The Africa Thread

Jaqen H'ghar

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Ok

So similar to a lot of African countries, the territory that became Nigeria was formed by the British carving a random piece of land out of West Africa (along with Ghana, Sierra Leone). This colony contained over 200 distinct ethnic groups, but the 3 biggest were (and are today): Hausa-Fulani, Yoruba, Ibo.

Hausa-Fulani: Predominant ethnic group in the north. Pastoral/nomadic culture, with a few big trading cities linked to the Sahara trade (Kano, Sokoto, Daura). 100% Muslim. Historical government model: ruled by priest-warrior figures called Emirs. Very suitable for indirect rule (more on this in a bit). Largest population.

Yoruba: Predominant ethnic group in the west. Agricultural culture. At the time of conquest, dominated by traditional religions, although after the British took over, vast converted to Christianity/Islam (let's say 60/40 split). Historical government model: society was split into various tribes ruled by various kings, that warred with each other. A lot of people (captives of war) were sold into the Atlantic slave trade before Britain put an end to the practice in the 1800s. Very suitable for indirect rule.

Igbo: Predominant ethnic group in the East. Agricultural/trading culture. At the time of conquest, dominated by traditional religions/rites. Once the British took over, vast majority converted to Christianity. Historical government model was very democratic (every man in the village/town had a voice), as opposed to their big neighbors to the West and North. Following conquest, this region became very overpopulated, leading a lot of Igbos to migrate beyond their borders in seek of work/trading opportunities (also more on this in a bit).

Indirect rule: Because the British were better at colonizing than the French, they preferred to govern using indirect rule. They would find a traditional figurehead and let him keep his throne, and govern through this figurehead. Because the Hausas and Yorubas were used to this kind of rule, the British found it easy to govern Northern/Western Nigeria. Because the Igbos didn't have any sort of figureheads in their society, artificial ones installed by the British proved very unpopular. The resulting strife didn't make the Igbos look good from the British perspective.

Fast-forward to a few years before independence (1950s), post WW2...

At this point, Igbo people are all over Nigeria as traders and businessmen. They have a sizeable contingent in the Hausa dominated North. The British created parliament favors the Hausa/Yoruba over the Igbo. At independence, the first prime minister of Nigeria is from the North.

Fast forward to 1964-1965.

Igbo migrants are massacred in the North, in a set of violent pogroms. The ones not murdered run back to the East with only the clothes on their back.

Fast forward to January 1966.

A coup d'etat is initiated by Igbo junior officers. The prime minister (from the North), and senior military officers from the North and West are assassinated surgically, overnight. An Igbo officer not involved with the coup assumes power, but the instigators of the coup are not punished. To add insult to injury, the replacements for the murdered military officers are predominantly Igbo.

July 1966: a counter coup is executed by Hausa officers. The Igbo military head of state, as well as senior Igbo officers, are taken out overnight. In addition, after the coup success, more pogroms aimed at Northern Igbos occur. A non-Hausa officer from the North assumes power, but he does not punish the Hausa officers, neither does he do enough to protect Igbo migrants from the massacres ongoing.

1967: Fed up at the situation, a senior Igbo officer, Col. Ojukwu, threatens secession of the Eastern region, which was predominantly Igbo, but also contained a sizeable bunch of other minority tribes. His threats, supported by a seething Igbo nation, were for the most part dismissed by the military regime. After a few failed negotiations, the Republic of Biafra declares independence, raises an army, seizes federal facilities in the Eastern region, and seals all land/river entries to the region from the rest of the country.

1967-1970: the Civil War was one of attrition. Biafra fought mostly a defensive war, with the aim of forcing Nigeria to accept it's secession. Nigeria was in no mood to let Biafra go (it was a vital source of petroleum). So here is what the military regime did.

1. It blockaded Biafra from the Atlantic Ocean, preventing all but humanitarian aid from getting through.
2. Prior to secession, the Eastern Region was 1 state. The regime created 3 new states out of the region, making sure that 2 of the 3 states had majority-non Igbo populations. They effectively gave these states a good reason to support Nigeria against Biafra which was Igbo dominated
3. It began a bombing campaign against infrastructure deemed critical to Biafra (airports, bases, industrial clusters)
4. It initiated a 3 pronged invasion from the North, West and the sea (to the south), aimed at Biafra's center, with the aim of quelling the rebellion.

