01-10-2018, 11:45 PM
*** 11-Jan-18 World View -- Tit-for-tat violence between Nigeria's Muslim herders and Christian farmers becomes more serious
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
****
**** Tit-for-tat violence between Nigeria's Muslim herders and Christian farmers becomes more serious
****
![[Image: g180110b.jpg]](http://Media.GenerationalDynamics.com/ww2010/g180110b.jpg)
Cartoon: Farmer vs Herdsman in Nigeria (AllAfrica)
In what is being called a "harvest of deaths in the new year," more
than 80 people in Benue State province of Nigeria have been killed in
just the first ten days of this year in tit-for-tat clashes between
farmers and herders. There have been similar clashes in other
provinces. In several years of these clashes, there are now more than
80,000 displaced people, forced into refugee camps.
Herders are mostly Muslims from the Fulani tribe. Farmers are mostly
Christians from a number of tribes, including the Tiv, Mambila and
Bachama tribes.
In a recent incident over the weekend, more than a dozen people were
killed. Unidentified gunmen from the Bachama tribe attacked Fulani
settlements on Friday, in revenge for previous attacks by Fulanis. On
Saturday, Fulanis conducted a reprisal attack. Four Fulanis and eight
Bachamas were killed. Residents of the affected village put the death
toll at 40, though this could not be verified.
There has been an ongoing stream of these tit-for-tat attacks, which
have been getting increasingly violent, leading to fears of a larger
war.
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari is being blamed for the violence,
but he says that the problem is caused by population growth. A
statement from the president's office notes that the population of
Nigeria was 63 million in 1960 when it achieved independence, and
adds:
<QUOTE>"Today, the population is estimated at close to 200
million, while the land size has not changed and will not
change. Urban sprawl and development have simply reduced land area
both for peasant farming and cattle grazing.
It is therefore both unfair and unkind for anyone to keep
insinuating that the president is condoning the spate of killings
in Benue and other neighboring states.
President Buhari has publicly condemned the violence at every
turn. He is prepared to permit every possible step that can lead
to the stoppage of the killings."<END QUOTE>
However, Buhari himself is a Hausa-speaking Fulani from northern
Nigeria. Although he's repeatedly condemned the deadly clashes as
"wicked and callous," many people in other tribes and political
parties suspect him of supporting the attacks for political gain.
Nonetheless, from the point of view of Generational Dynamics, Buhari
is correct. Conflicts between herders and farmers are common in many
countries, and I've described them in Central African Republic,
Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, and even America in the
1800s. As population grows, the farmers accuse the herders of letting
the cattle eat their crops, while the herders accuse the farmers of
planting on land that's meant for grazing. If the farmers put up
fences, then the herders knock them down. This Day Live (Nigeria) and AFP
****
**** Nigeria searches for solutions to problem of herders vs farmers
****
In order to stop the violence, the governor of Benue State has passed
an "Anti-Grazing Law" that came into effect in November, as I reported
at the time in the growing violence between herders and farmers in Nigeria.
The law prohibits open
grazing of cattle, and requires herders to maintain their herds of
cattle on ranches. As I wrote at the time, the new law is somewhat
laughable, as there's no way that it will stop Fulani herder attacks
on farmers. And it certainly hasn't stopped the violence.
The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN),
which is the lobbying group representing Fulani herders, are blaming
the Anti-Grazing Law for increasing violence, since the law has
encouraged the growth of vigilante farmer groups attacking herders and
they cattle.
Another proposed solution is being opposed by MACBAN: The
implementation of "cattle colonies" across the country. The herders
will be given large blocks of land, having adequate water and pasture
for grazing of cattle. A standard cattle colony will also have
shopping and supply centers for dairy products, with abattoirs and
meat warehouses for processing finished products.
Herders would be restricted to the "cattle colonies," so it's not
surprising that MACBAN opposed them. Furthermore, no matter wonderful
promises the politicians make about the colonies, everyone can be sure
that herders will be given whatever block of land nobody wants, and
herders would become completely marginalized.
The herder association are expressing an entirely different solution
-- adopt the European system of providing subsidies of a few euros a
day for each dairy cow that a farmer or rancher owns and maintains.
These subsidies are part of the European Union's controversial
€58 billion per year Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Since the
UK pays a significant amount of that money, CAP may not survive Brexit
intact. Leadership (Nigeria) and The Nation (Nigeria) and Politico (EU)
Related Articles
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Nigeria, Benue State, Muhammadu Buhari,
Hausa, Faluni tribe, Tiv tribe, Mambila tribe, Bachama tribe,
Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN,
Anti-Grazing law, cattle colonies
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- Tit-for-tat violence between Nigeria's Muslim herders and Christian farmers becomes more serious
- Nigeria searches for solutions to problem of herders vs farmers
****
**** Tit-for-tat violence between Nigeria's Muslim herders and Christian farmers becomes more serious
****
Cartoon: Farmer vs Herdsman in Nigeria (AllAfrica)
In what is being called a "harvest of deaths in the new year," more
than 80 people in Benue State province of Nigeria have been killed in
just the first ten days of this year in tit-for-tat clashes between
farmers and herders. There have been similar clashes in other
provinces. In several years of these clashes, there are now more than
80,000 displaced people, forced into refugee camps.
