After Disarmament: What Next?

By

Otive Igbuzor, PhD

Otive.Igbuzor@actionaid.org

otiveigbuzor@yahoo.co.uk

A KEYNOTE ADDRESS PRESENTED AT THE OFFICIAL LAUNCHING OF ASSOCIATION FOR WOMEN IMPROVEMENT IN THE SOUTH SOUTH (AWISS) ON FRIDAY 2^ND OCTOBER, 2009 AT PETROLEUM TRAINING INSTITUTE (PTI) CONFERENCE HALL, EFFURUN, DELTA STATE.

1.     INTRODUCTION

The amnesty programme recently announced by the Federal Government of Nigeria for militants in the Niger Delta has introduced the new lexicon of disarmament in our national discourse. Since the programme started, a good number of commentators have welcomed the amnesty programme with the hope that it will usher in peace which is greatly needed in the Niger Delta for development to take place. However, one question that has agitated the mind of many people is after disarmament, what next?

In this keynote address, we will attempt to prescribe what needs to follow the disarmament process that will lead to peace, justice, equity and development in the Niger Delta. But first, we will discuss the amnesty process and how we got to the situation where the Federal Government was compelled by circumstances to grant amnesty to the militias operating in the Niger Delta.

2.     HOW DID WE GET TO AMNESTY?

The amnesty process is a response to the challenges of the political economy of oil. It has been documented that oil prospecting activities began in the Niger Delta in 1908 when a mineral survey company began mineralogical studies.[i] The first phase of drilling activity was recorded to have been started by a German company known as Nigerian Bitumen Corporation. However, the first commercial oil field was found at Oloibiri in present day Bayelsa State in 1956. Nigeria started exporting oil in February, 1958 with production capacity of 6,000 barrels per day.

The volume and importance of oil has increased over the years.  It has been shown that Nigeria has about 35 billion barrels of proven oil reserve and another 5 billion in development.[ii] At the moment, the oil sector accounts for about 95 percent of expert revenues, 76 percent of government revenues and about a third of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product. Similarly, Nigeria has an estimated 180 billion cubic feet of proven natural gas making it the ninth largest concentration in the world.[iii] Unfortunately, Nigeria flares about 70 percent of the gas it produces and reinjects only 12 percent making it the country that flares the greatest amount of gas on planet earth.  It has been estimated that of the 3.5 billion cubic feet (99 million square meter) of associated gas produced annually, 2.5 billion cubic feet (71 million square meter) or about 70 percent is wasted through gas flaring.[iv] This equals about 25 percent of the UK’s natural gas consumption and equivalent to 40 percent of the entire African continent’s gas consumption in 2001. It has been documented that Nigeria releases 35 million tonnes of carbon dioxide and 12 million tonnes of methane into the atmosphere annually through gas flaring.[v]

As we have argued elsewhere, the Niger Delta has slipped into crisis as a result of oil and gas related issues.[vi] There is a high level of uncertainty and instability in the Niger Delta. There is extreme danger to life, businesses and property. Human rights violations have reached unprecedended proportions. There are several reported cases of brutality against the citizens including rape and extra judicial killings. People in the delta are living in very difficult situations that affect every facet of their lives. The people are passing through a lot of stress, physical and psychological trauma. Indeed life in the Niger Delta has become nasty, brutish and short.

The impact on women has been more and devastating. The impact has been documented elaborately:

In the Niger Delta, women maintain a very close relationship with the environment as producers and processors of food, as major purveyor of water and fuel wood, health care and sanitation facilities and as child bearers and rearers among many other duties. The Niger Delta women are therefore, adversely affected by the environmental problems orchestrated by the multinational oil companies operating in the region. Considering the fact that most rural women of the delta are farmers, it then means that the resultant de-naturalisation of the environment such as deforestation, oil spills, soil erosion and gas flare deprive of the means of survival. The women therefore suffer double jeopardy. They are major victims of the economic crisis in the delta because they are excluded from the meagre compensation that accrue to communities due to oil activities and are not considered for employment by the oil companies in the region.

The provision of water for domestic use in most of the rural communities of the delta is seen as the responsibility of the woman and the girl child. However, by virtue of the pollution of the rivers, creeks and streams, the woman or girl child trek long distances to fetch water for the household. This inflicts a heavy toll on them in terms of health, time and efforts. Carrying heavy water containers have severe consequences on the health of the women such as backache and joint pains among others. In extreme cases, curvature of the spine and pelvic deformities result, creating complications in pregnancy and child birth. Ignorantly, such misfortunes are attributed to supernatural forces.