Biafra fought well against increasingly overwhelming odds, as supplies and food and morale started to dwindle. A lot of people died from bombs and disease and starvation. There were a few massacres (mostly aimed at Igbo civilians/unarmed combatants by Nigerian soldiers). Biafra attempted an invasion of the West in order to divert attention away from it's homeland and force international intervention but it failed. It took 3 years but in 1970, Ojukwu fled abroad and his second in command surrendered.

The Nigerian head of state is famous for insisting "no victor no vanquished" and his outward agenda was to pretty much, re-integrate Biafra into Nigeria and move on. This was accomplished with the aid of the oil boom in the 1970s which flooded Nigeria with petro-dollars. But the war has kind of been swept under the rug. I don't believe the country has done a full reckoning of the aftermath of the war, how it has impacted relations between Igbos and the rest of the country till today (there has been no Igbo president/head of state, ever), and how the region was deliberately neglected for years to the detriment of the North and West.

There you go. The literature is harrowing yet fascinating. Chimamanda Adichie's Half of a Yellow Sun is set in Biafra during the war... I'm more of a non-fiction/military geek though so that's where I've done a lot of reading.
Great post mate.
 

Rasendori

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Ok

So similar to a lot of African countries, the territory that became Nigeria was formed by the British carving a random piece of land out of West Africa (along with Ghana, Sierra Leone). This colony contained over 200 distinct ethnic groups, but the 3 biggest were (and are today): Hausa-Fulani, Yoruba, Ibo.

Hausa-Fulani: Predominant ethnic group in the north. Pastoral/nomadic culture, with a few big trading cities linked to the Sahara trade (Kano, Sokoto, Daura). 100% Muslim. Historical government model: ruled by priest-warrior figures called Emirs. Very suitable for indirect rule (more on this in a bit). Largest population.

Yoruba: Predominant ethnic group in the west. Agricultural culture. At the time of conquest, dominated by traditional religions, although after the British took over, vast converted to Christianity/Islam (let's say 60/40 split). Historical government model: society was split into various tribes ruled by various kings, that warred with each other. A lot of people (captives of war) were sold into the Atlantic slave trade before Britain put an end to the practice in the 1800s. Very suitable for indirect rule.

Igbo: Predominant ethnic group in the East. Agricultural/trading culture. At the time of conquest, dominated by traditional religions/rites. Once the British took over, vast majority converted to Christianity. Historical government model was very democratic (every man in the village/town had a voice), as opposed to their big neighbors to the West and North. Following conquest, this region became very overpopulated, leading a lot of Igbos to migrate beyond their borders in seek of work/trading opportunities (also more on this in a bit).

Indirect rule: Because the British were better at colonizing than the French, they preferred to govern using indirect rule. They would find a traditional figurehead and let him keep his throne, and govern through this figurehead. Because the Hausas and Yorubas were used to this kind of rule, the British found it easy to govern Northern/Western Nigeria. Because the Igbos didn't have any sort of figureheads in their society, artificial ones installed by the British proved very unpopular. The resulting strife didn't make the Igbos look good from the British perspective.

Fast-forward to a few years before independence (1950s), post WW2...

At this point, Igbo people are all over Nigeria as traders and businessmen. They have a sizeable contingent in the Hausa dominated North. The British created parliament favors the Hausa/Yoruba over the Igbo. At independence, the first prime minister of Nigeria is from the North.

Fast forward to 1964-1965.

Igbo migrants are massacred in the North, in a set of violent pogroms. The ones not murdered run back to the East with only the clothes on their back.

Fast forward to January 1966.

A coup d'etat is initiated by Igbo junior officers. The prime minister (from the North), and senior military officers from the North and West are assassinated surgically, overnight. An Igbo officer not involved with the coup assumes power, but the instigators of the coup are not punished. To add insult to injury, the replacements for the murdered military officers are predominantly Igbo.

