The
Republic of Biafra was a secessionist state in south-eastern
NigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal Capital Territory. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger...
. Biafra was inhabited mostly by the
Igbo peopleIgbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern and south Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
(or Ibo) and existed from 30 May 1967 to 15 January 1970. The secession was led by the Igbo due to economic, ethnic, cultural and religious tensions among the various peoples of Nigeria. The creation of the new country, named after the Bight of Biafra (the
AtlanticThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres , it covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface and about one-quarter of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to the Atlas of Greek...
bay to its south), was among the complex causes for the
Nigerian Civil WarThe Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Nigerian-Biafran War, 6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970, was a political conflict caused by the attempted secession of the southeastern provinces of Nigeria as the self-proclaimed Republic of Biafra....
, also known as the Nigerian-Biafran War.
Biafra was recognized by
GabonGabon is a country in west central Africa sharing borders with the Gulf of Guinea to the west, Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, and Cameroon to the north, with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. Its size is almost 270,000 km² with an estimated population...
,
HaitiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Creole- and French-speaking Caribbean country. Along with the Dominican Republic, it occupies the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago...
,
Côte d'Ivoire' , formerly named, and often referred to as the Ivory Coast, officially the ', is a country in West Africa. The government officially discourages the use of the name Ivory Coast in English, preferring the French name to be used in all languages.With an area of 322,462 km
2 Côte...
,
TanzaniaThe United Republic of Tanzania is a country in central East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.The United...
and
ZambiaThe Republic of Zambia is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west. The capital city is...
. Other nations did not give official recognition, but provided assistance to Biafra.
IsraelIsrael officially the State of Israel , is a developed state in Western Asia located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan in the east, and Egypt on the southwest, and contains geographically diverse features within its...
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
,
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
,
RhodesiaWhen the former colony of Northern Rhodesia changed its name to Zambia on independence in 1964, the colony of Southern Rhodesia changed its name to just plain 'Rhodesia'. The change had not yet been officialy ratified when Rhodesia declared itself independent on 11 November 1965...
,
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
and the
Vatican CityVatican City , officially the State of the Vatican City , is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, the capital city of Italy...
provided support. Biafra also received aid from non-state actors; Joint Church Aid,
Holy Ghost FathersFor other Congregations of the Holy Ghost, see Congregation of the Holy Ghost.The Congregation of The Holy Spirit is a Roman Catholic congregation of priests, lay brothers, and since Vatican II, lay...
of Ireland, Caritas International, MarkPress and U.S.
Catholic Relief Servicesthumbnail|right|250px|CRS logoCatholic Relief Services is the international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. Founded in 1943 by the U.S. bishops, the agency provides assistance to 80 million people in more than 100 countries and territories in Africa, Asia, Latin...
all gave support.
Secession
During 1960, Nigeria became independent of the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
. Similar to the other new African states, the borders of the country were not drawn according to earlier territories. Hence, the northern desert region of the country contained semi-autonomous feudal Muslim states, while the southern population was predominantly
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
and animist. Furthermore, Nigeria's oil, its primary source of income, was located in the south of the country.
Following independence, Nigeria was divided primarily along ethnic lines with
HausaThe Hausa are a Sahelian people chiefly located in the West African regions of northern Nigeria and southeastern Niger. There are also significant numbers found in regions of Sudan, Cameroon, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, and Chad and smaller communities scattered throughout West Africa and on the...
and
FulaniFula or Fulani or Fulbe are an ethnic group of people spread over many countries, predominantly in West Africa, but found also in Central Africa and Sudanese North Africa...
in the north,
YorubaYoruba people are one of the largest ethno-linguistic or ethnic groups in west Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
in the south-west, and
IgboIgbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern and south Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
in the south-east. In January 1966, a group of primarily eastern Igbo led a military coup during which 30 political leaders including Nigeria's Prime Minister, Sir
Abubakar Tafawa BalewaSir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was a Nigerian politician, and the first prime minister of an independent Nigeria. Originally a trained teacher, he became a vocal leader for Northern interest as one of the few educated Nigerians of his time...
and the Northern premier, Sir
Ahmadu BelloAl-Haji Sir Ahmadu Bello was a Nigerian politician, and was the first premier of the Northern Nigeria region from 1954-1966. He was one of the prominent leaders in Northern Nigeria alongside Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, both of whom where prominent in negotiations about the region's place in an...
were killed.
In July 1966 northern officers and army units staged a counter-coup. Muslim officers named a Christian from a small ethnic group (the Anga) in central Nigeria, Lieutenant Colonel
Yakubu "Jack" GowonGeneral Yakubu "Jack" Dan-Yumma Gowon was the head of state of Nigeria from 1966 to 1975. He took power after one military coup d'etat and was overthrown in another...
