Africa-Press – Nigeria. Berom people under the aegis of the Berom in Diaspora Coalition (BDC), in conjunction with the Berom Educational and Cultural Organization (BECO), Berom Youth Moulders Association (BYM), Berom Women Development Association (BEWDA), and Berom Elders Council (BEC), have raised a fresh alarm over what they described as the “prolonged genocide and systematic land grabbing” against the Berom ethnic group and other indigenous communities in Plateau State and the Middle Belt region.
Addressing newsmen, their spokesman, Barry Dazhi, lamented that the killings, which began over two decades ago, have continued unabated with little or no government intervention.
The groups said, “For over twenty years, our people in Fan District of Barkin Ladi, Riyom, Jos South, and neighbouring areas have come under sustained attacks, with homes burnt, farmlands destroyed, and thousands of lives lost.
“From available data, over 10,000 Berom people have been killed, 151 communities displaced, and vast lands forcefully occupied by Fulani bandits.”
The coalition accused successive governments of turning a blind eye to the situation despite repeated calls for intervention, describing the silence as “complicity and failure of leadership.”
They noted that a government that pampers killers and punishes victims is not a government but an accomplice, saying that Nigeria cannot claim to be one nation under law if terrorists are allowed to massacre indigenous people without consequence.
The coalition further expressed concern over alleged threats to the lives of three prominent Berom activists, Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo of the COCIN Church in Gwol, journalist and media advocate,bMasara Kim, and human rights lawyer, Barr. Dalyop Solomon Mwantiri.
The group observed that a credible intelligence reports indicated that a network of Fulani bandits from Nasarawa State had infiltrated Plateau with plans to abduct or assassinate the activists due to their vocal campaigns against terrorism and injustice.
BDC warned that the threats were part of a broader pattern of intimidation aimed at silencing voices exposing the ongoing atrocities, citing intelligence reports suggesting renewed infiltration and the establishment of armed camps in several parts of Plateau State, including Riyom, Barkin Ladi, Jos South, and Bokkos Local Government Areas.
It listed several locations allegedly renamed and occupied by the attackers, urging security agencies to urgently intervene and dismantle the enclaves.
BDC called on the Federal Government, National Assembly, and the international community to act decisively and officially designate Fulani militants as terrorists.
The groups also demand Immediate release of the N10 billion earlier pledged for victims’ rehabilitation, prosecution of perpetrators and sponsors of attacks and implementation of long-term peace and security mechanisms, including community-based policing and respect for ancestral land rights.
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