Poor and overcrowded housing in the delta exposes women to health hazards by facilitating the spread of contagious diseases such as acute respiratory infections, measles, diphtheria and Tuberculosis which constitute one of the main causes of maternal mortality and morbidity.[vii]

Meanwhile, studies have shown that communities with oil facilities have more pervasive poverty than those areas without oil facilities.[viii]

All of these led to the emergence of militia, kidnapping and violence in the Niger Delta. As Okey Ibeanu has shown the emergence of the militia is a form of rebellion to the injustice and oppression in the Niger Delta.[ix] At the time of announcement of the amnesty daily oil production has decreased to about 50 percent.

3.     THE AMNESTY PROCESS

At the outset, it is important to state that the process of post conflict reconstruction in conflict ridden areas with militia groups involves disarmament, demobilisation and re-integration (DDR). A comprehensive definition of DDR was given by Gleichman et al as follows:

Demobilisation can be understood as the opposite of recruiting (mobilising) combatants for an armed group. In the military sense, demobilisation entails either disbanding an armed unit, reducing the number of combatants in an armed group, or it represents an interim stage before reassembling entire armed forces, be they regular or irregular. ... Disarmament forms an integral part of demobilisation when the aim is to reduce the number of combatants or to disband an armed unit. The weapons used by personnel must be handed over to the authorities, who are responsible for the safe storage, redistribution or even destruction of those arms. Reintegration is defined as the process by which ex-combatants acquire civilian status and gain access to civilian forms of work and income. It is essentially a social and economic process with an open time frame, primarily taking place in communities at the local level. It is part of the general development of a country and a national responsibility, often necessitating external assistance.[x]

From the above, it is clear that Disarmament, Demobilisation and Re-integration (DDR) is a peace process. Confidence building measures is key to the success of any DDR or amnesty process.  The re-integration phase is probably the most crucial stage that will determine whether or not there will be reversion to violence. It is intended to provide ex-militants with useful skills and realistic prospects for civilian life and should include plans for:

·        Resettlement

·        Integration into community life

·        Access to resources

·        Training and Capacity building and

·        Employment.

It is important to note that co-ordination of the three aspects of the amnesty process(Disarmament, Demobilisation and Re-integration) is crucial for success. More importantly, If the re-integration phase is not properly implemented, the militias will revert back to violence.

The amnesty for the militants operating in the Niger Delta was announced by President Umar Musa Yar’Adua on 25^th June, 2009 with the condition that the militants will renounce militancy within 60 days. He granted the amnesty in accordance with section 175 of the 1999 Constitution which provides that the President may grant any person concerned with or convicted of any offence created by an Act of the National Assembly a pardon, either free or subject to lawful conditions. A Presidential panel on amnesty and disarmament of militants in the Niger Delta was then set up to manage the process. The militants are to be demobilised and their arms returned to designated centres to pave way for rehabilitation and re-integration.

In our view, there are certain conditions that are necessary for the success of an amnesty process such as the one in the Niger Delta. These include:

a.     Professional and clinical execution of the amnesty process without introducing politics and calculation on winning elections

b.     Transparency and accountability of the process

c.      Addressing the root causes of the crisis

d.     Participation of international and local observers and

e.     Capacity building of the officials to plan, manage and execute the process.

On the 4^th of October, 2009, the period set for the amnesty process will come to a close. A review of the process so far will reveal some modest success but there are a lot of challenges. First and foremost, It is clear that the amnesty process has been politicised. As Jide Ojo has argued,

Perhaps, the greatest threat to the amnesty deal is the frosty relationship and muscle flexing between two Timis. The administration of Timipre Sylva, Governor of Bayelsa State has accused the Honourary Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Matters, Mr. Ndutimi Alaibe of undermining his authority. The Secretary to the Bayelsa State Government had in a reaction to the disarmament that took place at Azuzuma, Bayelsa State accused Alaibe of introducing politics into the amnesty exercise. The SSG also said the protest in Yenagoa is politically motivated to erode the gains recorded by his governor in the amnesty programme. It is an open secret that Timi Alaibe has his eyes fixed on the governorship of Bayelsa State and would want to make capital political gain of his present position. However, the issue at hand needs to be dispassionately tackled so that the amnesty deal does not get scuttled. There is need for the two Timis to sheath their swords and work together in the larger interest of Nigeria and their Niger Delta region.

