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Joel Bisina has written an informative article on the Niger Delta (Pambazuka News 167). However there are a few points I would like to add.

Apart from a very brief mention of Ken Saro-Wiwa and Odi, Bisina fails to mention the state sponsored violence that has been taking place for the past 14 years. Nor does he mention the issue of demands for autonomy and resource control made by all the ethnic nationalities (please let us throw the word tribe into the dustbin of colonialism) of the Niger Delta.

When he does mention violence it is in the context of "inter tribal and inter communal conflicts". This implies the conflicts are nothing to do with oil. On the contrary the Federal Government has used divide and rule tactics to fuel conflicts between the different ethnic minorities by favouring one community over another at different times, by redrawing boundaries between communities and by arming one community and instigating murder.

Bisina also fails to include any gender dimension to his article. He mentions the "ethnic militias" and illegal bunkering that takes place by a minority of people but fails to mention the many activist groups and organisations that are fighting to expose the crimes and human rights abuses of the multinationals and their partner, the Nigerian government.

JOEL BISINA REPLIES: Thank you Sokari Ekine, I fully and wholly agree with you that some of the issues you raised are fundamental and are worthy of mention, but I want you to appreciate the fact that the Niger Delta question is as old as the Nigeria Federation and so are the issues and the facets to the issues. Any attempt in a singular write-up in trying to address all will amount to writing an encyclopaedia. So you would excuse my brevity.

I need to state here that I am very conversant and actively involved in the entire Niger Delta struggle at various levels in my professional capacity and as someone from the Region who lives and works there. Just trying to look at state sponsored violence alone will produce volumes. From the days of King Koko of Nembe Brass to the most recent military invasion in Egbema communities of Ogbudugbudu, Idebagbene and Itsekiri communities of Orugbo etc.

>>>>> Click on the link below for the rest of Joel Bisina's response.

The level of human rights abuses going on there now is worse than the situation in Sudan. But no one is paying attention to it. I have tried to address some of these issues in some of my previous papers.

Whether we agree or not, as much as I believe strongly that the corporations have introduced strongly the concept of divide and rule and divide and exploit to set communities against communities, tribes against tribes, the issue of tribal conflict is one issue staring at us in the face. That the Ijaws and The Itsekiris have in the past seven years destroyed communities and killed and maimed one and another which have rendered more than 20000 homeless on both sides is a reality. I was actively and am still actively involved in peaceful resolution of the numerous conflicts that have continued to plague the region.

The role of woman in this whole struggle is not underestimated here. I had a capacity building training with women, youth and traditional rulers, in Escravos,Abiteye(Kenya gbene), Gbokoda and asantuagbene Ajudaibo, shortly before the most popular women protest lead by the Ijaw and Itsekiri women that gave birth to the landmark Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) signed with Ijaw and Itsekiri leaders and ChevronTexaco in 2001. The point I am trying to make here is that no one volume in my own estimation can decisively address all the issues of the Delta. At the time of writing, those were the issues that resonated given the time and space. The biggest challenge here is how do we mobilise resources, both human and material to carefully and comprehensively documents all that has happened and that is still going on there? I am available and willing to collaborate and partner with interested persons to do a study and document all the key issues for public awareness and for the records. I hope you understand.