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The Genocide in Nigeria—A Mirror Image of Darfur

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State Responses to Crimes of Genocide

Part of the book series: Rethinking Political Violence ((RPV))

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Abstract

In 2020, World Watch Monitor reported that Boko Haram had killed more people than Daesh in Iraq and Syria combined. Whether the deadly assault on Nigeria’s Christians should be described as a genocide is something to which the co-authors have given significant attention and which we will now explore.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Julia Bicknell, ‘Boko Haram has Killed More than Islamic State in Iraq and Syria combined’ World Watch Monitor (29 July 2020). Available at: https://www.worldwatchmonitor.org/2020/07/boko-haram-has-killed-more-than-islamic-state-in-iraq-and-syria-combined/.

  2. 2.

    APPG on IFoRB, ‘Nigeria: An Unfolding Genocide’ (2020). Available at: https://appgfreedomofreligionorbelief.org/nigeria-unfolding-genocide-new-appg-report-launched/.

  3. 3.

    Bishop of Truro Review, ‘Independent Review for the UK Foreign Secretary of Foreign and Commonwealth Office Support for Persecuted Christians’ (2019). Available at: https://christianpersecutionreview.org.uk/.

  4. 4.

    Bishop of Truro Review, ‘Independent Review for the UK Foreign Secretary of Foreign and Commonwealth Office Support for Persecuted Christians’ (2019). Available at: https://christianpersecutionreview.org.uk/.

  5. 5.

    André Guichaoua, ‘Counting the Rwandan Victims of War and Genocide: Concluding Reflections’ (2020) 22 Journal of Genocide Research 125–141.

  6. 6.

    Lord Alton of Liverpool, ‘If This Isn’t Genocide, then What on Earth is?’ The Independent (17 September 2011). Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/if-isn-t-genocide-then-what-earth-5351315.html.

  7. 7.

    Colin Powell, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 9 September 2004.

  8. 8.

    UN, ‘Violations in Darfur, Sudan May Constitute War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity, UN Human Rights Office Report Says’ UN Press Release (7 May 2004). Available at: https://www.un.org/press/en/2004/afr921.doc.htm.

  9. 9.

    UN, ‘International Community Must Immediately Find Way to Halt Killing in Darfur, Sudan, Secretary General Tells Security Council’ UN Press Release (16 February 2005). Available at: https://www.un.org/press/en/2005/sgsm9722.doc.htm.

  10. 10.

    International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur, ‘Report to the United Nations Secretary-General’ (25 January 2005). It further stated that: ‘Arguably, two elements of genocide might be deduced from the gross violations of human rights perpetrated by Government forces and the militias under their control. These two elements are, first, the actus reus consisting of killing, or causing serious bodily or mental harm, or deliberately inflicting conditions of life likely to bring about physical destruction; and, second, on the basis of a subjective standard, the existence of a protected group being targeted by the authors of criminal conduct. However, the crucial element of genocidal intent appears to be missing, at least as far as the central Government authorities are concerned. Generally speaking the policy of attacking, killing and forcibly displacing members of some tribes does not evince a specific intent to annihilate, in whole or in part, a group distinguished on racial, ethnic, national, or religious grounds. Rather, it would seem that those who planned and organised attacks on villages pursued the intent to drive the victims from their homes, primarily for purposes of counter-insurgency warfare.’ Ibid., 4.

  11. 11.

    Eric Reeves, ‘Report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur: A Critical Analysis (Part II)’ (11 February 2005). Available at: https://sudanreeves.org/2005/02/11/report-of-the-international-commission-of-inquiry-on-darfur-a-critical-analysis-part-ii-february-6-2005/.

  12. 12.

    ICC, ‘ICC Prosecutor Presents Case Against Sudanese President, Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir, for Genocide, Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes in Darfur’ ICC Press Release (14 July 2008). Available at: https://www.icc-cpi.int/Pages/item.aspx?name=a.

  13. 13.

    Ibid.

  14. 14.

    Marlise Simons, ‘Sudan Poses First Big Trial for World Criminal Court’ The New York Times (29 April 2005). Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/29/world/africa/sudan-poses-first-big-trial-for-world-criminal-court.html?auth=login-google.

  15. 15.

    France 24, ‘Sudan agrees to transfer ‘those indicted by the ICC’ to the Hague’ France 24 (11 February 2020). Available at: https://www.france24.com/en/20200211-sudan-agrees-to-transfer-ex-president-bashir-to-icc-for-war-crimes.

  16. 16.

    Lord Alton, ‘Darfur’s Violent Tragedy—Two Years on’ (23 December 2010). Available at: https://www.davidalton.net/2010/12/23/darfurs-violent-tragedy-two-years-on/.

