Subject: News from
Nigeria
Date: Tue, 13
Aug 2002 23:20:54 -0400
>From Compass Direct -
Nigeria
1- State Governor Imposes Arabic Language:
·
In a
controversial step, the governor of the northern state of Zamfara, Ahmed Sani,
a Muslim, announced the enforced use of the Arabic language by all residents of
the state, including Christians. Sani, who introduced the Islamic legal code
sharia to states in northern Nigeria in 1999, said he would enforce the
teaching and usage of Arabic in order to enhance the Islamic faith among the
people, regardless of their religious persuasion. In a speech to Islamic clerics and guests from the Saudi Arabia
Embassy, the governor thanked guests for their support of his administration
since the imposition of sharia law, and noted that God had entrusted Saudi
Arabia with the task of ensuring the progress of Islam around the globe. “We
will do our best to make sure that we understand and speak Arabic,” he said.
2 - Five Hundred Killed in Religious Conflict:
(Compass)
-- Some 500 persons died in an outbreak of violence between Muslims and
Christians in Wase, a town in Plateau state in northern Nigeria. Prominent Christian leaders Vincent Lar,
Gabriel Kumdum, and Tsaih Bakinrijia, a former police chief, were among those
killed in the July 12 tragedy. Solomon Lar, an advisor to Nigeria’s president,
said that more than 10 Christian communities were ravaged and destroyed in the
conflict. Some 10,000 people have been displaced in these villages and are now
living as refugees. A Canon of the Nigerian Anglican Communion blamed the
attacks on a “grudge” against Christians in this part of the country. “We
recognize the violence unleashed against church buildings, the holy men and the
Taroh Christians generally in this light,” he said.