Failure of Secession in Africa. The Case of Biafranization in Nigeria

Abstract or Introduction

This article primarily aimed to assess how Biafranization had failed, causes for the failure and its consequences. It is explanatory or analytical study based on systematic review of literature analyzed through unstructured qualitative method. Sources utilized for this study include books, legal documents and internets sources.

The initial quest of the Ibos was internal self-determination. However, the absence of appropriate response resulted to the genesis for Biafranization. Ultimately, the Ibos made an attempt to achieve their goal violently. Violent quest for Biafranization had failed due to internal and external factors. Its failure also resulted to hampered development of democratic principles, undermined sense of nationalism, brought negative impact on the economy, stability, security, inter-ethnic and intra-ethnic, and ethnic nationalism became the dominant feature in the region.

The conflict due to the quest for self-determination were often driven by their perceived political, economic, and cultural oppression. Such type of conflicts often goes through similar development process, but are usually defeated by military force. Both African governments and the international community were generally not sympathetic to these forms of activities. As a result, very few of these movements were successfully achieved their goal and won the right to self-determination (secession). Despite the limited success of these movements of self-determination, they have nevertheless caused considerable damage and destruction in socio, economics, and political life of the people in the continent. In fact, these movements of self-determination were caused by economic backwardness, competition to control natural resources, dysfunctional governments, and fractionalized societies (i.e. ethnic and religious).