  17. 17.

    Lord Alton, ‘Darfur’s Violent Tragedy—Two Years On’ (23 December 2010). Available at: https://www.davidalton.net/2010/12/23/darfurs-violent-tragedy-two-years-on/.

  18. 18.

    Louis Charbonneau, ‘World Response to Darfur is “Anemic”: US envoy’ Reuters (3 April 2008). Available at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sudan-darfur-usa-idUSN0330618520080403.

  19. 19.

    ICC, The Prosecutor v. Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir, Warrant of Arrest for Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir, ICC-02/05–01/09, 4 March 2009. Available at: https://www.icc-cpi.int/Pages/record.aspx?docNo=ICC-02/05-01/09-1.

  20. 20.

    ICC, ‘ICC Issues a Warrant of Arrest for Omar Al-Bashir, President of Sudan’ ICC Press Release (4 March 2009). Available at: https://www.icc-cpi.int/pages/item.aspx?name=icc+issues+a+warrant+of+arrest+for+omar+al+bashir_+president+of+sudan.

  21. 21.

    House of Lords Deb, 5 March 2009, c897.

  22. 22.

    Dr. Mukesh Kapila, No Stranger to Kindness (Sharpe Books, 2019).

  23. 23.

    House of Lords Deb, 20 May 2004, c876.

  24. 24.

    House of Lords Deb, 7 November 2013, c162.

  25. 25.

    Mark Tran, ‘Rape the Women. Kill the Children. Leave Nothing’ The Guardian (5 March 2009). Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/05/sudanese-army-deserter-darfur-account.

  26. 26.

    House of Lords Deb, 5 March 2009, c897; Angelique Chrisafis, ‘An Accord is Not Possible. Bashir Must be Judged First’ The Guardian (5 March 2009). Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/05/president-omar-al-bashir-sudan.

  27. 27.

    Mike Pflanz, ‘Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir says ICC can ‘Eat’ his Arrest Warrant’ The Telegraph (4 March 2009). Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/sudan/4933329/Sudans-Omar-al-Bashir-says-ICC-can-eat-his-arrest-warrant.html.

  28. 28.

    James Smith, ‘Despots Cannot Hide, Despite their Threats’ Independent (5 March 2009). Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/james-smith-despots-cannot-hide-despite-their-threats-1637732.html.

  29. 29.

    Xan Rice, ‘Sudanese President Expels Aid Agencies’ The Guardian (5 March 2009). Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/05/sudan-aid-agencies-expelled.

  30. 30.

    Thomas Paine, The American Crisis (1776).

  31. 31.

    UN News, ‘UN Confirms Closure of Darfur Peacekeeping Mission’ UN News (30 December 2020). Available at: https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/12/1081122.

  32. 32.

    Rabbi Abraham Cooper and Johnnie Moore, The Coming Jihad (Thomas Nelson, 2020).

  33. 33.

    Christian Today, ‘Nigeria Pastor, Wife, Children Burned Alive Along with 50 Church Members’ Christian Today. Available at: https://christiantoday.com.au/news/nigeria-pastor-wife-children-burned-alive-along-with-50-church-members.html.

  34. 34.

    See for example: BBC, ‘Islamic State in Nigeria ‘Beheads Christian Hostages’’ BBC News (27 December 2019). Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-50924266.

  35. 35.

    The Telegraph, ‘Several Dead in Nigeria Church Attacks’ The Telegraph (10 June 2012). Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/nigeria/9322742/Several-dead-in-Nigeria-church-attacks.html.

  36. 36.

    House of Lords Deb, 27 March 2014, c146W.

  37. 37.

    Ibid.

  38. 38.

    House of Lords Deb, 11 June 2014, c418.

  39. 39.

    WPQ UIN HL1867, tabled on 26 September 2014.

  40. 40.

    Ibid.

  41. 41.

    BBC, ‘Nigeria’s Boko Haram Pledges Allegiance to Islamic State’ BBC News (7 March 2015). Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-31784538.

  42. 42.

    House of Lords Deb, 26 March 2018, c615.

  43. 43.

    House of Lords Deb, 26 March 2018, c615.

  44. 44.

    Ibid.

  45. 45.

    House of Lords Deb, 28 June 2018, c283.

  46. 46.

    ACN, ‘$101,500 in Emergency Aid for Nigeria.’ Available at: https://acn-canada.org/emergencynigeria/.

  47. 47.

    Center for International Security and Cooperation, ‘Boko Haram.’ Available at: https://cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/mappingmilitants/profiles/boko-haram. Africa Center for Strategic Studies, ‘Threat from African Militant Islamist Groups Expanding, Diversifying’ (18 January 2020). Available at: https://africacenter.org/spotlight/threat-from-african-militant-islamist-groups-expanding-diversifying/.