July 1966: a counter coup is executed by Hausa officers. The Igbo military head of state, as well as senior Igbo officers, are taken out overnight. In addition, after the coup success, more pogroms aimed at Northern Igbos occur. A non-Hausa officer from the North assumes power, but he does not punish the Hausa officers, neither does he do enough to protect Igbo migrants from the massacres ongoing.

1967: Fed up at the situation, a senior Igbo officer, Col. Ojukwu, threatens secession of the Eastern region, which was predominantly Igbo, but also contained a sizeable bunch of other minority tribes. His threats, supported by a seething Igbo nation, were for the most part dismissed by the military regime. After a few failed negotiations, the Republic of Biafra declares independence, raises an army, seizes federal facilities in the Eastern region, and seals all land/river entries to the region from the rest of the country.

1967-1970: the Civil War was one of attrition. Biafra fought mostly a defensive war, with the aim of forcing Nigeria to accept it's secession. Nigeria was in no mood to let Biafra go (it was a vital source of petroleum). So here is what the military regime did.

1. It blockaded Biafra from the Atlantic Ocean, preventing all but humanitarian aid from getting through.
2. Prior to secession, the Eastern Region was 1 state. The regime created 3 new states out of the region, making sure that 2 of the 3 states had majority-non Igbo populations. They effectively gave these states a good reason to support Nigeria against Biafra which was Igbo dominated
3. It began a bombing campaign against infrastructure deemed critical to Biafra (airports, bases, industrial clusters)
4. It initiated a 3 pronged invasion from the North, West and the sea (to the south), aimed at Biafra's center, with the aim of quelling the rebellion.

Biafra fought well against increasingly overwhelming odds, as supplies and food and morale started to dwindle. A lot of people died from bombs and disease and starvation. There were a few massacres (mostly aimed at Igbo civilians/unarmed combatants by Nigerian soldiers). Biafra attempted an invasion of the West in order to divert attention away from it's homeland and force international intervention but it failed. It took 3 years but in 1970, Ojukwu fled abroad and his second in command surrendered.

The Nigerian head of state is famous for insisting "no victor no vanquished" and his outward agenda was to pretty much, re-integrate Biafra into Nigeria and move on. This was accomplished with the aid of the oil boom in the 1970s which flooded Nigeria with petro-dollars. But the war has kind of been swept under the rug. I don't believe the country has done a full reckoning of the aftermath of the war, how it has impacted relations between Igbos and the rest of the country till today (there has been no Igbo president/head of state, ever), and how the region was deliberately neglected for years to the detriment of the North and West.

There you go. The literature is harrowing yet fascinating. Chimamanda Adichie's Half of a Yellow Sun is set in Biafra during the war... I'm more of a non-fiction/military geek though so that's where I've done a lot of reading.
Thanks, I appreciate the effort you put in to make such a detailed response. I'll watch Three Sisters at the theatre on 8th February. It will be a privilege to view Nigeria from a new perspective. I only have two friends in real life that share my enthusiasm in black history. The rest would rather engage in my country is better banter.
 

villain

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Ok now that i've come to terms with the fact that i'm no longer in Ghana & caught up with work I can write a recap of my time there.

Bear in mind that 1 - I am Ghanaian, 2 - I went to Ghana four times in 2019.
I say that to say, i'm biased towards Ghana unapologetically :angel: and i'm used to travelling there also.

The Year of Return, was marketed as an invitation for members of the diaspora to 'return' to Ghana, 400 years after the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
I personally think it's a fantastic way to begin to unite a global community of black people - and as someone who is a fan of the likes of Malcolm X, James Baldwin, Kwame Nkrumah, plus someone who wants to see Ghana fulfil its potential - I'm glad that Ghana is the one to light this torch.

My initial interest in visiting this time was rooted in the Afro Nation festival and the chance to see Burna Boy, Runtown, Wizkid, Teni & other afrobeats artists that I listen to daily. The secondary reason for wanting to visit is because seemingly everybody else I came into contact with at various events were visiting Ghana as well - and I wanted to experience how my country accomodated an influx of foreigners.

