Why Do Youths Join Ethnic Militias? A Survey on the Oodua - People's Congress in Southwestern Nigeria

Why Do Youths Join Ethnic Militias? A Survey on the Oodua - People's Congress in Southwestern Nigeria PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Actually, the three major ethnic groups have their militia, though varying in their goals and actions: the Oodua People's Congress (OPC) is supposed to defend the interests of the Yoruba; the Arewa People's Congress stands for the defence of the Hausa-Fulani and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra demands secession for the Igboland. [...] Finally, external observers of the OPC, sometimes very close to its political or ideological positions, have been met, including scholars 6 The rationale behind the calculus of the share of the oil cake allocated to the various tiers of the Nigerian Federation is based on a combination of demographic, economic and social criteria mixed with a degree of « derivation principle ». [...] The OPC's objectives are "to identify with our historical and cultural origin with a view to re-living the glory of our past for the purpose of posterity; to educate and mobilize the descendants of Oduduwa for the purpose of the above; to integrate the aspirations and values of all the descendants of Oduduwa into a collective platform of an Oodua entity; to monitor the various interests of descend. [...] The main bulk of these supporters obviously concentrate in the heart of the Yorubaland, mainly consisting of the six states of the former South-western region (Lagos, Edo, Ekiti, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Ondo) plus the States of Kwara and Kogi. [...] 20 In Ibadan, the headquarters of the OPC are located in the same building as the National Union of Transport Workers and the leaders of the two groups are close relatives.

Why Do Youths Join Ethnic Militias? A Survey on the Oodua - People's Congress in Southwestern Nigeria

Why Do Youths Join Ethnic Militias? A Survey on the Oodua - People's Congress in Southwestern Nigeria PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
Actually, the three major ethnic groups have their militia, though varying in their goals and actions: the Oodua People's Congress (OPC) is supposed to defend the interests of the Yoruba; the Arewa People's Congress stands for the defence of the Hausa-Fulani and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra demands secession for the Igboland. [...] Finally, external observers of the OPC, sometimes very close to its political or ideological positions, have been met, including scholars 6 The rationale behind the calculus of the share of the oil cake allocated to the various tiers of the Nigerian Federation is based on a combination of demographic, economic and social criteria mixed with a degree of « derivation principle ». [...] The OPC's objectives are "to identify with our historical and cultural origin with a view to re-living the glory of our past for the purpose of posterity; to educate and mobilize the descendants of Oduduwa for the purpose of the above; to integrate the aspirations and values of all the descendants of Oduduwa into a collective platform of an Oodua entity; to monitor the various interests of descend. [...] The main bulk of these supporters obviously concentrate in the heart of the Yorubaland, mainly consisting of the six states of the former South-western region (Lagos, Edo, Ekiti, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Ondo) plus the States of Kwara and Kogi. [...] 20 In Ibadan, the headquarters of the OPC are located in the same building as the National Union of Transport Workers and the leaders of the two groups are close relatives.

Who Joins Ethnic Militias?

Who Joins Ethnic Militias? PDF Author: Yvan Guichaoua
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Ethnic conflict
Languages : en
Pages : 31

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Book Description


How Do Ethnic Militias Perpetuate in Nigeria? A Micro-Level Perspective on the Oodua People's Congress

How Do Ethnic Militias Perpetuate in Nigeria? A Micro-Level Perspective on the Oodua People's Congress PDF Author: Yvan Guichaoua
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The paper discusses the recently promoted view that organized insurgent violence should either be conducted by activists bonded together by social capital ties or self-interested quasi-mercenaries, depending on the type of financial resources available to the group. We contrast this perspective with the study of an ethnic Nigerian militia, the Oodua People's Congress (OPC). It appears that the success of this militia over time was jointly sustained by important preexisting social connections and numerous opportunities for economic gains. The perpetuation of OPC, we argue, is ensured by a 'moral economy' whose members enjoy self insurance in an environment perceived as unsafe.

Child Soldiers: From Recruitment to Reintegration

Child Soldiers: From Recruitment to Reintegration PDF Author: Alpaslan Özerdem
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230342922
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
This book examines the complex and under-researched relationship between recruitment experiences and reintegration outcomes for child soldiers. It looks at time spent in the group, issues of cohesion, identification, affiliation, membership and the post demobilization experience of return, and resettlement.

Understanding Collective Political Violence

Understanding Collective Political Violence PDF Author: Y. Guichaoua
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230348319
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
Understanding Collective Political Violence offers a unique view on contemporary processes of violent political mobilization across continents: Africa, Latin America, South East Asia and the Middle East. It pays particular attention to unconventional combatants such as women or children and details the drivers of their violent engagement.

A Micro-Level Perspective on the Dynamics of Conflict, Violence, and Development

A Micro-Level Perspective on the Dynamics of Conflict, Violence, and Development PDF Author: Patricia Justino
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199664595
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 354

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Book Description
Analyses violent conflict and its impact on local institutional and development processes. It shows how the behaviour of individuals helps us understand the complex dynamic links between conflict, violence and development.

