Michael Adiemeli

Esl 100

October 28, 2019

THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF THE BIAFRAN WAR TO MY PARENTS

The Nigerian-Biafra War took place between July 6 1967 and January 15 1970. This war was fought between the secessionist state of Biafra and the Nigerian government. The conflict was caused by political, ethnic, economic, cultural, and religious tensions that preceded Britain's formal decolonization of Nigeria from 1960-1963. Religious strife was more rampant as a vast population was Islam, and the minority was Christian, which suffered havoc. The war affected many civilians, including my parents and their relatives. There was loss of life and destruction of property, besides calamities such as hunger and massacres. The Biafran war led to the loss of work, starvation, and migration of my parents and their relatives.

The immediate effect of the Nigerian-Biafran War on my parents and their relatives was that they were laid off from their workplace. Since the war turned out to be an ethnoreligious conflict, my parents' jobs were significantly affected. In the affected area, the Islamic community was the dominant group, and the majority of the employers and the employees were Muslim. My mother’s employer and colleagues happened to be Muslims, and as the war was worsening with multiple massacres happening, my mother was forced to quit her job. It wasn't the wish of my mother to abandon the position. However, she was in jeopardy of losing her life because she was Christian, and her Muslim counterparts had evil plans for her. Similarly, my father almost lost his life. His case was much thrilling! His last day to report to work had multiple events that were life terminators. The region he was mainly operating at was an absolute Islamic community. He and one of his colleagues happened to be the only Christians within the job location. On that fateful day, he escaped stoning to death, although his colleague didn't make it through. Since then, life became tight, and the acquisition of finances was more difficult as never before.

Moreover, besides the loss of jobs, my parents underwent prolonged episodes of starvation. After the loss of employment, my parents had difficulties in acquiring new jobs, and in turn, since everything required monetary input, they couldn't afford meals as each day progressed. Besides the lack of money, the country had food shortages due to the episodes of famine that were experienced throughout the war. My mother's eldest brother starved to death (the starvation was very severe). Additionally, worsening the situation, the state army had put blockades all around the Biafran regions, thus, making it difficult for food and other surpluses to enter into the area. As a result, hunger became one of the leading causes of death among the less fortunate families and in turn, facilitated the migration of the remaining casualties to seek refuge from other communities that were not profoundly affected by the war.

Finally, the atrocities that led from the war led to the destruction of both human and animal life, and loss of property. My parents almost lost their lives due to the frequent attacks that were eminent in their immediate neighborhood. Houses were torched, including my parent's home. Besides the use of lethal weapons such as machine guns, which also led to the weakening of structures and the death of cattle and other domestic animals. My mother was almost raped, but my father intervened, and he was shot in his right foot but managed to come to her rescue. Consequently, as my parents were rescued by the UN troops and were taken to a refugee camp on the other side of the Niger delta, they decided never again to go back to their community land, which was severely ruined.

In addition, the Nigerian-Biafra War had a negative implication on my parents' lives, thus resulting in their loss of jobs, near starvation to death, and forceful migration in fear of their precious lives. Besides the loss of innocent lives and property. The atrocities that resulted from the conflict rendered many homeless and resulted in the mistrust among people. It became hard for neighbors within the affected regions to confide in one another as none was trustworthy across the periods of animosities resulting from the war. The effect of the war left an indelible mark on my parents’ life that can never be erased.