, as the head of the Federal Military Government (FMG). The two coups deepened Nigeria's ethnic tensions. In September, 1966, approximately 30,000 Igbo were killed in the north, and some Northerners were killed in backlashes in eastern cities.
In January 1967, the military leaders and senior police officials of each region met in
AburiAburi is a town north east of Accra, the capital city of Ghana. It is famous for the Aburi Botanical Gardens.. Aburi is home to Aburi Presbyterian Technical Secondary School, which is linked to The Sixth Form College, Farnborough in Hampshire, England. Aburi has a relatively small population and...
,
GhanaThe Republic of Ghana is a country in West Africa which borders Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
and agreed on a loose confederation of regions. The Northerners were at odds with the
Aburi Accord-Prelude to a Civil War:Aburi accord was reached 1967 at a meeting attended by delegates of both the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Eastern delegates lead by the soon to become rebel Leader Col Ojukwu. The meeting was billed to be the last chance of preventing out and out war...
;
Obafemi AwolowoJeremiah Obafemi Awolowo was a Nigerian politician and leader, a Yoruba and native of Ikenne in Ogun State of Nigeria, who started as a regional political leader like most of his pre-independence contemporaries. He founded many organizations, including Egbe Omo Oduduwa, the Trade Unions Congress...
, the leader of the Western Region warned that if the Eastern Region seceded, the Western Region would also, which persuaded the northerners.
The eastern government rejected the plan for reconciliation; on 26 May it voted to secede from Nigeria. On 30 May,
Chukwuemeka Odumegwu OjukwuGeneral Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Ikemba Nnewi, known as Emeka Ojukwu, was the leader of the secessionist state of Biafra in Nigeria , during the Nigerian Civil War, and previously Military Governor of the Eastern Region of Nigeria...
, the Eastern Region's military governor, announced the Republic of Biafra, citing the Easterners killed in the post-coup violence. The large amount of oil in the region created conflict, as oil was a major component of the Nigerian economy.
War
The FMG launched "police measures" to annex the Eastern Region. The FMG's initial efforts were unsuccessful; the Biafrans successfully launched their own offensive, taking land in the Mid-Western Region. By 1967, the FMG had regained the land, and by 1968, offensive measures by the FMG shrunk Biafra to one-tenth of its original size.
In September 1968, the federal army planned what Gowon described as the "final offensive." Initially the final offensive was neutralized by Biafran troops. In the latter stages, a Southern FMG offensive managed to break through.
On 30 June 1969, the Nigerian government banned all Red Cross aid to Biafra; two weeks later it allowed medical supplies through the front line, but restricted food supplies. Later in October 1969, Ojukwu appealed to
United NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and the achieving of world peace...
to mediate a cease-fire. The federal government called for Biafra's surrender. In December, the FMG managed to cut Biafra in half, primarily by the efforts of 3 Marine Commando Division of the Nigerian Army, led by then-Colonel Olusegun Obasanjo. Ojukwu fled to the Ivory Coast, leaving his chief of staff,
Philip EffiongPhilip Effiong was the first Vice President and the second and last President of the now defunct Republic of Biafra during the Nigerian Civil War of 1967 to 1970.-Early life:...
, to act as the "officer administering the government". Effiong called for a cease-fire 12 January and submitted to the FMG. More than one million people had died in battle or from starvation.
Geography
Enclosed in Biafra's borders were over of land; the land borders were shared with
NigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal Capital Territory. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger...
to the north and
CameroonThe Republic of Cameroon is a unitary republic of central and western Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the Bight of...
to the east. Its coast was on the
Gulf of GuineaThe Gulf of Guinea is the part of the Atlantic Ocean southwest of Africa. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian is in the gulf...
in the south.
The former country's southeast borders the Benue Hills and mountains that lead to Cameroon.
Two rivers flow from Biafra into the Gulf of Guinea: the
Cross RiverCross River is the main river in southeastern Nigeria and gives its name to Cross River State. Although not long by African standards its catchment has high rainfall and it becomes very wide...
and the
Niger RiverThe Niger River is the principal river of western Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in southeastern Guinea...
.
Climate
Biafra has a tropical climate with two distinct
seasonA season is a division of the year, marked by changes in weather.Seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth's axis relative to the plane of revolution...
s, dry and rainy. From April to October the rainy season takes place, with heavy
rainRain is liquid precipitation, as opposed to other kinds of precipitation such as snow, hail and sleet. On Earth, it is the condensation of atmospheric water vapor into drops heavy enough to fall, often making it to the surface...
and high humidity. The heaviest rain occurs between June and July with up to of rain level. The temperature of the region on a clear day is 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) high and 22 degrees Celsius (71.6 degrees Fahrenheit) low. The dry season starts in November and ends in April. The lowest rain level in February. The temperature at night reaches 20 °C (68 °F) and in the day has a peak temperature of 36 °C (96.8 °F).
