of the June 12, 1993 election results and the
seizing of power in November 1993 by General Sani Abacha,
this military dictator has nullified the jurisdiction of
regular courts to challenge the actions of the government,
dissolved all political parties, arrested political
dissidents and leaders of civil society including trade
unionists, human rights campaigners and journalists and
unleashed an unprecedented assault on the Ogoni and other
minority groups in the oil-rich Niger Delta area.
This repression has taken the form of both covert and overt
military operations that have resulted in the deaths of over
3,000 Ogoni, the internal displacement of 30,000, the flight
to neighbouring countries of over 1,000 refugees, and the
exodus of many to seek asylum abroad. The human rights
situation in Nigeria is deteriorating. The "judicial
murder" of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other leaders of the
Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) on 10
November 1995 has been followed by intensified repression in
Ogoniland. Currently, 19 Ogoni youth face the possibility
of being tried by a military tribunal on the same charges
for which Saro-Wiwa and his colleagues were hanged.
Military oppression is not limited to the minority peoples
of the Niger Delta, but affects the entire nation. Among
the thousands of Nigerians unjustly imprisoned are the
President-elect, Moshood Abiola, trade unionists Frank
Kokori and Milton Dabibi, former Head of State Olusegun
Obasanjo and his deputy, Shehu Yar'adua, journalists like
Mrs. Chris Anyanwu and Kunle Ajibade, and the Campaign for
Democracy leader Beko Ransome-Kuti. In June of this year
the wife of the imprisoned president, Kudirat Abiola, was
brutally assassinated for her pro-democracy activities.
Unit III of the World Council of Churches, over a period of
time, has monitored the events and developments in Nigeria
in general and in Ogoniland in particular. It has kept
itself informed of the situation through its member churches
and partners in the country. In February 1996, a delegation
from the WCC and the All Africa Conference of Churches
(AACC) visited the country to obtain first-hand information
on the rapidly deteriorating human rights situation.
At the requests of its partners and member churches, Unit
III of the World Council of Churches convened an
International Strategy Meeting 20-24 November at La
Longeraie Hotel in Morges, Switzerland. The participants
included representatives of member churches and partner
groups in Nigeria, the AACC, the Lutheran World Federation
(LWF), member churches, partner groups, and agencies in
Europe and North America, as well as the staff of Unit III.
The purpose and objectives of the meeting besides sharing
and exchange of information was amongst others:
- To listen and learn from our Nigerian colleagues/partners
concerning the present socio-economic and political
realities in Nigeria and their impact on the human rights
situation.
- To consider and explore ways and means of building and
strengthening the capacity of the local churches and related
groups to undertake educational training programmes for the
promotion and protection of human rights. In addition, to
explore ways of strengthening the capacity for groups
engaged in protest campaigns against injustice within the
country.
- To provide an opportunity for churches who have been most
active on the question of Nigeria to come together and
discuss strategies and approaches.
- To develop an effective mechanism to ensure free flow of
information from Nigeria to support groups based outside and
to develop a mechanism to facilitate communication and
exchange between groups based outside of Nigeria.
Each morning the session began with meditation and
prayers a constant reminder of the presence of God in our
midst as we began our deliberations.
At the beginning of the meeting, we stood and observed two
minutes of silence in honour of the life and work of Dr.
Claude Ake. An eminent political scientist, social activist
and director of the Centre for Advanced Social Science in
Port Harcourt, Dr. Ake was hoping to attend the strategy
meeting, but was killed in a plane crash in Nigeria on 8
November.
The group was privileged to hear the experiences of the
participants who had come from Nigeria. Some told stories of
violence: individuals who peacefully opposed the presence
of the military in Ogoniland still carry police bullets in
their bodies; others bear diseases coming from environmental
pollution and degradation. Some reported the erosion of due
process: people are still detained under military mandate
despite judicial order to be released. Still others spoke of
corruption permeating all levels of society and the
pervasiveness of fear which touches so many peoples' lives.
Yet the very presence of the Nigerian participants speak
even more eloquently to continuing struggle and resistance
against the regime.
They spoke of the extensive militarisation that has resulted
in severe repression of the people. They indicated that
there was no rule of law, the judicial system had been
destroyed, and the courts rendered impotent. Resort to
military decrees, particularly the State Security Detention
of Persons Decree No. 2 of 1984, had become a common
practice to silence political opponents, trade unionists,
leaders of civil society, and journalists. There were no
checks on abusive power and authority of government
officials.
