NIGERIA: A TIV PERSPECTIVE ON THE BENUE/TARABA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 000881

SIPDIS


E.O. 12958: 18/03/02
TAGS: PINS PGOV PINR TBIO NI
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: A TIV PERSPECTIVE ON THE BENUE/TARABA
CONFLICT


CLASSIFIED BY AMBASSADOR HOWARD F. JETER FOR REASONS 1.5
(B) AND(D)



1. (C) SUMMARY: A February 14 dinner hosted by Governor
Akume gave the Ambassador an eye on the Tiv worldview.
Parochial and biased, it is shared by Benue Tiv leaders
ranging from Senator Gyado to ex-COAS Malu and posits that
the Tiv are victims of systematic discrimination. However,
these Tiv elites offered no practical steps to resolve the
growing conflict between Tivs and neighboring ethnic
groups. Aggressive Tiv ethno-centrism is but one issue
Nigeria's leaders must manage. END SUMMARY.



2. (C) Ambassador Jeter was in Benue State February 14/15
to commission an USAID-funded Rice Mill operated by a Benue
State NGO that focuses its assistance on children affected
by HIV/AIDS. Benue has Nigeria's highest sero-positivity
rate.



3. (C) The Ambassador, accompanied by the USAID Director
and Staff Assistant (note-taker),paid a visit to Governor
George Akume in Makurdi, the Benue State capital. The
clashes between Tivs and neighboring ethnic groups in Benue
and other states dominated the dinner discussion. Most of
the people at the dinner were Tiv luminaries whose constant
theme was: as the Tivs fare, so fares Nigeria. Right now,
neither was doing particularly well. Among those present
were former Senate President Jacob (Jack) Tilley Gyado,
dismissed Chief of Army Staff Victor Malu.



4. (C) These members of the Benue State elite stressed that
many Tivs are former soldiers, still armed and ready to
take action if they perceive that Tiv interests are
threatened. They also noted that Tiv farmers are
responsible for a significant portion of the country's
agricultural output. Unrest in and around Tiv-dominated
Benue means reduced food availability and increased risk of
violent political unrest, they argued.



5. (C) Governor Akume reiterated claims that the recent
Tiv-Jukun violence arose from Jukun efforts to drive Tivs
from Taraba. There was a clear consensus that the Tivs who
allegedly killed 19 soldiers actually may have killed
Jukuns dressed as soldiers or, at least, thought they were
killing Jukuns dressed as soldiers. The Governor also
claimed that the killing of Tivs by the Army continues
"unabated," citing a January 26 incident in which at least
10 Tivs reportedly died when a Tiv village was burned.



6. (C) Noting that the Tivs are often viewed as strangers
when they move into new areas, the dinner guests said Tivs
have been excluded from the political process in Taraba and
even prevented from practicing their traditional culture.
The leaders claimed that in Tiv-majority areas, on the
other hand, they respect the culture of minorities and
include them in the political process.



7. (C) In response to a question from the Ambassador, the
leaders claimed that Tiv agriculture was not expansionists,
that farmers do move from plot to plot, but usually within
a defined area. The guests acknowledged that Tiv
population growth requires bringing steadily more land
under this system of rotating cultivation but claimed that
this should not present a problem since only about 15
percent of the arable land in Nigeria is currently being
used. Therefore, the Tivs' "expansionary" agriculture does
not threaten the viability of other groups.



8. (C) Discrimination against Tivs, the group said, extends
to the federal government. They contrasted the GON
response to the victims of the recent Ikeja armory
explosions with its failure to provide support to the
victims of the Benue-Taraba conflict. They noted that MoD
Danjuma is a Jukun and commented that President Obasanjo's
failure to visit or express condolences had damaged his
image among Tivs.



9. (C) The Ambassador asked for ideas on finding a solution
to the perennial conflicts between Tivs and other tribes.
The group offered no realistic remedies, making only vague
references to a need for "more political will" and
recognition by other groups of the right of Tivs to "exist"
and practice their culture.



10. (C) Comment: No ethnic group bordering Tivland is
currently at ease with the Tiv. Their aggressive approach
to bringing land under cultivation undermines the cultures
of many of these groups (some of which are pastoral).
While the Tiv may "permit" minority groups in Tivland to
practice their cultures or participate in politics, there
is never any danger of the Tivs losing control. Moreover,
say some non-Tivs, Tiv culture incorporates aspects of
tradition that are no longer compatible with Nigerian law.
After over a century of Tiv encroachment, the groups
bordering Tivland will no longer stand idly by as they
become minorities in their home areas. Loss of control of
a Local Government Area Council means loss of federal
government revenue alloted to it. Therein may lie the root
cause of often-violent conflict among the Tiv and their
neighbors.
JETER