Language
The predominant language of Biafra was the
Igbo languageIgbo is a language spoken by some 18 million mainly Igbo people in southeastern Nigeria, in the region once identified as Biafra and parts of the Niger Delta. The language was used by John Goldsmith as an example to justify deviating from the classical linear model of phonology as laid out in The...
. The Igbo language comprises hundreds of different dialects and
Igboid languagesIgboid is a branch of the Volta-Niger language family. It includes Ekpeye and the Igbo languages , spoken mainly in southern Nigeria.-References:* ;...
, such as
IkwerreThe Ikwerre , are one of the many ethnic groups in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. The Ikwerre constitute the majority of Rivers state and are spread across four local government areas namely: Port Harcourt, Obio/Akpor, Emuoha and Ikwerre LGA...
and
EkpeyeEkpeye is a language, a people, a culture and an ethnic kingdom in southeastern Nigeria. The Ekpeye are usually included as a subgroup of the Igbo people on linguistic and cultural grounds, although some define themselves as ethnically separate from the Igbo. They speak an Igboid language...
dialects. Along with Igbo there were a variety of other different languages, including
EfikThe Efik people in the 1500s migrated down the Cross River from Cameroon and founded numerous settlements in the Creek Town-Duke Town and surrounding areas in Coastal Southeastern Nigeria or South Sothern Nigeria in present Cross River State of Nigeria...
,
IbibioIbibio or Ibibio-Efik is the major member of the Benue-Congo language family called Cross River. The Efik variety has official status.-Varieties:...
, and so on.
Economy
An early institution created by the Biafran government was the Bank of Biafra, accomplished under ‘Decree No. 3 of 1967'. The bank carried out all central banking functions including the administration of foreign exchange and the management of the public debt of the Republic. The bank was administered by a Governor and four Directors; the first governor, per the signature on bank notes, was Sylvester U. Ugoh. A second decree, ‘Decree No.4 of 1967’, modified the Banking Act of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for the Republic of Biafra.
The Bank was first located in Enugu, but, due to the ongoing war, the bank was relocated several times.
Biafra attempted to finance the war through foreign exchange. After Nigeria announced their currency would no longer be legal tender (to make way for a new currency), this effort increased; after the announcement, tons of Nigerian bank notes were transported in an effort to acquire foreign exchange. The currency of Biafra had been the Nigerian pound, until the Bank of Biafra started printing out its own notes, the
Biafran poundThe Biafran pound was the currency of the breakaway Republic of Biafra between 1967 and 1970.The 1967 series of banknotes had no value outside of Biafra. The first issue were denominated at 5 shillings and £1 notes...
. The new currency went public on 28 January 1968, and the Nigerian pound was not accepted as an exchange unit. The first issue of the bank notes included only 5 shillings notes and 1 pound notes. The bank of Nigeria exchanged only 30 pounds for an individual and 300 pounds for Enterprises in the second half of 1968.
In 1969 new Notes were introduced:
£The pound, a unit of currency, originated in England as the value of a pound mass of silver. Historically, £1 worth of silver coins were a troy pound in mass; as of October 2009 this amount of silver is worth approximately £130....
10, £5, £1, 10
/-The shilling is a unit of currency used in current and former English Commonwealth countries and still used in countries which have become republics, such as Kenya. The word shilling comes from schilling, an accounting term that dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was deemed to be the value of...
and 5/-.
It is estimated that a total of £115-140 million Biafran pounds were in circulation by the end of the conflict. This is a relatively small amount, however, as the Biafran population at the time was 14 million, meaning roughly £10 per person was in circulation.
Military
At the beginning of the war Biafra had 3,000 troops, but at the end of the war the troops totaled 30,000. There was no official support for the Biafran army by another nation throughout the war. The Biafrans had at the beginning two
B-25 MitchellThe North American B-25 Mitchell was an American twin-engined medium bomber manufactured by North American Aviation. It was used by many Allied air forces, in every theater of World War II, as well as many other air forces after the war ended, and saw service across four decades.The B-25 was named...
s, one B-26 Invader (piloted by Polish pilot
Jan ZumbachJan Eugeniusz Ludwig Zumbach was a Polish fighter pilot who became an ace during the Second World War.-Early years:...
