US embassy cable - 05LAGOS1753

C O N F I D E N T I A L LAGOS 001753 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/W 
STATE FOR INR/AA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/08/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, NI 
SUBJECT: BIAFRAN SEPARATISTS AND POLICE CLASH, BURN FIRST 
PRESIDENT'S HOME 
 
REF: ABUJA 1744 
 
Classified By: Consul General Brian Browne for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
1.  Summary.  During a demonstration in Onitsha (Anambra 
State) following the GON's arrest and detention of Ralph 
Uwazurike, the house of Nigeria's first post-independence 
President, Nnamdi Azikiwe, was razed.  Uwazurike is the 
leader of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign 
State of Biafra (MASSOB).  At least one person is reported 
dead, two wounded, and eighteen MASSOB members have been 
arrested in Onitsha, Anambra State.  End Summary. 
 
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MASSOB Leader's Arrest Leaves Many Discontents in the South 
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2.  (C)  In late October, the State Security Service (SSS) 
arrested Ralph Uwazurike, whose separatist group MASSOB is 
known for mass "stay-at-homes" in southeastern Nigeria. 
(Note.  MASSOB protests earlier in September reportedly 
claimed 6 lives.  End Note.)  At the time of Uwazurike's 
arrest, other MASSOB leaders promised to take action within 
seven days if Uwazurike were not released.  The GON has 
charged Uwazurike and six others from MASSOB with treason.  A 
journalist who spoke with him said Uwazurike complained the 
conditions of his SSS holding cell were "deplorable" and that 
he had been bound in "steel shackles."  He reportedly 
requested a transfer to a prison.  A hearing on the matter is 
scheduled for December 6, 2005. 
 
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At Least 1 Dead and Late President's House in Flames 
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3.  On November 7, MASSOB-led protests took place in three 
cities in Anambra State, as well as in Enugu, Imo, and Abia 
States.  Protests were most disruptive in Anambra.  During 
the protest in the busy market city of Onitsha, the home of 
the first post-independence President, the late Nnamdi 
Azikiwe, was burned to the ground.  A nearby house and 
several vehicles were also destroyed.  A local human rights 
activist reported police stationed near the home opened fire 
on protestors who were hurling insults and stones at them. 
The police killed one protestor and injured two.  To avoid 
retribution, the police quickly took refuge in the house of 
the revered late Igbo leader.  Angry protestors surrounded 
the house.  When police refused to leave, the anger of the 
protestors at the temporary occupants of the house exceeded 
their respect for the person who built it.  Thus, they set 
fire to the place.  Police acknowledge frenzied MASSOB 
members set the house ablaze but claim that their officers 
had not sparked the destruction by previously firing at the 
protestors.  The policemen were ultimately rescued from the 
blaze. 
 
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Governor Blames Political Enemies, Not MASSOB 
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4.  Anambra State Governor Chris Ngige visited the scene 
November 8.  In a speech that day, he blamed the National 
Union of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) for taking advantage 
of a minor skirmish between police and protestors to loot the 
home and embarrass the government.  Anambra's Governor is 
locked in a battle with NARTO over control of resources 
derived from motor park fees in Anambra.  Ngige pledged to 
help rebuild Azikiwe's home. 
 
5.  (C)  Comment.  The protests over Uwazurike's arrests are 
indicative of the feelings of many people in the Southeast. 
While most Igbos do not support secession, they empathize and 
attach themselves to the sentiments behind MASSOB.  Thus, 
although few Igbos would support MASSOB to its logical 
conclusion, they do lend it their moral support; it is an 
effective, if often coarse, spokesperson for their political 
frustrations.  Anambra state governor Ngige therefore found 
it convenient to blame others, not MASSOB, for damaging 
Azikiwe's homestead.  Uwazurike's arrest appears part of a 
crackdown by the GON against the leaders of the major radical 
groups in the South.  In addition to Uwazurike, Dokubo Asari 
from the South-South and Frederick Fasehun of the Oodua 
People Congress (OPC) in the Southwest have been arrested. 
Evidently, the GON is betting that, in capturing the heads of 
these groups, the corpora will lose vitality.  This tack 
could quiet these groups or lead to further protests and 
radicalization.  The stability of significant portions of 
southern Nigeria will depend on whether the GON has bet 
wisely.  End Comment. 
BROWNE