NIGERIA: CALM RETURNING TO BAUCHI AFTER WEEKEND

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 000332

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/W, INR/AA
BAGHDAD FOR DMCCULLOUGH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/24/2019
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KIRF CASC NI
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: CALM RETURNING TO BAUCHI AFTER WEEKEND
RIOTS

Classified By: Political Counselor Walter Pflaumer for reasons 1.4. (b
& d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: Calm appears to be returning to Bauchi after
sectarian violence on both February 21 and 23, which was
apparently touched off by a parking dispute. Press reports
indicate 11 people killed, houses of worship destroyed, and
shops and homes sacked and burned. The army and police are
on the scene and appear to have largely restored order.
Coming fast on the heels of November's riots in Jos that left
hundreds dead, and given Bauchi's proximity to Jos, things
could have been much worse. Nonetheless, this latest event
illustrates an apparently rising temperature of ethnic and
religious tension across northern Nigeria, an extremely
worrying trend. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) On February 21, sectarian violence broke out in
Bauchi -- a northern state with a Muslim Hausa-Fulani
majority, but also significant populations of smaller
Christian groups. Bauchi town is also only about 80 miles
from Jos, where a disputed election in November sparked
sectarian clashes in which hundreds died. In this case, the
conflict was sparked by a seemingly trivial dispute over
parking. According to press reports, two different Muslim
factions arrived to worship at a mosque in a small suburb of
Bauchi town at the same time, in violation of an agreement
worked out beforehand to give each group its own time for
services. The greater-than-usual numbers of people
overflowed the mosque's parking area, resulting in some
worshippers demanding parking space at a church 50 meters
down the road. Upon being refused permission to do so, press
reports say that members of the aggrieved faction burned the
church down. A short time later unidentified persons also
destroyed the mosque, and events quickly got out of hand. 11
people are reported to have been killed, anywhere from 6-13
churches and one mosque reportedly burned down, and, in
subsequent, localized outbursts of violence, shops and homes
looted and destroyed.


3. (SBU) The Arewa Consultative Forum -- a northern Muslim
association -- and the Christian Association of Nigeria both
quickly appealed to their members for calm; but, with
feelings still raw after November's sectarian riots in Jos,
Nigerian authorities have tried to move briskly to restore
order. The Federal Government has sent in troops to patrol
troubled neighborhoods, but some reports indicate that as
late as Monday, February 23, some looters had successfully
avoided concentrations of police and soldiers and targeted
commercial districts owned by Igbo traders, looting and
burning homes and shops. A dusk-to-dawn curfew has been
imposed, which has now been extended to 5pm to dawn. Post
has no reports of American citizens being targeted or
injured, and of the two registered citizens who gave a Bauchi
home address, the health and welfare of both has been
confirmed.


4. (C) COMMENT: That something as innocuous as a parking
dispute could so quickly turn into a bloodbath shows how
close to the surface intercommunal tensions boil in the
region. Most observers consider the Bauchi state
government's, and GON's, responses to these events to have
been more decisive and effective than those seen in Jos in
November. That said, state Governor Malam Isa Yuguda's
decision to take time during the height of the crisis to
attend a traditional ruler's funeral in another state, rather
than staying at the helm, has been criticized in some
quarters. Overall, it is clear that ethnic and religious
tensions in northern Nigeria -- and those who would seek to
exploit them -- have received fresh strength. The GON must
redouble its efforts at maintaining peace and security if it
is to stop this worrying spike in death and mayhem. END
COMMENT.


5. (U) This cable was coordinated with Consulate Lagos.
SANDERS