The clash of cultures: Muslim - Christians violence in Nigeria and its implications for political stability

Abstract

Violence between Muslims and Christians in Nigeria has claimed thousands of lives in the past decade. In flared again in February 2006 when Muslim outrage at the caricatures of the prophet Muhammad led to a massacre of dozens of Christians in the north, followed by reprisal killings of Muslims by Christians in the south. More than 150 people were killed and numerous churches and mosque were destroyed. The same also reared its ugly head in November 2008 following local government election in Plateau state. These most recent outbreaks of sectarian conflict in Nigerian need to be seen in the context of a long and complex history in which religious loyalties are invariably mixed with issues of ethnic identity, land ownership and political and economic power. After a century of growing Muslims influence in the north, the civilian government that came to power in 1999 accepted the introduction of sharia law into twelve northern states. This set off conflicts with Christian groups that claimed that such laws put them at a disadvantage and violated the Nigerian Constitution, which calls for a secular state and freedom of religion. By some accounts, more than 10, 000 people have been killed in sectarian conflicts, primarily in Kaduna and Plateau states in the last seven years. As in the case in most "religious" conflicts, however, economic, political and social forces play a significant role. Religion, as several authors have indicated, often serves to provide an ultimate justification for a particular political or ideological position or for a worldview that encompasses other dimensions of life. This is certainly the case with respect to religious strife in Nigeria. This paper analyses religious conflicts in the country. The intent is to reveal the inter- connectedness of actions and reactions of groups to various occurrences within and outside the country that are having religious undertone. This is more necessary considering the rate at which inter-faith disputes or disagreements, even at supernatural levels, translate into ferocious religious conflicts within the Nigerian state on the one hand and, on the other hand, how the conflicts further generate external pressure on the country amidst other social, political and economic consequences.