  48. 48.

    WPQ UIN HL13965, tabled on 25 February 2019.

  49. 49.

    WPQ UIN HL14238, tabled on 5 March 2019.

  50. 50.

    WPQ UIN HL14239, tabled on 5 March 2019.

  51. 51.

    WPQ UIN HL15290, tabled on 24 April 2019.

  52. 52.

    Ibid.

  53. 53.

    WPQ UIN HL15824, tabled on 20 May 2019.

  54. 54.

    Ibid.

  55. 55.

    House of Lords Deb, 24 July 2019, c748.

  56. 56.

    House of Lords Deb, 7 January 2020, c104.

  57. 57.

    House of Lords Deb, 18 May 2020, c945.

  58. 58.

    WPQ UIN HL11516, tabled on 16 December 2020.

  59. 59.

    Ibid.

  60. 60.

    WPQ UIN HL11516, tabled on 16 December 2020.

  61. 61.

    CSW, ‘Church Leaders Abducted Amid Renewed Violence in Kaduna State’ (24 December 2020). Available at: https://www.csw.org.uk/2020/12/24/press/4934/article.htm.

  62. 62.

    House of Lords Deb, 27 January 2014, c200W.

  63. 63.

    Ibid.

  64. 64.

    Open Doors, ‘Crushed But Not Defeated. The Impact of Persistent Violence on the Church in Northern Nigeria.’ Available at: https://www.opendoorsuk.org/about/how-we-help/advocacy/nigeria-report-12.

  65. 65.

    World Watch Research, ‘Migration and Violent Conflict in Divided Societies’ (2015). Available at: https://www.worldwatchmonitor.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Migration-and-Violent-Conflict-in-Divided-Societies-March-2015-1.pdf.

  66. 66.

    WPQ, HL215, 27 June 2017.

  67. 67.

    Ibid.

  68. 68.

    CSW, ‘Nigeria sees 106 Attacks by Herder Militia in Central States’ CSW (25 June 2018). Available at: https://www.csw.org.uk/2018/06/25/press/4011/article.htm.

  69. 69.

    Ibid.

  70. 70.

    House of Lords Deb, 28 June 2018, c284.

  71. 71.

    House of Lords Deb, 28 June 2018, c283.

  72. 72.

    Ibid.

  73. 73.

    Ibid.

  74. 74.

    Ibid.

  75. 75.

    Ibid.

  76. 76.

    Eno Adeogun, ‘Step Aside to Save the Nation: Bishop’s Message to Nigerian President Buhari’ Premier News (28 April 2018). Available at: https://premierchristian.news/en/news/article/step-aside-to-save-the-nation-bishop-s-message-to-nigerian-president-buhari.

  77. 77.

    House of Lords Deb, 28 June 2018, c283.

  78. 78.

    Ibid.

  79. 79.

    Ibid.

  80. 80.

    Ibid.

  81. 81.

    All-Party Parliamentary Group on Freedom of Religion or Belief, ‘Nigeria: An Unfolding Genocide?’ (2020). Available at: https://appgfreedomofreligionorbelief.org/media/200615-Nigeria-Unfolding-Genocide-Report-of-the-APPG-for-FoRB.pdf.

  82. 82.

    Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust, ‘Your Land or Your Blood: The Escalating Persecution of Christian in Northern and Central Nigeria’ (November 2019).

  83. 83.

    International Crisis Group, ‘Stopping Nigeria’s Spiraling Farmer-Herder Violence. Africa Report No. 262’ (ICG, 2018). Available at: https://d2071andvip0wj.cloudfront.net/262-stopping-nigerias-spiralling-farmer-herder-violence.pdf.

  84. 84.

    All-Party Parliamentary Group on Freedom of Religion or Belief, ‘Nigeria: An Unfolding Genocide?’ (2020) 4.

  85. 85.

    Ibid., 5.

  86. 86.

    Ibid., 6.

  87. 87.

    Ibid., 1–2.

  88. 88.

    Rowan Williams, ‘The Violence in Nigeria Could End in Genocide—Both Christian and Muslim Populations Need Help Now’ The Independent (15 June 2020). Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/nigeria-boko-haram-isis-violence-christian-muslim-coronavirus-a9566451.html.

  89. 89.

    Baroness Cox, ‘We Cannot Ignore the Chilling Signs of a New Genocide in Africa’ The Daily Telegraph (15 June 2020). Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/06/15/cannot-ignore-chilling-signs-new-genocide-africa/.

  90. 90.

    WPQ UIN HL5823, tabled on 17 June 2020.

  91. 91.

