Assault in northern Nigeria has flared up every now and then throughout the last Three decades. Mostly by means of urban riots, it's pitted Muslims towards Christians and has seen fights relating to different Islamic sects.
However, there have been some positive results incompatible management over the last decade, the 2009 and 2010 troubles in Bauchi, Borno and Yobe states involving the radical Boko Haram sect show that violence most likely will flare up at any time. If the situation were to degrade significantly, especially on Christian-Muslim lines, it could have severe outcomes for national communication in the build up to national elections in April 2011. To deal with the risks, community-level initiatives must be strengthened, a more subtle safety response should be developed and the control over general population sources need to be improved. While some in the West panic at what they see as growing Islamic radicalism in the region, the roots of the problem are more complicated and lie in Nigeria's history and modern day politics.
The far north, if taken to contain the twelve states that reintroduced Sharia (Islamic law) for criminal cases at the start of the century, is home to 53 million people. The large greater part are Muslim, there is however a substantial Christian group, both native to the area and the product of migration from the south of the country. The Sokoto Caliphate, formed in 1804-1808, is a guide point for most in the region.
As West Africa's most powerful pre-colonial state, it is a source of great pride. But for some, its defeat by the British in 1903 and subsequent dealings with colonial and post-colonial states mean the caliphate is damaged with the corrupting impact of secular political power. The influence of colonial rule was paradoxical. While policies of indirect rule allowed conventional authorities, principally the Sultan of Sokoto, to continue to expand their power, that power was also circumscribed by the British.
In the first decades of freedom, which are marked by frequent violent conflict between the regions for charge of state resources, the north saw the armed forces as a way to power and influence. But after the calamitous rule of northern General Sani Abacha (1993-1998), the come back to democracy in 1999 was viewed as a chance for the north to seek out political and moral restoration. This result in the reintroduction of Sharia in twelve states between 1999 and 2002, although only two have applied it seriously. Sharia caused controversy more than its compatibility with international human rights standards and the constitution and regarding the position of Christians in those states. It also exacerbated recurrent conflicts between Muslims and Christians. But it was supported by many Muslims, and some Christians, who had lost faith in secular law enforcement authorities, and it also triggered much open and democratic discussion over the rule of law. Tensions over the issue have declined in recent years.
However, there have been some positive results incompatible management over the last decade, the 2009 and 2010 troubles in Bauchi, Borno and Yobe states involving the radical Boko Haram sect show that violence most likely will flare up at any time. If the situation were to degrade significantly, especially on Christian-Muslim lines, it could have severe outcomes for national communication in the build up to national elections in April 2011. To deal with the risks, community-level initiatives must be strengthened, a more subtle safety response should be developed and the control over general population sources need to be improved. While some in the West panic at what they see as growing Islamic radicalism in the region, the roots of the problem are more complicated and lie in Nigeria's history and modern day politics.
The far north, if taken to contain the twelve states that reintroduced Sharia (Islamic law) for criminal cases at the start of the century, is home to 53 million people. The large greater part are Muslim, there is however a substantial Christian group, both native to the area and the product of migration from the south of the country. The Sokoto Caliphate, formed in 1804-1808, is a guide point for most in the region.
As West Africa's most powerful pre-colonial state, it is a source of great pride. But for some, its defeat by the British in 1903 and subsequent dealings with colonial and post-colonial states mean the caliphate is damaged with the corrupting impact of secular political power. The influence of colonial rule was paradoxical. While policies of indirect rule allowed conventional authorities, principally the Sultan of Sokoto, to continue to expand their power, that power was also circumscribed by the British.
In the first decades of freedom, which are marked by frequent violent conflict between the regions for charge of state resources, the north saw the armed forces as a way to power and influence. But after the calamitous rule of northern General Sani Abacha (1993-1998), the come back to democracy in 1999 was viewed as a chance for the north to seek out political and moral restoration. This result in the reintroduction of Sharia in twelve states between 1999 and 2002, although only two have applied it seriously. Sharia caused controversy more than its compatibility with international human rights standards and the constitution and regarding the position of Christians in those states. It also exacerbated recurrent conflicts between Muslims and Christians. But it was supported by many Muslims, and some Christians, who had lost faith in secular law enforcement authorities, and it also triggered much open and democratic discussion over the rule of law. Tensions over the issue have declined in recent years.
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