Wednesday 15 July 2015

Ghosts of Biafra



Biafra. Just the name conjures up visions of the dreadful Nigerian civil war in the late 1960s in which two million civilians died, many from starvation, as the federal government blockaded the southern province which wanted to break away.

Now the Nigerian government is trying to shut down Radio Biafra, a pirate radio station broadcasting from the region. The government says it has ‘successfully jammed’ the station, but reporters in Nigeria say it is still broadcasting.

It targets the Igbo, who still feel they are discriminated against by the northern Nigerians, transmitting phone-ins and attacks on the country’s president, Muhammadu Buhari, and other government figures.


Independence for Biafra is still being demanded by a group called the Movement for the Actualisation of a Sovereign State of Biafra (Massob), and a number of its leaders and sympathisers have been arrested.  

2 comments:

  1. Thanks John for blogging about this issue. I am Biafran by birth, but Nigerian by force. I refuse to continue be referred to as Nigerian. We the lower Niger own the petroleum which is the major source of income for Nigeria... Despite this, we are still being marginalised in Nigeria. How can other tribes be placed on us, whereas we control National economy.

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