Amnesty International has claimed that the farmer-herder conflict in Nigeria, has only been exacerbated by continued incompetency and inaction by the government. They believe that because the government has failed to both stop attacks before they occur and to prosecute the perpetrators, this conflict has only increased.
They have tracked that over 3600 people have been killed in the past three years due to this conflict, a very conservative number.
Of these 3600, over half were killed in 2018 alone, making this conflict far more deadly this past year, than all actions by Boko Haram. Despite this, the government continues to turn a blind eye and a weak hand to help end this conflict. They continue to put all of their money and power into the northeast and neglect those suffering in the Middle belt.
If this conflict is not ended soon, Nigeria will end up in another civil war or see entire tribes and populations displaced or wiped out.
They must stop these attacks, return land that has been stolen and put legislation in place to deal with both sides. As we enter into the election season in Nigeria, this must be forefront on people’s minds. They must chose a president who is willing to end these conflicts and work toward peace instead of just ignoring the problem.
International Christian Concern, persecution.org
