More Than a Beauty Pageant, It Was a Massacre

December 02, 2002, 07:58 AM


Nigerian and non-Nigerian officials and media are lamenting over the relocation of the Miss World pageant from Abuja, the Nigerian capital to London. The hundreds of poor Muslim and Christian Nigerians brutally murdered, mostly by government forces over the controversial event deserved little sympathy, a typical response to human tragedies in that part of the world.









But the tragedy in the northern city of Kaduna, and the bloody clashes that spread to the capital in later days, were not merely an irrational reaction to an offensive gesture, meant to incorporate Nigeria into the civilized world. The issue is far more complicated, and in a way much more rational.

Nigeria is a country of bitter history, vast natural resources, foreign invasions and corrupt leaderships. Although, several cultures rose in that part of Africa beginning 700 BC, advanced cultures were not cited until the 12th-14th centuries, when the country was strongly influenced by the Muslim presence in the north. But the natural expansion of these cultures were suppressed, when Portuguese and British slave traders found a hidden treasure there around the 15th century. Untold numbers of people were hunted down and sold, for an untold number of years.

Foreign aggression changed tactics when Britain decided it was time to claim the country all together, occupying Lagos in 1861 and advancing inward to other parts of the country and the region.

Decades later, in 1960, Nigerians celebrated independence, a celebration that was short-lived, as the Eastern region of the country seceded, claiming a republic of its own in 1967, stirring a conflict, a civil war that left over one million dead. Many of the dead simply starved to death, as the world watched, the same way it watches todays bloodbath; with apathy.

Sure, the country was reunited, but bloodshed hardly ceased.

Nigerias slaves were no longer selling, but its oil was. In the 1970s, the giant African nation was recognized as one of the richest oil producers in the world. Head hunters were back, this time with political clout to invest in the countrys new founded wealth. Nigeria, presumably independent, developed into a typical African trio: natural resources, corrupt leaders and ruthless multinational corporations. The equation was now complete for power struggle and military coups, although the flow of oil remained steady and on the rise. Nigerians however, remained poor. Starvation always loomed on the horizon.

Nigerias border and political setup was not drawn and constructed based on the cultural and tribal boundaries that governed most of Africas countries. Cultural sensitivity was hardly a concern for those who viewed Nigeria as an endless source of slaves, in the past, or a large oil well in the present. Corrupt leaders worked as middlemen between foreign investors and the oil reserve, as the majority of the people stood afar, watching their future and independence being sold to the highest bidder, generating wealth that was hardly translated into improving the battered communities.

Meanwhile, religious intolerance grew, not only because poverty rose and education lacked, but also because their was a severe lack of sensible leadership that would work toward closing the gap between the different tribes, sects and religions. Religion was a tool of manipulation, each victorious coup leader used it to incite the crowd.

Poor people feed on hope and symbols. They become religiously passionate. God becomes their last resort of hope when everyone else has failed them. Many Nigerians, Muslims and Christians are mostly poor, fervently religious, protective of their heritage and distinct cultural principals. Such passion however can turn bloody in Nigeria, and it has, repeatedly, as each group feels threatened by the other, desperately trying to preserve what it perceives as sacred and holy.

Just two years ago, in the same city of Kaduna, over 3,000 people, mostly poor Nigerians were killed in religious riots between Christians and Muslims. The same bloody episode has taken place in various parts of the country, and each time the government has managed to misuse force, and has often failed to advance religious tolerance and fight the roots of hatred in succeeding months and years.

In this most sensitive political atmosphere, and under this delicate cultural bonds and in the holiest month of the year for Muslims, the Nigerian government envisioned that by hosting the Miss World pageant, it would revive the confidence of foreign investors. The decision was not only insensitive and irresponsible, but also pathetic, for no parade of nudity as dubbed by many Nigerians, would solve the countries deepening problems.

An article, published by the Nigerian daily newspaper, ThisDay is credited for inciting the violence, as it commented: what would (Prophet) Mohamed think? In all honesty, he would have probably chosen a wife from among them (the contestants). With the rage and anger, already mounting in Nigeria, the sarcastic comments were more than what many Nigerians needed to lead angry marches in the streets, for clashes to resume, for churches and mosques to be burned to the ground, and for a government crackdown, to save the pageant.

Human rights organizations found that many of those killed, from whom 225 bodies were recovered, were shot dead. Most rioters used sticks and knives. Firearms were almost exclusively employed by the government forces. Shehu Sani of the Kaduna-based Civil Rights Congress cited that in one incident, police forces dragged 15 Muslim men from inside their homes and shot them dead, throwing their bodies in a nearby river. The countrys mayhem is only expected to grow more devastating. More families are now seeking revenge, the government lost the trust of its people, violence has nowhere to go but upward.

It would have been more appropriate to commemorate all of those victims by canceling the parade of nudity. But since the 225 killed, 1,500 wounded and over 9,000 made homeless, all in four days, were poor Nigerians, then, for many, the situation is not as grim it may appear.

Since the relationship between the Miss World pageant, and the degradation of all women is no longer a hot topic for discussion, one is only expected to sit back and eagerly await Dec. 9, to enjoy the friendly competition, in a friendlier environment. And since Miss USA told Reuters upon her arrival to London I feel wonderful being here, and as long the other queens are rejuvenated and gearing up for the heated competition, then it turned out to be a happy ending in spite of everything, didnt it?

Well, Nigerians hardly agree, as many families in Kaduna are keeping a watchful eye on the river, hoping that their loved ones will soon be washed ashore.

But in truth, this tragedy has little to do with the Nigerians appreciation for beauty or lack thereof, its a culture that is feeling threatened and is vigorously fighting for its survival, through decades of slavery, foreign invasions, dictatorships and now globalization. A few seem to understand that, and sadly, few seem willing to try.


Ramzy Baroud is the Editor-in-Chief of Palestine Chronicle