Africa-Press – Nigeria. Displaced Christians of Tiv extraction from Wukari Local Government Area of Taraba State on Thursday staged a peaceful protest, calling for justice and urgent intervention after spending seven years in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps.
The demonstrators, largely subsistence farmers, appealed to the Federal Government and the international community to facilitate their safe return to their ancestral homes.
They decried worsening living conditions, economic hardship, and the collapse of livelihoods since their displacement in 2019.
Addressing journalists during the protest, the leader of the group, Terhile Ahur, accused the Taraba State Government, Wukari Local Government authorities, and the Wukari Traditional Council of failing to support their reintegration.
Ahur claimed that more than 150,000 Tiv people have been displaced from Wukari and are currently taking refuge in neighbouring Benue State.
He further alleged that the crisis has led to the destruction of over 300 churches, 70 schools, and 30 primary healthcare facilities belonging to Tiv communities.
Tracing the origins of the conflict, Ahur said the crisis began with clashes between Jukun and Tiv groups in Kente village in 2019, which he claimed escalated into targeted attacks against Tiv Christians.
“What started as a communal clash has turned into what we see as a deliberate attempt to wipe out Tiv communities, particularly Christians,” he stated.
The IDP leader also alleged that repeated peace efforts have failed due to what he described as the “complicity” of local and state authorities.
He further expressed concern that Tiv residents are now being labelled as “settlers” in Wukari, despite what he described as their longstanding historical, political, and social ties to the area.
Citing historical precedents, Ahur emphasised the role of Tiv leaders in past governance and electoral processes, arguing that their indigene status in Taraba State is well established.
He also claimed that ancestral lands abandoned by displaced families have been occupied and redistributed by other groups.
“We believe the deployment of security personnel has not facilitated our return but has instead prevented us from accessing our homes,” Ahur said, calling on the Chief of Army Staff to investigate the conduct of troops in the affected areas.
The group appealed directly to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene by ensuring their safe return, deploying neutral security personnel, and providing humanitarian assistance.
They also called on the international community to take note of their situation, referencing the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, and urged urgent action to address what they described as serious violations of their fundamental human rights.
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