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Note: This document is from the archive of the Africa Policy E-Journal, published
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Nigeria: Obasanjo on Sharia Crisis
Nigeria: Obasanjo on Sharia Crisis
Date distributed (ymd): 000308
Document reposted by APIC
+++++++++++++++++++++Document Profile+++++++++++++++++++++
Region: West Africa
Issue Areas: +political/rights+ +security/peace+
Summary Contents:
This posting contains the March 1 speech to the nation by
Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, on the crisis concerning
the implementation of Sharia law in several states in northern
Nigeria.
For additional news, see:
http://www.africanews.org/west/nigeria
http://nigeriaweb.odili.net
http://www.nigeriacentral.com
For more links and background, see APIC's newly updated
Nigeria page (http://www.africapolicy.org/action/nigeria.htm),
as well as additional links to news, data, and more in APIC's
regional pages:
http://www.africapolicy.org/featdocs/west.htm
http://www.africapolicy.org/featdocs/westnews.htm
+++++++++++++++++end profile++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
NEW ON AFRICA POLICY WEB SITE
Special Page on Floods in Mozambique and Southern Africa
http://www.africapolicy.org/action/floods.htm
As this is written, the international relief operation in
Mozambique is finally into high gear. So is the debate about
to what extent the response to catastrophic floods in
Mozambique and neighboring countries was too little and too
late, illustrating yet again the double standard of the
world's response to crises in Africa.
Yet there are also significant new features in the response to
the crisis. Fundraising and volunteer contributions from
within Mozambique, from neighboring South Africa and from
around Africa (the Organization of African Unity, Malawi,
Ghana, and other countries) are at much higher levels than in
previous African natural or human-caused disasters.
Nevertheless, there is the usual danger in response to
international crises, that the world's attention will be
fleeting -- more focused on the dramatic helicopter rescues or
immediate relief needs than on the rebuilding efforts that
Mozambicans repeatedly stress must be built into the response.
It is also likely that international agencies will get greater
resources than their Mozambican counterparts, and that
existing Mozambican and regional organizations will be
weakened rather than strengthened by some outside efforts.
Mozambican government spokespeople, as always, are gracious,
expressing sincere thanks for whatever help comes in. As one
wrote privately in a recent e-mail, however, "I am in favor of
direct support to Mozambican institutions from people such as
yourselves, to serve as a counterweight to all the big
governments, UN, etc., who are now piling in and of course
expecting to take everything over completely."
The new Africa Policy page on the floods gives links to
multiple sources for updated information, and also includes a
wider selection of material received by APIC than can be
posted to the Africa Policy distribution list. In particular,
we are prioritizing tems that in our judgement contain
significant information directly from Mozambique and
neighboring countries, or that relate the crisis to wider
issues of reconstruction and sustainable development.
Text of Speech ( March 1, 2000) Following Religious Crisis
That Claimed Hundreds Of Lives in Kaduna and Parts of
Southeastern Nigeria and Suspension of Full Implementation of
The Sharia in Zamfara, Sokoto and Niger States
Text:
President Olusegun Obasanjo's address
to the nation on Sharia crisis
Wednesday, March 1, 2000
Fellow Nigerians,
I speak to you again today with a sad and heavy heart,
having recently returned from a visit to Kaduna, where I
saw the carnage and devastation resulting from the recent
disturbances in that city. I had decided to make a
personal visit there, because I was very concerned by the
security and other reports I was getting from the
officials on the ground. I could not believe that
Nigerians were capable of such barbarism against one
another. But what I saw there was perhaps even more
gruesome in detail.
Once the disturbances started, I was naturally in
constant touch with the Kaduna State Deputy Governor, who
was in charge in the absence of the Executive Governor,
and who continuously kept me abreast of developments
there. I did not order the troops in right from the
start, because the normal procedure in such matters is
that the Governor of the State concerned must first
indicate that the police strength at his disposal is
unable to contain the disturbances, and then specifically
request for military assistance. Or, in special cases,
the police through the Inspector-General could make such
a request. Once that request came from the Deputy
Governor, I immediately ordered that troops should move
in, to support the police and take necessary measures to
put an end to the killings and destruction in that city
and its environs.
