Nigeria’s crisis not Christian vs Muslim war, says Soyinka
Quick Read
The 90-year-old author added that political leaders have taken advantage of religious differences to gain power while refusing to punish extremists. This, he said, has allowed impunity and violence to grow across the country.
Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has responded to former U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim that a Christian genocide is taking place in Nigeria.
Speaking in an interview with Democracy Now, Soyinka said Trump’s statement gives a wrong impression of Nigeria’s situation and could increase religious tension in the country.
According to him, the conflict in Nigeria should not be described as a war between Christians and Muslims, but rather as a fight against extremists who use religion for political and economic purposes.
“We must separate Nigeria’s long-standing internal problems from President Trump’s recent comments,” Soyinka said.
“The Christian–Islam or Islam-versus-the-rest kind of division has existed for decades. It became truly dangerous when politics became mixed with religion.”
The 90-year-old author added that political leaders have taken advantage of religious differences to gain power while refusing to punish extremists. This, he said, has allowed impunity and violence to grow across the country.
Comments