, known also as John Brown), converted DC-3 and one
DoveThe de Havilland DH.104 Dove was a British monoplane short-haul airliner from de Havilland, the successor to the biplane de Havilland Dragon Rapide and was one of Britain's most successful post-war civil designs...
. Because of the lack of official support, the Biafrans manufactured their weapons locally. In 1968 the
SwedishSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
pilot
Carl Gustaf von RosenCount Carl Gustaf Ericsson von Rosen was a Swedish pioneer aviator. He flew relief missions in a number of conflicts and well as combat missions for Finland and Biafran rebels...
suggested the MiniCOIN project to General Ojukwu. By the spring of 1969, Biafra had built five
MFI-9BThe Malmö MFI-9 Junior was a light aircraft produced in Sweden in the 1960s. It was designed by Björn Andreason as the BA-7 and flown by him in prototype form on 10 October 1958. He built this first plane in his spare time while working for Convair in the United States...
s in
GabonGabon is a country in west central Africa sharing borders with the Gulf of Guinea to the west, Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, and Cameroon to the north, with the Republic of the Congo curving around the east and south. Its size is almost 270,000 km² with an estimated population...
, calling them "Biafra Babies". They were coloured green, were able to carry six 68 mm anti-armour rockets and had simple sights. The six airplanes were flown by three Swedish pilots and three Biafran pilots.
Other Europeans served in the Biafran cause, German born
Rolf SteinerRolf Steiner was a professional Soldier of Fortune, born in Munich, Bavaria on January 3, 1933. He rose to the level of Lt. Commander of the 4th Commando Brigade in the Biafran Army during the Nigerian Civil War, and later served with the Anyanya rebels in southern Sudan.The son of a Protestant...
was a Lt. Colonel assigned to the 4th Commando Brigade and Welshman
Taffy WilliamsTaffy Williams was a professional soldier of fortune who served in the Congo with Mike Hoare and 5 Commando Congo as well as a Major in Biafra...
served as a Major until the very end of the conflict.
Legacy
The international humanitarian organization
Médecins Sans FrontièresMédecins Sans Frontières , or Doctors Without Borders, is a secular humanitarian-aid non-governmental organization best known for its projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing endemic disease....
("Doctors Without Borders") came out of the suffering in Biafra. During the crisis, French medical volunteers, in addition to Biafran health workers and hospitals, were subjected to attacks by the Nigerian army and witnessed civilians being murdered and starved by the blockading forces. French doctor
Bernard Kouchner Bernard Kouchner is a French politician, diplomat, and doctor. He is co-founder of Médecins Sans Frontières -- also known as Doctors Without Borders -- and Doctors of the World...
also witnessed these events, particularly the huge number of starving children, and, when he returned to France, he publicly criticised the Nigerian government and the Red Cross for their seemingly complicit behaviour. With the help of other French doctors, Kouchner put Biafra in the media spotlight and called for an international response to the situation. These doctors, led by Kouchner, concluded that a new aid organisation was needed that would ignore political/religious boundaries and prioritise the welfare of victims.
In their book,
Smallpox and its Eradication, Fenner and colleagues describe how vaccine supply shortages during the Biafra smallpox campaign led to the development of the focal vaccination technique, later adopted worldwide by the
World Health OrganizationThe World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health...
, which led to the early and cost effective interruption of smallpox transmission in west Africa and elsewhere.
On 29 May 2000, the Lagos
GuardianThe Guardian is an independent newspaper published in Nigeria by Guardian Newspapers Limited. It is the main competitor to The Punch for advertising, albeit not for circulation...
newspaper reported that the now ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo commuted to retirement the dismissal of all military persons who fought for the breakaway state of Biafra during Nigeria's 1967–1970 civil war. In a national broadcast, he said the decision was based on the belief that "justice must at all times be tempered with mercy".
Violence between Christians and Muslims (usually Igbo Christians and Hausa or Fulani Muslims) has been incessant since the end of the civil war in 1970.
In July 2006 the
Center for World Indigenous StudiesThe Center for World Indigenous Studies was founded in 1984 by Dr. Rudolph C. Ryser, Ph.D. and Chief George Manuel as an independent research and education organization...
reported that government sanctioned killings were taking place in the southeastern city of
OnitshaOnitsha is a city, commercial centre and river port on the eastern bank of the Niger river in Anambra State, southeast Nigeria. As of 2005 Onitsha had an estimated population of 561,106...
, because of a shoot-to-kill policy directed toward Biafran loyalists, particularly members of the
Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of BiafraThe Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra is a secessionist movement with the aim of securing the resurgence of the defunct state of Biafra from Nigeria...
(MASSOB).