As soon as the disturbances began to die down during the
week, I sent a Ministerial delegation to Kaduna, with
instructions to bring me a first hand report of the
situation there. The delegation's report was incredibly
galling. I, accordingly, decided to travel to Kaduna, to
see things for myself. And what I saw was disheartening
and upsetting. The devastation was so massive, it seemed
as though Kaduna had overnight been turned into a
battlefield. My visit confirmed in every single detail
all the reports I had been getting - the mindless
killings and maimings, the wanton destruction of
property, the fear and uncertainty on the faces of those
who survived the carnage, and the pervasive mutual
suspicion.
It was clear to me that while a toll was being taken of
the massive losses that attended the disturbances, it was
necessary to immediately begin the process of healing and
reconciliation. I met leaders of the factions and groups
involved - the religious and political leaders, the
workers and the leaders of thought. We explored all
possible ways of bringing the carnage to a permanent
halt, and reached agreement on a number of issues.
But what I found most astonishing was the discovery that
a majority of those who died in the disturbances were
Nigerians who had lived all their lives in Kaduna, and
could not truthfully call anywhere else their home. All
so suddenly, people who had been their neighbours for
decades turned on them, and massacred them. And yet,
those who were responsible for these murders claim that
they were acting in defence of faith or religion. I
cannot believe that any religion in this day and age can
sanction the taking of innocent life.
While in Kaduna, we also took time to show our gratitude
to those few Nigerians who had gone out of their way, and
at great risk to their own safety, to do whatever they
could to put an end to the bloodshed. We visited His
Royal Highness the Emir of Zaria and community leaders in
Zaria, who had shown exemplary courage in their vigorous
efforts both to prevent and to contain the bloodshed.
Just before we left Kaduna for Zaria, the painful news
came of the disturbances in Aba, a city we had just
visited two days previously. The disturbances there were
started by a group of renegades who were under the
misguided but fatal impression that they were taking due
revenge for the murder of their kith and kin in Kaduna
whose bodies were brought back on a trailer. When all the
statistics of the devastation in Kaduna, Kachia, Aba and
Umuahia are recorded, we will find, I am sad to say, that
this has been one of the worst incident of blood-letting
that this country has witnessed since the Civil War.
And all this at a time when we do have a Constitution in
place, when we have duly elected representatives both at
the local, state and federal levels, when the fundamental
freedoms of worship and speech, and the freedom from all
forms of discrimination are guaranteed to every citizen.
We cherish and uphold these fundamental freedoms.
These acts cannot, and must not go on. We must bring to a
very prompt end the temptation to always resort to
violence in any disagreement between groups, whether
religious or ethnic or political. We must rid ourselves
of the mentality of murderousness that stems from fear
and suspicion of the other person. We must rediscover the
value of dialogue.
As the Vice-President has announced in his press
briefing, the National Council of States met yesterday,
Tuesday, February 29, 2000, and deliberated on the
alarming security situation in the country.
The Council was deeply saddened by recent events in
Kaduna, and by subsequent events in Abia State, both of
which have led to enormous loss of lives and destruction
of property. The Council strongly condemned these events,
and called for an immediate cessation of hostilities, and
of these acts of senseless murder and destruction of
property.
The Council also reviewed the remote and immediate causes
of the disturbances, and noted that the Penal Code
currently in force in the Northern States is
substantially based on Sharia Law, with the modifications
that imprisonment is substituted in place of amputation
of limbs, as punishment for stealing, and also as
punishment for adultery, instead of stoning to death. The
Council noted that these modifications are consistent
with the human rights principles enshrined in our
Constitution, and considered the punishments adequate in
the circumstances.
