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| Africa Subsaharan |
| Ghaddafi urges Nigeria split into ethnic states |
| 2010-03-30 |
| Libyan leader Muammar Ghaddafi, who enraged Abuja after suggesting Nigeria be partitioned between Muslims and Christians, has now proposed the country is carved into "many" ethnic states, a report said Monday. Y'mean like Biafra? His comment followed violent clashes between Muslim and Christian gangs that killed hundreds of people around the central Nigerian city of Jos and prompted Nigeria's government to question whether Libya might be sponsoring the violence. "In fact, Nigeria's problems cannot be resolved by dividing the country into two states, Christian and Muslim," Ghaddafi was quoted as saying by the official Jana news agency. Like the former Yugoslavia, he said, Nigeria comprises "other populations who want independence" without religious considerations. He cited "the Yoruba people in the east and south who demand independence, the Ibo people in the west and south" as well as the Ijaws. "Nigeria ... resembles the Yugoslav union which included several peoples, like Nigeria, and then these people gained independence and the Yugoslav union was ended in peace," said Gaddafi. "The model that fits Nigeria is the Yugoslav one." The Libyan leader said earlier this month Nigeria should be partitioned between the Christian and Muslim communities to end its sectarian violence. He proposed that it should follow the partition model of Pakistan, which was born in 1947 after the Muslim minority of predominantly Hindu India founded their own homeland, led by Mohammed Ali Jinnah. "Irresponsible utterances" Ghaddafi, until recently head of the African Union, had suggested a Christian homeland in the south with Lagos as its capital and a Muslim homeland in the north with Abuja as its principal city. The remarks enraged Nigeria which recalled its ambassador to Tripoli over what it said was Ghaddafi's "irresponsible utterances" which had made a mockery of his calls for African integration and unity. The Libyan leader's comments had "diminished his status and credibility," said foreign ministry spokesman Ozo Nwobu, reading from a strongly worded statement which expressed the government's "very serious concern". The statement also accused Ghaddafi of "theatrics and grandstanding at every auspicious occasion". Nigeria's 140 million population is almost equally divided between Muslims and Christians. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #8 "maps, shmaps" is what you'll hear...in Arabic, of course |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-03-30 22:04 |
| #7 Frank, if you'll check a map, you'll notice that Nigeria's oil resources are predominantly either in the Christian parts or offshore of them. Remember that Nigeria _did_ already have a civil war where the Christian parts tried to break away... guess what side the Arab world supported at the time? (BTW, I just checked... Qadaffi Duck's first year of rule overlapped with the last year of the Biafran War. Anyone remember what side he took at the time?) |
| Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain 2010-03-30 21:46 |
| #6 of course, oil resources would go to the muslim state. They are the 4,378th holiest site in Islam |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-03-30 18:55 |
| #5 The way I see it most of Africa has two solutions to fix their political problems: (1) Split nations into ethnic-based nation-states the way Europe is. This is the gist of Ghaddafi's plan and it leads to stability within nations that has been unseen in Africa. (2) Increase the size of African states so that a single minority cannot easily dominate the others. This might mean a couple very large states. Democracy would be pretty iffy to keep such a nation together though, I don't think African states are really ready. |
| Posted by: rjschwarz 2010-03-30 15:50 |
| #4 Tribal 'city-state' concept once again eh? Worked so well in the past. For a more in depth view, forget the trip to the middle east or Africa. Simply examine Detroit, Los Angeles, and Chicago. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2010-03-30 07:53 |
| #3 Why is this a bad idea? Think of the lives lost in the partition of India and Pakistan. Think of the instability that would result as the Muslim state(s) do what Muslim states do. Think of the problems the 'Christian' states would have. Think of the problems going back and forth. Then consider how this might lead to partition and civil war in other parts of Africa as various separatist movements gain encouragement -- why, if Nigeria can fragment, so can (fill in the blank). Khaddafi knows what he's doing. An unstable Africa is to his benefit. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2010-03-30 07:48 |
| #2 Ever heard of stopped clocks, SM? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2010-03-30 02:49 |
| #1 Nigeria's 140 million population is almost equally divided between Muslims and Christians. Okay: given that it's Ghaddafi saying this (which means by definition that it can't be a good idea), why is this actually a bad idea? |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2010-03-30 01:27 |