Movement to re-secede
The "Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra" (MASSOB) advocates a separate country for the Igbo people of south-eastern Nigeria. They accuse the state of marginalising the Igbo people. MASSOB says it is a peaceful group and advertises a 25-stage plan to achieve its goal peacefully. The Nigerian government accuses MASSOB of violence; MASSOB's leader, Ralph Uwazuruike, was arrested in 2005 and is being detained on treason charges; MASSOB is calling for his release. MASSOB is also championing the release of oil militant Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, who is facing similar charges.
Meaning of the word "Biafra" and location of Biafra
Little is known about the literal meaning of the word Biafra. It is not part of the
Igbo languageIgbo is a language spoken by some 18 million mainly Igbo people in southeastern Nigeria, in the region once identified as Biafra and parts of the Niger Delta. The language was used by John Goldsmith as an example to justify deviating from the classical linear model of phonology as laid out in The...
. It is unclear whether the origin of the word Biafra has any relationship to "Bia", the Igbo word for "Come". The word Biafra most likely derives from the subgroup Biafar or Biafada of the Tenda ethnic group who reside primarily in
Guinea-BissauThe Republic of Guinea-Bissau is a country in western Africa, and one of the smallest states in continental Africa. It is bordered by Senegal to the north, and Guinea to the south and east, with the Atlantic Ocean to its west....
. Manuel Álvares (1526–1583), a portuguese Jesuit Educator, in his work
"Ethiopia Minor and a geographical account of the Province of Sierra Leone", writes about the
"Biafar heathen" in chapter 13 of the same book. The word Biafar thus appears to have been a common word in the Portuguese language back in the 16th century.
Historical maps of Biafra
Early modern maps of Africa from the 15th–19th centuries, drawn by European cartographers from accounts written by explorers and travellers, reveal some interesting information about Biafra:
- The original word used by the European travellers was not Biafra but Biafara, Biafar and sometimes also Biafares.
- The exact original region of Biafra is not restricted to Eastern Nigeria alone. According to the maps, the European travelers used the word Biafara to describe the entire region east of River Niger going down to the Mount Cameroon region, thus including Cameroon and a large area around Gabon.
Maps indicating the word Biafara (sometimes also Biafares or Biafar) with corresponding year:
Maps from the 19th century indicating Biafra as the region around today's Cameroon:
See also
- Land of the Rising Sun (national anthem)
"Land of the Rising Sun" was the proclaimed national anthem of the secessionist African state of Biafra, in south-eastern Nigeria. The tune was adopted from Sibelius' "Finlandia"...
- List of A-26 Invader operators
- Manillas
Manillas are penannular armlets, mostly in bronze or copper, very rarely gold, which served as a form of money or barter coinage and to a degree, ornamentation, amongst certain West African peoples...
- Nigerian Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War, also known as the Nigerian-Biafran War, 6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970, was a political conflict caused by the attempted secession of the southeastern provinces of Nigeria as the self-proclaimed Republic of Biafra....
- Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra
The Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra is a secessionist movement with the aim of securing the resurgence of the defunct state of Biafra from Nigeria...
- Radio Northsea International
- Ambazonia
Ambazonia or Ambazania is the name given to the Southern Cameroons by organisations that struggle for the dissolution of the 1961 union of the Southern Cameroons with Cameroun....
- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is an acclaimed Nigerian writer. She comes from Abba in Anambra State, southeast Nigeria. Her family is of Igbo descent....
: Half of a Yellow SunHalf of a Yellow Sun is a novel that was written by Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. It was first published in 2006 by Knopf/Anchor and tells the story of two sisters Olanna and Kainene during the Biafran War. -Plot introduction:...
- Rolf Steiner
Rolf Steiner was a professional Soldier of Fortune, born in Munich, Bavaria on January 3, 1933. He rose to the level of Lt. Commander of the 4th Commando Brigade in the Biafran Army during the Nigerian Civil War, and later served with the Anyanya rebels in southern Sudan.The son of a Protestant...
- Taffy Williams
Taffy Williams was a professional soldier of fortune who served in the Congo with Mike Hoare and 5 Commando Congo as well as a Major in Biafra...
External links
- My Biafran Eyes - Writer Okey Ndibe
Okey Ndibe is a novelist, political columnist, and essayist. Of Igbo ethnicity, Ndibe was born in Yola, Nigeria. He is the author of Arrows of Rain, a critically acclaimed novel published in 2000...
's memoir of the Biafran War in Guernica
- These Women Are Brave - A project on Igbo women's experiences during the Biafran war.
- Remember Biafra Pagehttp://www.myspace.com/rememberbiafra - A brief history on the Republic and conflict