Firstly the Afro Nation festival was pretty good (disclaimer: festivals aren't really for my thing) - I had VIP tickets, and even though the first day there was a lack of organisation (the VIP area was meant to be close to the stage & none of that was set up for example) I still managed to get ridiculously close to the stage, and even managed to touch Burna Boy's hand. I thought that the stage was great, the sound was good and the location worked well too. The food, drink & apparel stalls were amazing and probably my favourite part - my only gripe was transport to & from the event, traffic was terrible, I mean it, it was horrible. If you didn't have a car, you could've been waiting for a taxi/uber for over an hour after the show ended; if the festival returns then I hope they address that. Other than that, I think it was a great idea, I loved that there were dozens of local businesses that were able to set up their stalls and take advantage of the influx of foreign money coming in and experiencing whatever it is they made.

The nightlife - Fantastic. That's it.
It's not cold, and it's not anywhere near as hot as it is in the daytime - there's different clubs/lounges/bars to suit everybody's needs. Whether you want to dance all night, or you want to chill with drinks, food & hookah or if you want a mixture of both. You could start your night off at Bloom Bar/Luna @ 11/midnight which is like an open air lounge with good music, hookah & food - then move on to Firefly/Carbon/Onyx/Kona after 1/2am which are more traditional clubs and if you're still going then Twist is where most people go after 3/4am and that is a sweatbox - but the DJ is usually really good and everyone is dancing against everyone else.
Ghanaian culture (& generally all West African culture) embraces dancing & expression so it's completely different to what normally happens in the Western world which is this awkwardness at a club where people actively avoid the dance floors. Nobody judges you, and Ghanaians are friendly as f*** (i'm biased) by nature too so it's a safe space for everyone to enjoy themselves. The combination of the music, the food & being able to dictate what your night will look like on a daily basis is great. There's so much variety, it's super cheap and it's ridiculously fun.

Tourism - it was important for me to visit the Slave Castles/Dungeons particularly given the theme of the Year of Return, I had never been before and I was keen to actually go to the places that harboured so many millions of Africans years ago.

First of all, let me just say this: History books don't put into perspective the horrors that these people faced.

Yes we know they were locked up for months, yes we know they were mostly starved. None of that really puts into context the conditions they had to endure.
On the tour you can go into the very dungeons they would put 100's of people in a space that's smaller than the size of an average bedroom - in fact you could go up to the bedroom's where the colonels who was in charge would stay and their bedrooms were bigger than the dungeons in which 100s of Africans were held for months at a time.
So you go into the dungeons, and they close the doors so you experience exactly what they went through 24 hours a day for up to 3 months in pitch blackness, not knowing if the person next to you is alive, having to sleep in the same place you shit/piss/menstruate in - and it genuinely was traumatising for the 30 seconds or whatever I was in there with 7 other people. The thought that people had to do that with over 200 people, sardined together for months is beyond heartbreaking. The women who didn't accept being raped would be tied to 80kg weighs out in the direct sunlight & starved to death, and their bodies would be allowed to rot in front of the other women & children as a warning to anyone else who dared to reject being raped. All of this before being boarded onto the slave ships for 3/4 months too.
I could go on & on about the things that happened in these dungeons for over 400 years by different colonial powers - but that's a separate conversation.
Point is - I'd highly recommend visiting, but it really is fecked up & potentially quite triggering.

Other tourist attractions
Safari - lots of fun, great views, not a wide variety of animals - Ghana's wildlife isn't comparable to somewhere like South Africa or Kenya - but it was still a lot of fun.

Kakum Park - after hiking uphill for about 20 mins you're presented with some very impressive views, if you have binoculars you can see elephants & monkeys at the bottom but this depends on the time you go - we got private entry early in the day so it was quiet. The guides told us that as more & more people come, the animals tend to stay away.
If you're not scared of heights like me, you can cross the 7 bridges that span the park too.

Akosombo river boat - really good boat tour, great views & a nice break from the business of Accra.

Beaches - there's hundreds of Beaches in Ghana - everybody goes to & generally recommends Labadi/La Palm. This time we went to a place called Bojo Beach - it's maybe 20 mins outside of Accra if there's no traffic (with traffic you're looking at about 1 hour minimum) but it's a fantastic beach, really quiet, great food, good music & lots of activities like volleyball & kayaking available too.