The making of an ethnic militia

The making of an ethnic militia PDF Author: Yvan Guichaoua
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 22

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Book Description
Mainstream economic literature on the causes of civil wars links the probability of emergence of civil conflicts to economic opportunities that make the initiation of a rebellion profitable. This perspective gives a passive role to the state and by resorting to primitive conceptions of mobilisation, ignores the issue of interaction between leaders and followers, which is crucial to the success of a rebellion. Exploring the genealogy and evolution of a Nigerian Yoruba ethnic militia, the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), this paper provides a dynamic analysis of the rebellion-making decision in which the state plays an active role, direct or indirect. The history and evolution of the OPC display many features not found in the archetypical presentation of the rebellion-making process. First, despite Nigeria’s oil wealth, greed for lootable natural resources in no way constitutes the impetus for formation of the militia: the OPC emerged largely as a response to the fiercest military dictatorship of Nigeria’s post-colonial history. Second, we suggest that collective action problems typically associated with the mobilisation of followers are solved via the everyday benefits the organisation grants to militia members in the course of their activities. The OPC is successful because it accommodates many sections of Yoruba society, including high-profile political figures. It has gained its success largely by functionally replacing the state in domains where the latter has failed, such as security and the judiciary.

How to Become a Big Man in Africa

How to Become a Big Man in Africa PDF Author: Wale Adebanwi
Publisher: Indiana University Press
ISBN: 0253070384
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 444

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Book Description
Can subalterns transform themselves into members of the elite, and what does it take to do so? And how do those efforts reveal the nature of ethnic politics in postcolonial Africa? How to Become a Big Man in Africa: Subalternity, Elites, and Ethnic Politics in Contemporary Nigeria examines these questions by revealing how, through ethno-regional conflict, violence and cultural activities, an artisan, Gani Adams, transformed himself into the holder of the most prestigious chieftaincy title among the Yoruba. Addressing persistent gaps in anthropological studies of the subaltern and of "big men" in politics through in-depth biography and rich social history, Wale Adebanwi follows Adams and other major figures in Nigeria's Oodua People's Congress (OPC) over two decades of ethnographic study and visual representations. Challenging existing models of African political mobility by leveraging his initial lack of formal education into a position of power, Adams moved from a "radical lumpen" and "area boy" to a "big man" who continues to struggle—and reflect—over the significance of his role as a cultural subject. Blurring the lines between tradition and modernity, Adams and his group have used Yoruba rituals to simultaneously claim authenticity and champion new movements for democracy and self-determination. How to Become a Big Man in Africa encourages us to understand the full complexity of Adams's political trajectory and how it reflects the structural and personal realities of becoming a "Big Man" in the contemporary postcolony.

Child Soldiers in the Age of Fractured States

Child Soldiers in the Age of Fractured States PDF Author: Scott Gates
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press
ISBN: 0822973596
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
Current global estimates of children engaged in warfare range from 200,000 to 300,000. Children's roles in conflict range from armed and active participants to spies, cooks, messengers, and sex slaves. Child Soldiers in the Age of Fractured States examines the factors that contribute to the use of children in war, the effects of war upon children, and the perpetual cycle of warfare that engulfs many of the world's poorest nations. The contributors seek to eliminate myths of historic or culture-based violence, and instead look to common traits of chronic poverty and vulnerable populations. Individual essays examine topics such as: the legal and ethical aspects of child soldiering; internal UN debates over enforcement of child protection policies; economic factors; increased access to small arms; displaced populations; resource endowments; forced government conscription; rebel-enforced quota systems; motivational techniques employed in recruiting children; and the role of girls in conflict. The contributors also offer viable policies to reduce the recruitment of child soldiers such as the protection of refugee camps by outside forces, "naming and shaming," and criminal prosecution by international tribunals. Finally, they focus on ways to reintegrate former child soldiers into civil society in the aftermath of war.

Inside Cambodian Insurgency

Inside Cambodian Insurgency PDF Author: Daniel Bultmann
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317116208
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 216

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Book Description
There are many different types of power practice directed towards making soldiers obedient and disciplined inside the field of insurgency. While some commanders punish by inflicting physical pain, others use re-educative methods. While some prepare soldiers by using close-knit combat simulations, others send their subordinates immediately into battle. While these variations cannot fully be explained by the ideological set-up of different groups or by their political orientation, the basic assumption of the study is that they nevertheless do not emerge at random. This book puts forth that the type of power being utilised depends on the habitus of the respective commander and, as a result, becomes socially differentiated. Furthermore, power practices are shaped by the classificatory discourse of commanders (and their soldiers) on good soldierhood and leadership. The study found multiple ’habitus groups’ inside the field of insurgency, each with a distinctive classificatory discourse and a corresponding power type at work. While commanders shaped the dominating power practices (such as military trainings, indoctrination, systems of rewards and punishments, etc.), low-ranking soldiers took active part in supporting or undermining power according to their own habitus formation. This book helps professionals in this area to understand better the types of power practice inside insurgencies. It is also a useful guide to students and academics interested in peace and conflict studies, sociology and Southeast Asia.