The repression in Ogoniland is the worst. The area remains
under siege by the Internal Security Task Force, which is
unique to Rivers State. Movement of the people and the flow
of information in and out of the area is severely
restricted. Thus, Nigerians, in general remain unaware of
the sufferings of the Ogoni people. Thousands of Ogoni have
been killed at the hands of the military and the environment
in Ogoniland and other oil-producing areas of the Niger
Delta has been devastated.
The churches in Ogoni have been particular targets for
military repression. Church services and activities are
only permitted with prior approval of the occupation
authorities, and after payment of fees. Ministers and
parishioners have been arrested and detained and freedom of
worship has been denied. Women attending Bible study and
prayer groups have been assaulted and harassed. Church
collections have been stopped by occupation troops and
services banned. Houses of worship have been attacked and
closed. Military authorities have even sought to dictate to
the church how to pray and preach the Gospel of Jesus
Christ.
The group also heard of the continuing tension between
Muslims and Christians often resulting in violence and
conflict particularly in the North. The government, despite
its declared secular pronouncements and constitutional
commitment, continues to use state resources and instruments
of coercion to set Christians and Muslims against each
other. The challenge is to recognize that all suffer under
this regime. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), an
umbrella organization of churches, has particular
responsibility to guide Christians in this matter.
Despite injustices and systematic human rights violations by
the military government, there were increasing signs of
hope. MOSOP's struggle had resulted in focusing the
attention of the international community on the plight of
the Ogoni People. The work of the Civil Liberties
Organization and other human rights and pro-democracy groups
have contributed greatly to drawing the attention of the
world to the human rights situation in Nigeria.
As well, across Nigeria, individuals, community
organizations, non-governmental organizations, and women's
organizations, to name some, have also responded to the
gravity of the situation. For example, some women's
organizations have identified the particular experiences of
women in the context of deteriorating material conditions
and erosion of human rights. Again, some churches,
especially the Catholic church, have spoken out about the
human rights abuse and erosion of rights. Indeed, some
individuals have struggled hard to place human rights and
social justice issues more prominently on their churches'
agendas. It is hoped that the Christian Council of Nigeria
(CCN) will take up this challenge and lead the Nigerian
churches in the struggle for a just society.
The nations of Europe and North America bear particular
responsibility for the suffering of God's people in Nigeria,
for it is the purchase of Nigerian oil by Western countries
that finances the Abacha regime. Just three Western oil
companies - Shell, Mobil and Chevron - produce over 95% of
Nigerian oil and exercise considerable influence over
Western policy towards Nigeria. These companies have become
deeply involved with the repressive apparatus, Shell even
purchasing weapons for and paying operational allowances to
the Nigerian security forces. Yet these same companies have
maintained a killing silence about human rights abuses and
refuse to use their considerable influence with the regime
to ameliorate the sufferings of the people.
The group heard about the international solidarity work that
was being done in some of the countries of Europe and North
America. Using the print and electronic media, the groups
in these countries have succeeded to some degree in
mobilizing pubic opinion to demand an end to human rights
violations by the military regime in Nigeria and a return to
democracy. The advocacy efforts of these groups are putting
pressure on Shell International to change its policies and
practices in relation to its operations in Nigeria and other
countries in the South.
The participants were of a consensus that the only way to
begin resolving the crisis in Ogoniland was to disband the
Internal Security Task Force, remove all military presence
from the Niger Delta, and release all political prisoners
including the Ogoni 19. Given the circumstances, it is also
imperative that Shell International seek ways and means to
enter in direct negotiations with the victims and affected
communities, through their accredited representatives, to
arrive at a just and satisfactory settlement.
It was agreed that the problems affecting Nigerian society
are closely related to the present corrupt system of
military government. A speedy return to democratic civilian
rule, unhindered by the military, is an essential component
of meaningful change. However, the restoration of
accountable government, human rights, and social justice
will require long and painstaking efforts on part of all the
people of Nigeria, with the assistance of their partners
outside the country. Nigerian churches and ecumenical
bodies, such as the Christian Council of Nigeria and the
Christian Association of Nigeria, have a central role to
play in this struggle and must be supported by their
counterparts around the world.
(continued with recommendations in part 2)
This material is being reposted for wider distribution by
the Washington Office on Africa (WOA), a not-for-profit
church, trade union and civil rights group supported
organization that works with Congress on Africa-related
legislation. WOA's educational affiliate is the Africa Policy
Information Center (APIC).
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