Hmm not sure what else i'm missing - but the food is great, the people are great, weather is amazing - the driving is chaotic. It's super cheap once you're actually in the country (flight prices are far too high but that's another story) i'd recommend it to everyone who's thinking of visiting.
And I loved the fact that so many people from outside Ghana came to visit, I met people from Japan, China, Sweden, Germany, Morocco, Jamaica, Italy who all came to visit and thought that was really encouraging & I hope it continues.

Looking forward to visiting other African countries in the near future too!
 

villain

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Also its the 59th Anniversary of the death of Patrice Lumumba, Prime Minister of the Dem. Rep. of Congo
He was tied to a tree, shot by a firing squad, buried, exhumed, reburied again, exhumed, hacked into pieces then dissolved in sulphuric acid.

All because he wanted to protect Congo’s natural resources in order to improve the conditions of Congo, this was perceived as a threat and he lost his life for it.

Article on it here: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/01/patrice-lumumba-assassination-anniversary-congo
 

Sweet Square

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Also its the 59th Anniversary of the death of Patrice Lumumba, Prime Minister of the Dem. Rep. of Congo
He was tied to a tree, shot by a firing squad, buried, exhumed, reburied again, exhumed, hacked into pieces then dissolved in sulphuric acid.

All because he wanted to protect Congo’s natural resources in order to improve the conditions of Congo, this was perceived as a threat and he lost his life for it.

Article on it here: https://www.jacobinmag.com/2020/01/patrice-lumumba-assassination-anniversary-congo
Great article.

Also found on this twitter today


 

Rasendori

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I think I'm going to purchase a ticket to watch The Gift at the theatre.

An outrageous comedy drama about imperialism, cross-racial adoption, cultural appropriation and drinking tea.

Brighton 1852. A day in the life of Sarah, an African girl, adopted by Queen Victoria and raised in the Queen’s circles. Today is the eve of her having to return to Africa but will she go?

The Present. A day in the life of Sarah, a black middle-class woman staying in a Cheshire village with her husband and small child. They are paid a visit by well-meaning neighbours who have something to confess…

The two Sarahs meet Queen Victoria for tea. This won’t be your regular tea party…

The fourth national tour born from Revolution Mix – an Eclipse movement that is spearheading the largest ever delivery of new Black British stories. The first Revolution Mix story was the sell-out production of Black Men Walking and the second, this year’s highly acclaimed Princess & The Hustler.
 

freeurmind

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Been a while since I gave this thread a bump.
How are all those on the continent dealing with COVID and all the expats?
Here in Namibia, we've seen a big spike in cases the past week or so, most concentrated at the coast and most traceable back to a truck driver who escaped from a quarantine facility. Health services are just about coping at the moment, though testing is slow.
Economy wise, it's been devastating. There's been alot of layoffs and salary cuts and there's virtually no social safety net here. For the moment we're holding on but if this persists past August, things may begin to fall apart.
Things look alot worse in South Africa, hearing quite a few horror stories from colleagues over there.
Hope everyone stays safe and that United give us something to smile about over the next few weeks because 2020 has been just awful so far.
 

villain

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Been a while since I gave this thread a bump.
How are all those on the continent dealing with COVID and all the expats?
Here in Namibia, we've seen a big spike in cases the past week or so, most concentrated at the coast and most traceable back to a truck driver who escaped from a quarantine facility. Health services are just about coping at the moment, though testing is slow.
Economy wise, it's been devastating. There's been alot of layoffs and salary cuts and there's virtually no social safety net here. For the moment we're holding on but if this persists past August, things may begin to fall apart.
Things look alot worse in South Africa, hearing quite a few horror stories from colleagues over there.
Hope everyone stays safe and that United give us something to smile about over the next few weeks because 2020 has been just awful so far.
My mum has been in Ghana since March 14, trapped due to lockdown & borders shutting. Ghana has seen a really big rise in cases in the last month or so because of rainy season, which is typically cold/flu/malaria season (my mum actually got malaria last week - but she gets it quite regularly)
Thankfully though number of Covid deaths in Ghana is still very low, less than 150 last I read vs about 27k infections is remarkable. Far better than a lot of the horror stories that were being written in Feb/early March.
The economy is suffering of course but money can be gained again, lives can't. I'm thankful that the President has been taking this seriously from the start. I think in doing so, they can now look at actions that can be taken to modernise certain workplaces, and also improve infrastructure.
 