It would be recalled that on September 6, 2009, thirty-year-old South Wing Commander of the MEND, Mr. Kile Selky Torughedi, a.k.a 'Young Shall Grow' submitted a large cache of weapons to Timi Alaibe. They included assorted guns and rifles, grenade launcher chargers, grenades, dynamites, bombs and gun boats. He claimed he had 350 fighters and that he speaks French and has soldiers from Liberia and Gabon. In footage of his village shown on one of the Africa Independent Television (AIT) on September 17, I saw a Nursery school founded and funded by Kile as well as old women he engages on environmental sanitation on N10, 000 monthly salaries each. Talk of failure of governance![xi]

Secondly, there has not been professional execution of the process. The laid down process of disarmament and demobilisation was not followed in all cases leading to demonstration by militants in Yenogoa, Bayelsa State on 4^th, 7^th and 25^th September, 2009. The militants complained of being accommodated in dilapidated building in rehabilitation centres and non-payment of their allowances.

Thirdly, the root causes of the crisis in the Niger Delta have not been tackled. Peace requires justice. For the amnesty process to succeed, the injustice dome to the Niger Delta people over the years must be redressed. Peace without justice is peace of the graveyard and is not sustainable.

Furthermore, the level of participation of international and local observers, communities and stakeholders in the process is low. Peace process requires robust participation of stakeholders to increase confidence. In particular, the participation of women in peace building is key because women’s participation not only put new items on the agenda but also because women are perceived to be more empathetic which enhances their reconciliatory and political work as negotiators and possibility of fostering confidence and trust.[xii]

4.     WHAT NEXT?

As has been alluded to above, disarmament and demobilisation without an effective re-integration programme will only produce “temporary peace” of the graveyard. A successful amnesty process or DDR should create the basis to right the wrongs of the past and help to create a just and equitable society. By the time that the amnesty period will expire on 4^th October, 2009, it is unlikely that majority of the militants will have handed in their arms and ammunitions. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has requested for extension of the deadline. At the expiration of the moratorium period, the Federal Government should resist the temptation of launching a new military action against militants who may not have surrendered. That will only escalate the crisis and create a new wave of militancy. As General Luke Aprezi, a former Commander in ECOMOG and Force Commander for the African Union Force (now UN Force) has counselled, I can tell you point blank that the war is not winnable by the Nigerian Army. Military can never solve the problem in the Niger Delta. Because Sri Lanka fought the Tamil Tigers for 26 years and now they seem to have defeated the Tamil Tigers, but then, you win the war, have you won the peace? It is what will come out of winning the peace that will determine whether there would be further uprising or not. I can categorically tell you that Nigerian army cannot win the war in Niger Delta. From my experience all over the world, at best military will carry out a holding action till a political solution is found.[xiii]

Secondly, every effort must be made to avoid the politicisation of the re-integration phase of the amnesty process which will determine whether or not there will be reversion to violence.

Furthermore, the capacity of the relevant officials must be built to proper handle the re-integration process. The errors that led to the demonstration of militants in Yenogoa, Bayelsa State must be avoided.

Another important point is that states and local government areas in the Niger Delta must change their ways in terms of transparency and accountability to ensure that the vast amount of resources that have been flowing into the Niger Delta since 1999 can be translated into improvement in the lives of citizens. From 1999 to 2007, Delta State received the sum N463 billion from federal allocation. This amount is more than allocation to five states (Anambra, Gombe, Ekiti, Nassarawa and Plateau) put together. This is why Mr. Konyinsola Ajayi pointed out that “it is a shame that Delta State is not a mini-Dubai today given the enormous resources that have been allocated to the state.”[xiv] Until the people of the Niger Delta see politics as service to the people and not an avenue to “come and chop” either alone or in conjunction

 with others, there will be no meaningful progress in the region.

In addition, mechanisms and structures should be put in place for the participation of communities, civil society organisations including community based organisations, professional groups and workers in the re-integration process. In particular, women and youth organisations should be invited, engaged and supported to participate in the process. Gender and youth issues should be mainstreamed. Disability groups should be empowered to engage the process especially in view of the fact that some militants have become disabled in the process of militancy.

Finally and perhaps most importantly, the root causes of the crisis must be addressed. All the obnoxious laws that deny the Niger Delta people the ownership and control of the resources in their land such as the 1999 Constitution and the Petroleum Act must be amended. Every effort must be made to resolve the Niger Delta crisis peacefully for those who make peaceful change impossible make violent change inevitable.

ENDNOTES