Niger Delta: The Need for Immediate and Urgent International Intervention
by

TO: 20 FEBRUARY 2006
1. THE SECRETARY GENERAL
UNITED NATIONS
1ST AVENUE AT 46TH STREET
NEW YORK, NY 10017

2. THE PRESIDENT
EUROPEAN UNION
1049 BRUSSELS
BELGIUM

3.PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

4. PRIME MINISTER TONY BLAIR
PRIME MINISTER OF THE UNITED KINGDOM

5. PRESIDENT JACQUES CHIRAC
PRESIDENT OF FRANCE

6. PRIME MINISTER JONICHIRO KOIZUMI
PRIME MINISTER OF JAPAN

7. CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL
CHANCELLOR OF FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY

Sir,

Niger Delta: The Need for Immediate and Urgent International Intervention

May we, on the mandate of the over twelve [12] million Ijaw people, once more draw your attention to the despicable situation in the Ijaw territory of Nigeria and request your urgent intervention before an entire tribe is annihilated from the surface of the earth. As you are reading this appeal, the situation is becoming an admix of that of Darfur and Iraq, where several persons are being openly and secretly killed, people thrown into detention without trial, property is being looted, communities being invaded and destroyed by soldiers occupying the entire breath and length of the Ijaw territory in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria; and some elements of weak resistance by some local groups engaged in kidnapping of oil-workers and destruction of oil-facilities.

Some of these events you may never see in the news. There have been progressively intensifying air raids; with shelling and mortaring of Ijaw communities by the government forces. Four Ijaw communities – Perezouweikoregbene, Seitorububo, Olapogbene and Seingbene - were almost wiped out between February 16 and 19, 2006 (an average of one community per day). Many people have been made homeless and have become refugees in other communities [Appendices 3, 4, 5 and 6]. In addition, nine oil-workers were kidnapped and unknown persons have destroyed several oil facilities on Saturday 17 February 2006 [Appendices 7, 8, and 9]. This is the second episode of hostage taking and damaging of oil facilities this year, and it reveals a new dangerous dimension by local people to defend themselves. These new strategies adopted by some groups in the region are the results of decades of deafening silence by the International Community to the injustice, oppression, marginalisation, deprivation and environmental devastation going on in the Ijaw area. The time for international intervention to stem further escalation is now.

There is a silent war going on – for air raids, land invasion, mortaring and shelling of communities cannot be described otherwise. The Nigerian government has continued to deploy increasing number of troops and weapons of war to the Ijaw territory. The raids on the Ijaw communities have not ceased either, although President Obasanjo had just given a temporary order to stop the raid on Ijaw communities. That is a clear evidence of the fact that extra-judicial killings have been taking place in the Ijaw territory [Appendix 10]. Yet, the International Community appears not to be interested in the happenings in the Ijaw territory.

The Ijaw territory has been under one siege after the other – military, economic and environmental for decades. We do not need to remind you of the high level of poverty, the ecological warfare occasioned by the activities of the multinational oil companies, the loss of livelihood, the negligence by government and serious underdevelopment of the Niger Delta area despite being the source of about 90% of the wealth of Nigeria. Your turning a blind eye to all the atrocities going on in the Niger Delta is one of the reasons the situation has continued to deteriorate. Without international intervention, the situation will be worse than Darfur with attendant consequences for regional stability and the global economy. The logical outcome of non-intervention is that the resistance of the people will be similar to that of East Timor, Iraq and Palestine.