Adisa

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Nigeria has 35,000+ cases (I am sure the true figure is at least ten times that number). The somewhat positive thing is that the MR is just above 2% Much lower than other continents.
 

Kasper

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@villain and @Adisa
I think there was a study that people with blood group 0, which is the predominant blood group in the sub-saharan countries, are milder affected than the other blood types (Type A being the worst).
This plus different demographics (way more younger people) might be positive reasons for mentioned countries to be less affected.
 

freeurmind

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My mum has been in Ghana since March 14, trapped due to lockdown & borders shutting. Ghana has seen a really big rise in cases in the last month or so because of rainy season, which is typically cold/flu/malaria season (my mum actually got malaria last week - but she gets it quite regularly)
Thankfully though number of Covid deaths in Ghana is still very low, less than 150 last I read vs about 27k infections is remarkable. Far better than a lot of the horror stories that were being written in Feb/early March.
The economy is suffering of course but money can be gained again, lives can't. I'm thankful that the President has been taking this seriously from the start. I think in doing so, they can now look at actions that can be taken to modernise certain workplaces, and also improve infrastructure.
Well hopefully things improve soon. We're beginning to get overwhelmed with the number of cases. Our health systems barely function in normal times and now everyone is just overwhelmed.
I do think this pandemic does give people an opportunity to rethink the way some of our countries are run.
 

freeurmind

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@villain and @Adisa
I think there was a study that people with blood group 0, which is the predominant blood group in the sub-saharan countries, are milder affected than the other blood types (Type A being the worst).
This plus different demographics (way more younger people) might be positive reasons for mentioned countries to be less affected.
I think this is the big factor. Median age here in Namibia is 21.
 

adexkola

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Timely bump. Shout-out to Sankara. I think recently was the anniversary of Julius Nyerere's passing.

For those not aware, there have been major protests in Nigeria calling for the abolition of a controversial police unit called SARS, short for the Special Anti-Robbery Squad. It was formed back in the 80s to tackle armed robbery in urban areas targeting banks and convoys... However in recent years it has devolved into a rogue unit that extorts innocent civilians on the road, and it has been linked with many extra-judicial detentions and killings. They specifically target young people based on spurious reasons (hairstyle, dress, car being driven), wrongly labeling many as fraudsters.

I've had the misfortune of driving into their checkpoint in December of last year. They tore the car apart and searched my phone for any "evidence" of criminal activity... Luckily I was let go.

So in recent days there have been numerous peaceful protests across different cities in Nigeria calling for their abolishment, at levels not seen since the early 90s. They have deliberately paralyzed several choke points in Lagos, the country's commercial nerve center, in order to force attention to the issue. In addition, the youth led protests have been given attention by Afrobeats musicians and celebrities who now have more of a following outside the country. The government initially acquiesced to the demands by declaring the end of the unit, but there are concerns that such declarations are talk. As of today, the protests continue within and outside the country. Very interesting to see whether the protests evolve to a more strategic wield of power by the youth against many of the issues plaguing Nigeria, or they fizzle out. Hoping for the former.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/13/africa/nigeria-police-sars-victims-intl/index.html
 

Sweet Square

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For those not aware, there have been major protests in Nigeria calling for the abolition of a controversial police unit called SARS, short for the Special Anti-Robbery Squad. It was formed back in the 80s to tackle armed robbery in urban areas targeting banks and convoys... However in recent years it has devolved into a rogue unit that extorts innocent civilians on the road, and it has been linked with many extra-judicial detentions and killings. They specifically target young people based on spurious reasons (hairstyle, dress, car being driven), wrongly labeling many as fraudsters.

I've had the misfortune of driving into their checkpoint in December of last year. They tore the car apart and searched my phone for any "evidence" of criminal activity... Luckily I was let go.