    Ibid.

  92. 92.

    Ibid.

  93. 93.

    Fionn Shiner, ‘Bishop Kukah—‘Genocide is Happening in Nigeria’ (6 August 2020). Available at: https://acnuk.org/news/nigeria-bishop-kukah-genocide-is-happening-in-nigeria/.

  94. 94.

    Jubilee Campaign, ‘Jubilee Campaign Submits Report to the ICC Describing How Genocide is Loading in Nigeria’ (18 November 2020). Available at: http://jubileecampaign.org/jubilee-campaign-submits-report-to-the-icc-describing-how-genocide-is-loading-in-nigeria/.

  95. 95.

    Ibid.

  96. 96.

    Ibid.

  97. 97.

    Paul Marshall, ‘Secular Myopia Warps the West’s View of Nigeria’ (23 November 2020). Available at: https://providencemag.com/2020/11/secular-myopia-warps-wests-view-nigeria-conflict/?fbclid=IwAR317gSezkWfvrpfYjHHTg_JyCqYbixfZr2PsEtIiYulUdUVJfMlq2aQzH0.

  98. 98.

    Ibid.

  99. 99.

    Ibid.

  100. 100.

    Ibid.

  101. 101.

    Congressional Hearing, Tom Lantos Commission on Human Rights (2020).

  102. 102.

    Ibid.

  103. 103.

    Ibid.

  104. 104.

    House of Lords International Relations and Defence Select Committee, ‘The UK and Sub-Saharan Africa: Prosperity, Peace and Development Cooperation’ (2020). Available at: https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/1830/documents/17881/default/.

  105. 105.

    BBC, ‘Mozambique Insurgency: Children Beheaded, Aid Agency Reports’ BBC (16 March 2021). Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-56411157.

  106. 106.

    House of Lords International Relations and Defence Select Committee, ‘The UK and Sub-Saharan Africa: Prosperity, Peace and Development Cooperation’ (2020) 483.

  107. 107.

    Ibid., 484.

  108. 108.

    Ibid., 538.

  109. 109.

    Ibid., 541.

  110. 110.

    Ibid., 541.

  111. 111.

    Ibid.

  112. 112.

    Ibid., 569.

  113. 113.

    Ibid., 619.

  114. 114.

    Ibid.

  115. 115.

    See: Genocide Watch. Available at: https://www.genocidewatch.com/single-post/2020/04/13/nigeria-is-a-killing-field-of-defenseless-christians.

  116. 116.

    Ibid.

  117. 117.

    See: Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Simon Skjodt Centre for the Prevention of Genocide. Available at: https://earlywarningproject.ushmm.org/countries/nigeria.

  118. 118.

    Ola’ Audu, ‘Boko Haram: Shekau Claims Responsibility for Attack on Giwa Barracks, Threatens to Attack Universities, Civilian-JTF’ Premium Times (24 March 2014). Available at: http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/157374-bokoharam-shekau-claims-responsibility-attack-giwa-barracks-threatensattack-universities-civilian-jtf.html.

  119. 119.

    Omar S. Mahmood, ‘More than Propaganda. A Review of Boko Haram’s Public Messages’ (2017) Institute for Security Studies. Available at: https://www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/1426834/1226_1521122538_war20.pdf.

  120. 120.

    Oliver Harvey, ‘Inside Boko Haram Leader Abubakar Shekau’s Rule of Terror Forcing Children into Sexual Slavery and Suicide Bombings’ The Sun (21 December 2020).

  121. 121.

    See: Appendix C.

  122. 122.

    ICC, ‘Statement of the Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, on the Conclusion of the Preliminary Examination of the Situation in Nigeria’ (11 December 2020). Available at: https://www.icc-cpi.int/Pages/item.aspx?name=201211-prosecutor-statement.

  123. 123.

    Ibid.

  124. 124.

    ICC, ‘Statement of the Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, on the Conclusion of the Preliminary Examination of the Situation in Nigeria’ (11 December 2020). Available at: https://www.icc-cpi.int/Pages/item.aspx?name=201211-prosecutor-statement.

  125. 125.

    2009—121,277 (in thousands £); 2010—171,335; 2011—186,428; 2012—197,313; 2013—248,734; 2014—236,639; 2015—262,685; 2016—319,583; 2017—327,199; 2018—296,819.

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  1. IBAHRI, London, UK

    Ewelina U. Ochab

  2. Parliament of United Kingdom, London, UK

    David Alton

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  1. Ewelina U. Ochab
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Ochab, E.U., Alton, D. (2022). The Genocide in Nigeria—A Mirror Image of Darfur. In: State Responses to Crimes of Genocide. Rethinking Political Violence. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-99162-3_6

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