HURIWA to petition UK, EU over Buhari’s reluctance to stop Kaduna genocide

A civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), on Thursday, threatened to petition the United Kingdom and the United States over the reluctance of President Muhammadu Buhari to stop the alleged genocide in Kaduna State.

HURIWA, in a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, said it was shocking that over 37 persons were allegedly killed this week by invading marauders who attacked Agban Kagoro in the Kaura Local Government Area of Kaduna State on Sunday night.

The group said the trend of carnage in Southern Kaduna was concerning since 2015 when Buhari and Governor Nasir el-Rufai, both of the All Progressives Congress, came into office.

According to the el-Rufai government, 937 persons died in 2020 while 1,972 others were kidnapped. It also said 3,348 residents were kidnapped in 2021, and 1,192 deaths record, which is 27.21 per cent higher than the number killed in 2020.

The President recently condemned the fresh attack in Agban Kagoro and described it as “mindless act of violence” that has no place in a civilised society.

But HURIWA said the President should go beyond rhetorics and swing into action, stop tolerating the invaders and forbid them from wiping Christians from Southern Kaduna.

The group said: “The persistent attacks on Southern Kaduna make it clear there is an official agenda to wipe off the indigenous Christian communities of Southern Kaduna. It is also clear that the Governor and the President who are both Fulanis are definitely not prepared or ready to tackle the crises from the roots and these killings have definitely become one sided, well-coordinated and well planned.

“The military and other security agencies are also complicit because it is inexplicable that despite the heavy presence in Kaduna with no fewer than six military formations in the city, the attacks on Christians in Southern Kaduna continue unabated.

“It is also imperative that the European Union and the UK Parliament send monitors and observers to visit the theatres of attacks in Southern Kaduna and have first-hand knowledge of an genocide targeting Christian indigenous communities who have lost a lot of their communities to these terrorists who have settled in the communities after driving away the natives.

“HURIWA is also putting the whole world on notice that we are sending petitions to the European Union, United Kingdom and to US President, Joe Biden.”