So in recent days there have been numerous peaceful protests across different cities in Nigeria calling for their abolishment, at levels not seen since the early 90s. They have deliberately paralyzed several choke points in Lagos, the country's commercial nerve center, in order to force attention to the issue. In addition, the youth led protests have been given attention by Afrobeats musicians and celebrities who now have more of a following outside the country. The government initially acquiesced to the demands by declaring the end of the unit, but there are concerns that such declarations are talk. As of today, the protests continue within and outside the country. Very interesting to see whether the protests evolve to a more strategic wield of power by the youth against many of the issues plaguing Nigeria, or they fizzle out. Hoping for the former.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/13/africa/nigeria-police-sars-victims-intl/index.html
Good post.

Saw a few things on social media but didn't get a chance to really look into it. Rumors of maybe the army coming in.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-54551629
 

adexkola

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Good post.

Saw a few things on social media but didn't get a chance to really look into it. Rumors of maybe the army coming in.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-54551629
From all indications the army has been supportive of the protests, protecting protestors from police and other thugs. Things would have to deteriorate before the army stepped in, and even then I think they are more conscious of their role in society given Nigeria's history with military coup d'etats.

Social media has been a major contributor towards the momentum of recent events. A lot of fundraising and logistics being done on Twitter for example.
 

Adisa

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I also have had the misfortune of having to deal with the thugs called SARS. They took all the money I had on me. I am in Lagos right now and proud of what these people are doing. They have virtually shut down the city. I can't even do what I came home to for.
The honest truth is that although this has been about police brutality, it feels much more than that. This country has robbed its youth of their future due to the mismanagement and chronic corruption. Youth unemployment is well above 50%, our leaders call us lazy while giving us nothing to work with. I feel so pessimistic about the future of this country right now and if feels like a ticking time bomb. The level of frustration is incredible. MoM food inflation is in the double digits :eek:.
This is a start. We need to let these cnuts know we are tired.
 

adexkola

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I also have had the misfortune of having to deal with the thugs called SARS. They took all the money I had on me. I am in Lagos right now and proud of what these people are doing. They have virtually shut down the city. I can't even do what I came home to for.
The honest truth is that although this has been about police brutality, it feels much more than that. This country has robbed its youth of their future due to the mismanagement and chronic corruption. Youth unemployment is well above 50%, our leaders call us lazy while giving us nothing to work with. I feel so pessimistic about the future of this country right now and if feels like a ticking time bomb. The level of frustration is incredible. MoM food inflation is in the double digits :eek:.
This is a start. We need to let these cnuts know we are tired.
Well said.
 

villain

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I hope you guys are doing okay mentally with all that’s going on across the continent - the Nigerian government opened fire on their own citizens tonight and things seem to be escalating rather quickly.

Take care of yourselves and your loved ones, seeing constant harm to black life is traumatic even if it doesn’t feel like it at the time. Never get desensitised to our pain

It sucks that the coverage on this is basically nonexistent but, it’s not a surprise at this point.
 

adexkola

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From all indications the army has been supportive of the protests, protecting protestors from police and other thugs. Things would have to deteriorate before the army stepped in, and even then I think they are more conscious of their role in society given Nigeria's history with military coup d'etats.

Social media has been a major contributor towards the momentum of recent events. A lot of fundraising and logistics being done on Twitter for example.
There I go being completely wrong about everything here

I hope you guys are doing okay mentally with all that’s going on across the continent - the Nigerian government opened fire on their own citizens tonight and things seem to be escalating rather quickly.

Take care of yourselves and your loved ones, seeing constant harm to black life is traumatic even if it doesn’t feel like it at the time. Never get desensitised to our pain

It sucks that the coverage on this is basically nonexistent but, it’s not a surprise at this point.
Couldn't even watch the game. Saw the scoreline and still felt numb
 

villain

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Couldn't even watch the game. Saw the scoreline and still felt numb
Yep I’m struggling to sleep knowing what’s happening to our people, I was watching videos of the peaceful protests earlier today and it’s haunting me knowing they’re being targeted.
Sigh
 

Adisa

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Like I said earlier, I am in Lagos at the moment. Couldn't sleep. Police/military kept shooting on my street throughout the night.
 

Ish

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I hope you guys are doing okay mentally with all that’s going on across the continent - the Nigerian government opened fire on their own citizens tonight and things seem to be escalating rather quickly.

