The United Nations (UN) on Friday condemned the eviction threat issued by Arewa youths against Igbo people living in the north.
The UN’s reaction came after a petition launched by Igbo Think-Tank group, Nzuko Umunna to raise global alarm concerning the threat of genocide elicited by the “quit notice”, garnered close to 3000 signatures in a matter of days.
A group of United Nations human rights experts had in a special report, warned that the ultimatum telling Nigerians of Igbo extraction in the north of the country to flee their homes is of “grave concern”.
In a statement made by the Communication Specialist, Communication and External Relations of UNICEF Nigeria, Mr. Geoffrey Njoku, the UN condemned the quit notice as deplorable.
The international body’s investigators also deplored a hate song and audio message being circulated on the internet and on social media.
They noted that the Hausa-language audio message urges northern Nigerians to destroy the property of Igbo people and kill anyone who refuses to leave by 1 October, the same date given in the ultimatum.
The statement signed by Njoku conveyed to the arewa youths that the UN is gravely concerned about the proliferation of hate messages and incitement to violence against the Igbo and their property, especially considering the previous history of such violence.
“The Government must be vigilant, as hate speech and incitement can endanger social cohesion and threaten peace by deepening the existing tensions between Nigeria’s ethnic communities,” he said.
The ultimatum was issued on 6 June 2017 during a press briefing by the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum in the city of Kaduna. It called for sustained and coordinated campaigns to remove the Igbo population from the northern region.
The human rights experts however, noted that some local and national figures, as well as some media representatives, had publicly denounced any form of hate speech and incitement, but said other officials still needed to follow suit.
“We are deeply concerned that some prominent local leaders and elders have not condemned the ultimatum, hate speech and the perpetrators
“We call on the Government, media and civil society representatives, and local and religious leaders, to reject and condemn hate speech and incitement to violence unequivocally and in the strongest possible terms,” the experts urged.
The UN experts said any incidents of hate speech and incitement to violence had to be investigated and the perpetrators prosecuted and punished.
“This includes the people behind the ultimatum and those responsible for the creation, publication and circulation of the hate song and audio message,” they added.
The experts are: Mr. Mutuma Ruteere, Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; Mr. Fernand de Varennes, Special Rapporteur on minority issues, and Ms. Anastasia Crickley, Chairperson of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) is the body of independent experts that monitors implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination by its State parties.
In a related development, the petition launched by Nzuko Umunna to raise awareness over the implications of the quite notice issued by the Arewa group and the hate song following the threat, has garnered close to 3000 signatures.