The International Community paid some scant attention to the problems in the Niger Delta when Kenule Saro-Wiwa was executed in 1995; nothing meaningful was done for the Niger Delta even then. Since the execution of Kenule Saro-Wiwa, do you know that the pogrom on the Ogonis was extended to other ethnic nationalities especially the (Ijaw ethnic nationality) by the Nigerian government; that the events in Darfur [Sudan] is playing out in the Niger Delta, where there is an intent to wipe out a people because of the rich natural resources in the area; that between 1999 and 2006, government forces have killed over five thousand Ijaws when they invaded the following Ijaw communities:
· Odi
· Odioma
· Kaiama, Ovu, Liama, Okpoama, Obioku, Yenagoa, Amarata, Ekeki, Opolo, Agudama, Epebu, Oluashiri, Okolobiri, Mbiama, Azuzama, Ologoama
· Oboro, Ogodobiri, Ojobo, Peretorugbene, Warri Corner, Okerenkoko, Torugbene, Ogbudugbudu, Ogulagha, Odimodi, Okerenkoko
· Okigbene, Olugbobiri, Olugboboro, Ikebiri, Nembe, Twon, Ferebaghagbene
· Opia, Ikenyan, Okokodiagbene, Ogbe-Ijo, Izon-Burutu, Ekeremor-Zion
· Sagbama, Aven, Patani, Amabulu, Peremabiri, Obama, Fish Town, Koluama
· Okrika, Bonny, Ataba, Iyak, Omelema, Otari, Degema, Bakana, Kula
· Soku, Elem-Sangama, Opobo, Abuloma, Amadi-ama, Bille, Belema, Buguma
[See appendices 1, 2, 11 - 18 for supporting evidence]
Yet the situation is not beyond remedy. The International Community intervened in the internal crises of other countries. Specifically, the International Community intervened in cases similar to the present situation in the Ijaw area of Nigeria in
· Congo [1960 - 1964]
· Cyprus [1964]
· Angola [1991 – 1995]
· El Salvador [1991 – 1995]
· Western Sahara [1991 – present]
· Georgia [1993 – present]
· Kosovo [1999 – present]
· Sierra Leone [1999 – present]
· DR Congo [1999 – present]
· Liberia [2003 - present]
· Ivory Coast [2004]
The situation in the Ijaw area of Nigeria is deteriorating daily. You must not allow our situation to become unredeemable before you intervene. Your urgent attention is needed now to stop the:
· Annihilation of the Ijaw ethnic nationality
· Ecological warfare
· Economic exploitation
· Oppression of our people
· Hostage-taking
· Destruction of oil facilities
This you can do by:
1. Sending an independent team to investigate all the killings, maiming, looting, destruction and other human right abuses by government forces in the Ijaw area
2. Conduct a referendum to ascertain the aspirations and desires of the Ijaw people and other Niger Delta peoples
3. Order the Nigerian government to withdraw its forces of occupation from the Ijaw area
4. Declare the Ijaw area a protectorate of the UN until all the issues of natural resources ownership and management have been acceptably determined.
5. Establish and supervise a dialogue process between the Ijaws and the government of Nigeria
PLEASE INTERVENE NOW!
Signed:
FELIX TUODOLO
Coordinating
Tel: + 44 [0] 7762814461
email: okusbaba@yahoo.co.uk

CC
1. HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
2. AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
3. FRIENDS OF THE EARTH INTERNATIONAL

APPENDIX
1. Pictures of the destruction of Odi by government forces
2. Pictures of the destruction of Odioma by government forces
3. News reports on the fears of invasion by soldiers on invasion of Ijaw communities
4. News reports on the recent invasion of Ijaw communities by soldiers: 15 killed
5. News reports on the recent bombardment of Ijaw communities by soldiers
6. News report attack on Ijaw communities again
7. News report: Oil workers kidnapped
8. News report: Shell facility blown up
9. News report: More threats from militants
10. News report: President Obasanjo halts attacks on Ijaw communities
11. ERA report on Soldiers killing of Ijaw youths at Ekulama
12. 2483 casualties at the invasion of Odi, ERA report
13. Amnesty International: Report on the invasion of Odi
14. Military invasion of Liama
15. Human Rights Watch report on the military attacks on Opia and Ikiyan
16. Report on the Odioma invasion
17. Human Rights Watch report on the military crack-down at Yenagoa, Kaiama, Ovu, Amarata, Sagbama etc
18. Chronological account of the different killing of Ijaws at Bonny, Okrika, Ogulagha, Port Harcourt, Peremabiri, etc