Boko Haram & Nigerians Immigration Saga I am determined to protect our democracy, our national unity and our political stability, by waging a total war against terrorism. The unity and stability of our country, and the protection of lives and property are non-negotiable. I have instructed our security forces to launch a full-scale operation to put an end to the impunity of terrorists on our soil. I have also authorized the security forces to use any means necessary under the law to ensure that this is done. I assure you that Nigeria will be safe again, and that these thugs will be driven away – it will not happen overnight, but we will spare no effort to achieve this goal... - President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR Nigeria President on the the 15th anniversary of the end of military rule said international terrorism threatened Nigerias democratic gains and he is waging a total war against terrorism. I have been analysing in my mind the implication of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan declaration of war on future asylum applications in Europe considering that Boko Haram is literally against western education and targeting religious establishments especially in Northern Nigeria. Thus, I was really surprise when I read about a Nigeria lady Afusat Saliu, 31, and children (Bassy, four, and Rashidat, two) from Leeds claiming that they will be attacked by Boko Haram if they return to Nigeria. The BBC story reads: Ms Saliu fled from Nigeria in 2011 after her stepmother threatened to subject Bassy to female genital mutilation. Ms Saliu, who is herself a victim of FGM, was heavily pregnant at the time. She has said she fears both her daughters will be subjected to the practice and forced into marriage should they return to Nigeria. The family converted to Christianity in the UK and worry they would be targeted by Islamist militants Boko Haram in the west African country... It is not clear if she is a Yoruba Muslim that converted to Christianity or a Northern that converted to Christianity; nevertheless, what is clear is that Nigerians in Europe will start drawing attention of European immigration authorities to the menace of Boko Haram and Shariah practice in Northern Nigeria. The unfortunate declaration of war by the Federal Government on Boko Haram will further increase the numbers of internal and external displaced Nigerians. Internally displaced people (also known as DPRE in many civil and military organizations which assist) are people or groups of people who have been forced or obliged to flee or to leave their homes or places of habitual residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or natural or human-made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized State border. With 3.3 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), Nigeria has the largest population of persons displaced by conflict in Africa, a report released last week has revealed. A report, “Global Overview 2014: people internally displaced by conflict and violence,” by the Internal Displaced Monitoring Centre (IDMC) and the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) stated that the number of internally displaced persons in Nigeria is approximately a third of the IDPs in Africa and 10 per cent of IDPs in the world. According to the report, 470,500 persons were displaced in Nigeria in 2013 alone placing it as the country with the third highest number of displaced persons in the world. Nigeria is only ranked behind Syria with 6.5 million IDPs and Colombia with 5.7 million IDPs. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (UNOCHA) said 300,000 people in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa states – 70 percent of them women and children – have fled their homes since early 2013. The impact of the ongoing insurgency activities and governments militarisation of North-East Nigeria has spilled over into neighbouring countries, particularly Niger, Chad and Cameroon, where over 10,000 Nigerian refugees have sought asylum to date. With Paris Summit and ECOWAS Extra Ordinary Meeting, it is clear that the menace of Boko Haram is getting international attention. President John Dramani Mahama of Ghana said: “We formed the ECOMOG and though the peace keeping mission in Liberia was not perfect, it was productive in getting Liberia and Sierra Leone to initiate the transition towards peace... Our vision is for us to work together to consolidate the peace in Mali, to bring Guinea Bissau back into an era of democracy and prosperity and to support and solidarise with Nigeria and its fights against Boko Haram... Nigeria crisis is not restricted to Boko Haram activities alone but includes concerns about deadly armed robbery in South - West, kidnapping in South - East, still active Niger Delta Militants in a South South not to mention issues of FGM, Anti-Gay Law that some people believe affects them. If the Boko Haram crisis continues then we are likely to witness an increase in the number of Nigerians that would claim Boko Haram members are after them... Does that mean that Nigerians in Europe could successfully claim that Boko Haram is after them? Could school age children, teachers and religious leaders currently in North-East Nigeria filed for asylum in Europe? All I say on this matter is this, whatever people are claiming is responsible for their decision to claim asylum; they should be as truthful and honest as possible but more importantly avoid using the media to tell their story.... Watch out for my full analysis in AFRICA SECURITY courtesy of AILTV (Africa in London TV)
Posted on: Sun, 01 Jun 2014 07:27:13 +0000
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