Kodiliniye Obiagwu’s prevailing memory of the Biafran civil war– the bloodiest chapter in Nigeria’s history – is listening to the radio.
Obiagwu, the south-eastern bureau chief of the Guardian Nigeria, said: “I remember that we listened to radio Biafra often. I was only 10 but for my parents and other relatives, youcould see what it meant to them. It gave you hope and lifted you. That’s not the feeling I get listening to it now.”
Nearly 50 years aftera coup that sparked the questfor a breakaway Biafran state in the south-east of the country, an unprecedented wave of protesthas erupted across the region once again, spurred on by the return of Radio Biafra and its increasingly incendiary broadcasts.
In October, clashes in Delta, Imo and the surrounding States intensified after the arrest of Nnamdi Kanu, the director of the illegal station, who is thought to have assumed control of broadcasting in the 1990s.
Kanu, a dual British and Nigerian citizen, had been running the station from his home in Peckham in south London. On 14 October,he was arrested during a visit to Nigeria for encouraging members of the Igbo community to use violence in their protests.
Concerns about Kanu’s treatment in detention have since been raised by his Peckham MP, Harriet Harman, while many others continue to march for his release.
Vincent Obetta, Kanu’s lawyer, has expressed concern about political interference in the case. Though the original charges were dropped in December, Kanu remains incarcerated and the state has since accused him of fresh terror charges.
Lammy Ughebe, a journalist who attended Kanu’s court hearings in Abuja, said protesters had marched outside the court at each sitting. “If anything, the arrest has made the situation worse,” he said.
“The government see him as a vocal figure in the [Biafran independence] movement,” Ughebe said, “so there’s a feeling that he is being made an example of.”
No comments:
Post a Comment