Ngozi James
Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria(HURIWA) has condemned the recent kidnap of a Catholic reverend father in southern Kaduna, Kaduna state and asked President Mohammed Buhari and the governor of Kaduna state to end what it described as “Jihad ” in Northern Nigeria.
HURIWA asked the Nigerian Government to take steps to ensure that the continuous attacks and violence unleashed on the people of southern Kaduna “who are mostly Christians must stop.”
In a statement on Monday signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA condemned demanded the immediate.and unconditional release of kidnap of Rev. Father Joseph Shekari, the parish priest of St Monica Catholic Church Ikulu Feri in Kauru Local Government Area and the killing of Steward.
“These continuous attacks on Christians is a confirmation that there is an ongoing genocide in the Southern Kaduna and a lot more other places in the northern Nigerian territory including Plateau State whereby Christians dominate numerically. There is a jihad to depopulate Christians. Government must investigate this and arrest the perpetrators and bring them before competent court of law,” the statement read.
“It is fact that Christians are specifically targeted by armed Islamists masquerading as Fulani herdsmen to attack Christians in the northern states where they (Christians) are the majority in terms of population, such states are Taraba, plateau, Southern Kaduna, Benue are the major flash points of ‘Jihad’ going on is almost no longer in doubt except to doubting Thomases.
It must be made emphatically clear that HURIWA is in no way accusing President Muhammadu Buhari of direct involvement in the killing of Christians in Northern Nigeria. We recognise that President Muhammadu Buhari is peace loving.
“This is the reason why we have consistently called on President Muhammadu Buhari as the father of the Nation to protect Christians who are in Northern Nigeria and his constituents same as adherents of all organised and non orthodox religions including ATHEISTS.
A lot of those Fulani groups identifying themselves as ‘Miyetti Allah Cattle sellers’ are the people responsible for the attacks on Christians”, the statement added.