Take care of yourselves and your loved ones, seeing constant harm to black life is traumatic even if it doesn’t feel like it at the time. Never get desensitised to our pain

It sucks that the coverage on this is basically nonexistent but, it’s not a surprise at this point.
Aye, I’m just down South and I don’t even know about this until I read your post - that’s how crappy the coverage has been - and I have a few friends and classmates in Lagos and Abouja. I’ll reach out to them.

@adexkola my man, how are things? Just on a lighter note, we too, have thugs who rob people, in this country called SARS - our revenue services :lol:
 

villain

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Aye, I’m just down South and I don’t even know about this until I read your post - that’s how crappy the coverage has been - and I have a few friends and classmates in Lagos and Abouja. I’ll reach out to them.
It's been trending in certain sections of twitter the last few days, and a lot of celebrities are talking about it now so news media will speak on it for sure.
It's frustrating honestly because when it comes to events that happen in other regions in the world like South America, Central & Eastern Europe etc, you get coverage instantly, but oftentimes when it comes to instances in Africa & Asia it almost has to reach boiling point before the West takes notice.

@Adisa I hope you & yours stay safe out there, I can't imagine what it's like to be there right now
 

adexkola

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Aye, I’m just down South and I don’t even know about this until I read your post - that’s how crappy the coverage has been - and I have a few friends and classmates in Lagos and Abouja. I’ll reach out to them.

@adexkola my man, how are things? Just on a lighter note, we too, have thugs who rob people, in this country called SARS - our revenue services :lol:
Good bro, be expecting a whatsapp from me soon :lol:

Like I said earlier, I am in Lagos at the moment. Couldn't sleep. Police/military kept shooting on my street throughout the night.
Stay safe man.
 

steve zizou

It's bigger than that, honest!
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It's been trending in certain sections of twitter the last few days, and a lot of celebrities are talking about it now so news media will speak on it for sure.
It's frustrating honestly because when it comes to events that happen in other regions in the world like South America, Central & Eastern Europe etc, you get coverage instantly, but oftentimes when it comes to instances in Africa & Asia it almost has to reach boiling point before the West takes notice.

@Adisa I hope you & yours stay safe out there, I can't imagine what it's like to be there right now
The coverage of this was so minimal from the mainstream media I thought it was an online joke protest at the start.
 

Sara125

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As a Nigerian who is born and bred in the diaspora and having just had Independence Day exactly three weeks ago, it really makes me think about how the ones back home are living and, while they may be independent from the British colony, they are still in the constraints of the tyrannous government so are they truly independent?

Anyway I’m glad social media has brought awareness to the whole SARS thing, even for myself and other British-Nigerians. Before the past week or so I had absolutely no idea it was even a thing.
 

Sweet Square

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As a Nigerian who is born and bred in the diaspora and having just had Independence Day exactly three weeks ago, it really makes me think about how the ones back home are living and, while they may be independent from the British colony, they are still in the constraints of the tyrannous government so are they truly independent?
A member of the British parliament, Ms Kate Osamor, representing Edmonton, has written to question and seek clarification on the nature of aid the United Kingdom Government through the office of the Secretary of State, Foreign Affairs, extends to Nigeria’s disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad.

According to Thisday, The letter written on October 15 and personally signed by Osamor, called the attention of the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, Mr Dominic Raab, to the nationwide protests in Nigeria in the past seven days against the excesses of SARS.

She warned that further assistance be withheld and also called for an audit of what the previous aids were used for so that the UK Government agency would not be unintentionally supporting or facilitating the actions of an agency notorious for human rights violations.

The letter made available to ACE was written in a tone of caution to avoid a situation SARS got support from the agency without proper use.

Osamor’s letter cited that there have been 82 proven and documented incidents of torture, ill-treatment, extrajudicial executions and gross human rights abuses against SARS since January 2017 and cautioned it would be unthinkable that UK agency gives support to such body unless for training on proper conduct that respects human rights.

Osamor notified Raab that she wrote in her capacity as a member of a committee that superintends the agency.

She alerted that given the shady accountability process in the Nigerian agency, there might be the likelihood that UK might have been unknowingly providing support for an agency involved in the offences of abuses mentioned.

http://saharareporters.com/2020/10/16/uk-agency-questioned-over-financial-support-sars

Not bad for a guy who's been dead for over 100 years