Herders are mostly Muslims from the Fulani tribe. Farmers are mostly
Christians from a number of tribes, including the Tiv, Mambila and
Bachama tribes.
In a recent incident over the weekend, more than a dozen people were
killed. Unidentified gunmen from the Bachama tribe attacked Fulani
settlements on Friday, in revenge for previous attacks by Fulanis. On
Saturday, Fulanis conducted a reprisal attack. Four Fulanis and eight
Bachamas were killed. Residents of the affected village put the death
toll at 40, though this could not be verified.
There has been an ongoing stream of these tit-for-tat attacks, which
have been getting increasingly violent, leading to fears of a larger
war.
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari is being blamed for the violence,
but he says that the problem is caused by population growth. A
statement from the president's office notes that the population of
Nigeria was 63 million in 1960 when it achieved independence, and
adds:
<QUOTE>"Today, the population is estimated at close to 200
million, while the land size has not changed and will not
change. Urban sprawl and development have simply reduced land area
both for peasant farming and cattle grazing.
It is therefore both unfair and unkind for anyone to keep
insinuating that the president is condoning the spate of killings
in Benue and other neighboring states.
President Buhari has publicly condemned the violence at every
turn. He is prepared to permit every possible step that can lead
to the stoppage of the killings."<END QUOTE>
However, Buhari himself is a Hausa-speaking Fulani from northern
Nigeria. Although he's repeatedly condemned the deadly clashes as
"wicked and callous," many people in other tribes and political
parties suspect him of supporting the attacks for political gain.
Nonetheless, from the point of view of Generational Dynamics, Buhari
is correct. Conflicts between herders and farmers are common in many
countries, and I've described them in Central African Republic,
Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, and even America in the
1800s. As population grows, the farmers accuse the herders of letting
the cattle eat their crops, while the herders accuse the farmers of
planting on land that's meant for grazing. If the farmers put up
fences, then the herders knock them down. This Day Live (Nigeria) and AFP
****
**** Nigeria searches for solutions to problem of herders vs farmers
****
In order to stop the violence, the governor of Benue State has passed
an "Anti-Grazing Law" that came into effect in November, as I reported
at the time in the growing violence between herders and farmers in Nigeria.
The law prohibits open
grazing of cattle, and requires herders to maintain their herds of
cattle on ranches. As I wrote at the time, the new law is somewhat
laughable, as there's no way that it will stop Fulani herder attacks
on farmers. And it certainly hasn't stopped the violence.
The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN),
which is the lobbying group representing Fulani herders, are blaming
the Anti-Grazing Law for increasing violence, since the law has
encouraged the growth of vigilante farmer groups attacking herders and
they cattle.
Another proposed solution is being opposed by MACBAN: The
implementation of "cattle colonies" across the country. The herders
will be given large blocks of land, having adequate water and pasture
for grazing of cattle. A standard cattle colony will also have
shopping and supply centers for dairy products, with abattoirs and
meat warehouses for processing finished products.
Herders would be restricted to the "cattle colonies," so it's not
surprising that MACBAN opposed them. Furthermore, no matter wonderful
promises the politicians make about the colonies, everyone can be sure
that herders will be given whatever block of land nobody wants, and
herders would become completely marginalized.
The herder association are expressing an entirely different solution
-- adopt the European system of providing subsidies of a few euros a
day for each dairy cow that a farmer or rancher owns and maintains.
These subsidies are part of the European Union's controversial
€58 billion per year Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Since the
UK pays a significant amount of that money, CAP may not survive Brexit
intact. Leadership (Nigeria) and The Nation (Nigeria) and Politico (EU)
Related Articles
- Violence in Nigeria grows over clashes between herders and farmers (03-Nov-2017)
- Kenya's herders attack well-known conservationist, stoking tribal tensions (24-Apr-2017)
- Ban Ki Moon blames Darfur genocide on global warming (19-Jun-2007)
- Press reports say that Tony Blair caving on EU budget (30-Nov-2005)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Nigeria, Benue State, Muhammadu Buhari,
Hausa, Faluni tribe, Tiv tribe, Mambila tribe, Bachama tribe,
Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN,
Anti-Grazing law, cattle colonies
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
