Gaddafi calls for partition of Nigeria.

[jcdf]

Whether or not Nigeria is divided into two or more separate states has nothing to do with Gadaffi.

Should Nigeria be divided into two or more states, I do not know.

There are those that argue that Africa was divided into too many small states by the European colonizers. Some of these points have genuine merits. If we assume this is correct then surely further subdividing of the continent is the wrong way to go.

Should a nation be defined solely by it's ethnic characteristics and should it be monoethnic?

Should resources like oil be allowed to divide a nation. If this is the case then something is very wrong with the people of this nation.

Nigeria is an artificial colonial construct anyway.

Then what should the borders of that part of the world look like then? The problem is that Africa had no borders before the Europeans arrived.

Great to see Nigeria being 'enriched' by multiculturalism.

This and many other parts of the world like former Yugoslavia, Turkey and Iraq seem to contradict the the viability of multiculturalism. Perhaps it only works where there is loads of money.

In theory at least, it's not a totally off the wall idea. Nigeria was created by the British - there was no Nigerian nation before they came along. Its borders really only demarcate where the British zone of influence ended and the French one began.

However, splitting it north/south doesn't address this issue. To give each ethnic group (funny how so many people call them tribes if they're African) its own country, there'd need to be a six way split.

Well they only became ethnic groups in recent times due to Africa's massive population explosion. Over a century ago there was fewer than 100 million people on the whole continent and so they were divided into tribes.

[dse123]

Does Gaddafi have any vested interest or just making another splash?

[FalseFlag]

Northern regions of Nigeria are bandit country. Think South Armagh and Hotel Rwanda combined. It is lawless, and full of Islamic extremists only interested in creating a new Nigeria under Sharia law. The proposal would stop the killing, but also create a new hub for Islamic extremism internationally.

[southwestkerry]

Northern regions of Nigeria are bandit country. Think South Armagh and Hotel Rwanda combined. It is lawless, and full of Islamic extremists only interested in creating a new Nigeria under Sharia law. The proposal would stop the killing, but also create a new hub for Islamic extremism internationally.

110% spot on.

[FloatingVoterTralee]

Whether or not Nigeria is divided into two or more separate states has nothing to do with Gadaffi.

Should Nigeria be divided into two or more states, I do not know.

There are those that argue that Africa was divided into too many small states by the European colonizers. Some of these points have genuine merits. If we assume this is correct then surely further subdividing of the continent is the wrong way to go.

Should a nation be defined solely by it's ethnic characteristics and should it be monoethnic?

Should resources like oil be allowed to divide a nation. If this is the case then something is very wrong with the people of this nation.


Then what should the borders of that part of the world look like then? The problem is that Africa had no borders before the Europeans arrived.


This and many other parts of the world like former Yugoslavia, Turkey and Iraq seem to contradict the the viability of multiculturalism. Perhaps it only works where there is loads of money.


Well they only became ethnic groups in recent times due to Africa's massive population explosion. Over a century ago there was fewer than 100 million people on the whole continent and so they were divided into tribes.

The English weren't alone in making this mistake, when the French quit their colonies, they should have left the West African and Central African federal structures intact as parochial tribalism would have been avoided and the two new states would have become more viable politico-economic entities. Africa should re-organise itself into five regional confederations, rather than splitting further into mini-states.

[Catalpa]

He's at it again. Commenting on the ethno-sectarian violence which so far this year has resulted in the slaughter of hundreds of people in and around the city of Jos, Gaddafi has called for Nigeria to be split between the Islamic north and the Christian south.

Read more here:
allAfrica.com: Nigeria: Ghaddafi Wants Nation Divided to Stop Bloodshed

His comments have infuriated Nigeria's federal government which has recalled its ambassador to Tripoli.

allAfrica.com: Nigeria: Qaddafi's Gaffe - Nigeria Recalls Envoy From Libya

Maybe Nigeria should be partitioned - and maybe it shouldn't - but the sectarian strife around Jos is not a good reason for doing so.

[Thac0man]

Maybe Nigeria should be partitioned - and maybe it shouldn't - but the sectarian strife around Jos is not a good reason for doing so.

Maybe Sudan should be partitioned, funny Gadaffi never mentioned that possiblity. He seems content to stoke up Muslim seperatist sentiments where and when it suits him. These sort of rashly stupid statements are becoming the norm from the Colonel.

[Catalpa]

Maybe Sudan should be partitioned, funny Gadaffi never mentioned that possiblity. He seems content to stoke up Muslim seperatist sentiments where and when it suits him. These sort of rashly stupid statements are becoming the norm from the Colonel.

He's something of a loose cannon allright but he's a smart cookie nonetheless having survived 41 years as Leader of Libya.

He's made his peace with the West now so they don't care what he does so long as he doesn't back any more Liberation Groups.

[Thac0man]

He's something of a loose cannon allright but he's a smart cookie nonetheless having survived 41 years as Leader of Libya.

He's made his peace with the West now so they don't care what he does so long as he doesn't back any more Liberation Groups.

After the imposition of a police state and the carrying out of regular terrors against opponents, 41 years is no milestone nor an indication of cleverness. Such plaudits might be reserved for a poltician who manages to maintain a career at the top of a democracy over a period half as long as Gaddafi has enjoyed. The air of authoritarian rule often is confused with pragmatism. Unfortunitly it is also infused with myriad failures which only remain hidden because of state censorship.

[Thranduil]

He may be right about partitioning Nigeria, i cannot see the tensions there going away easily, the level of violence taking place is too high and as the population approaches .5 billion it will probably not get any better. If killing is going on to this scale continuously and if the country is an artificial construct anyway (and this is true of many African countries where citizens seem to have more loyalty towards their tribes than their country eg Kenya) then maybe it should be partitioned, do Sudan too.... It would not be easy when it comes to deciding who owns oil rich areas and before the partition takes place they would need to watch to make sure either side doesn't try some final grab - but if they can make it work then it might be for the best... I am afraid this is the grim reality of multiculturalism and other social problems like poverty combined - you will notice that the ethnic violence doesn't eat much into the pockets of the country's elites also, any problems with multiculturalism generally only manifest for those on the bottom of the socioeconomic scale.

Gaddafi has a better record in Africa than virtually every Western leader who for decades promoted slaughter, dictatorship and strip mining countries of their resources, he has a good record for advocating the nationalisation of African resources for Africans in the past (and consider his next door neighbour in Ethiopia can't give HIS country's farmland away to foreign corporations fast enough), Libyans enjoy a good standard of living because they repelled the assaults which other African countries could not (eg Mobutu's Zaire).... It is short-sighted to judge what he says solely on some perception that he is speaking for Islam on the issue.