The Council unanimously agreed that all States that have
recently adopted Sharia Law should in the meantime revert
to the status quo ante. That is, Sharia, as practised in
Penal Code, continues to be practiced by all States
concerned. The Council urges all Nigerians to remain calm
and law-abiding. Provocative and inciting utterances will
not be tolerated. This position by the Council is a
triumph of love of fatherland, triumph of maturity and
sustenance of security of the nation and preservation of
our corporate existence. There can be no winners in the
destructions, all Nigerians are losers. And in peace and
cessation of destructions of life and property, all
Nigerians are winners. But to respect the feeling of one
another and to hasten the process of reconciliation,
there is no victory to be celebrated and no loss to be
mourned.
In the course of our development, let me say for the
benefit of investors in our economy that this tragic
event is a hiccup which is not unusual for a nation like
Nigeria which has been oppressed and suppressed by its
rulers in recent years. The hiccup will be put behind us
and we will Insha-Allah move full steam ahead.
I enjoin all Nigerians to embark on the urgent task of
reconciliation and confidence-building which is vital to
the rebuilding of relations and communities. Let us move
forward to enjoy the fundamental rights enshrined in our
Constitution and to develop our country politically,
economically and socially. Let our motto be
"Reconciliation for Development".
What we must now do is to begin to return to the
fundamental faith that life, all life, is sacred. There
is nothing in our culture that even remotely justifies
the cynicism with which so many of us today respond to
acts of lawlessness and wickedness. We have lost our
sense of outrage and moral sensitivity. The casualness
with which we react to corruption and other forms of
criminal behaviour does not come from religious faith or
from cultural tradition.
We do not have any such religions or cultures. Rather,
what seems to have happened is that after so many years
of tyranny and mindless violence, encouraged and
practised by the state itself, we have all grown
indifferent to the moral, even religious duties that we
all owe, one to another.
But today, we are no longer hostages of a mean and
lawless government. Our conduct, our relationships,
whether religious, ethnic or political, must be governed
by the laws of the land. We must begin again to deal with
one another in transparent comradeship, and seek to
settle our misunderstandings peacefully, decently and
humanely.
We thank the National Assembly for their concern and
support during the crisis. We are encouraged particularly
by the pronouncement of the Senate President that the
Executive will be fully supported to deal firmly and
decisively with disturbance that may emanate in any part
of the country.
We appreciate the formation and the work of the Nigerian
Inter-Religious Council (NIREC), which has been charged
with the responsibility of promoting the ideals of
peaceful coexistence, especially among the various
religions in our country. They have held several
meetings, Christians and Moslems, and were in fact under
the impression they were making considerable progress,
when the upheavals in Kaduna occurred. I urge them not to
relent in their efforts. Perhaps through their work, and
that of all other well-meaning Nigerians, we shall begin
to build the Nigeria that we all dream of, but seem
unable to realize. I thank our brothers and sisters in
all parts of the country who, through prayers and
positive action and efforts, contributed to moving us
away from another precipice. In this group must be
included some leading Imams, Christian leaders and
traditional rulers.
Consultations will be stepped up to increase interaction
and to enhance reconciliation.
All Nigerians are assured of safety and security in their
normal places of residence. Governors, Ministers, Members
of the National Assembly and all political officers and
appointees are returning to their States and their
constituencies to help in the process of binding the
wounds, removing fear and suspicion and bringing about
reconciliation from now till the week-end. Law
enforcement agents have been instructed to deal
decisively with anyone or group who disturbs public peace
and order.
However, in matters of religion and conscience, restraint
must be exercised at all levels of government but
particularly at the highest level. This has conditioned
the Federal Government's action throughout the Sharia
controversy so far. We thank the media for the
understanding of the restraint of the Government and for
the moderation and balance most of them exhibited during
the difficult period.
I must not end this brief address without assuring all
our fellow citizens of the firm determination of our
Government to resist any attempt from any quarter to
pursue a line that can lead to the disintegration of this
country. Those who break our laws will be punished to the
full extent of the law. There will be no sacred cows. And
those who extend the hand of fellowship to their fellow
citizens will find understanding and friendship.
God bless you all. And God bless Nigeria.
This material is being reposted for wider distribution by the
Africa Policy Information Center (APIC). APIC's primary
objective is to widen international policy debates around
African issues, by concentrating on providing accessible
policy-relevant information and analysis usable by a wide
range of groups and individuals.
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