PETITION CLOSED

  • The time period for signing this petition has ended.
  1. Signatures
    67 out of 100
    Petitioning
    1. United States Secretary of State (Secretary of State Clinton)
  2. Created By
    Justice In Nigeria Now (JINN)
    San Francisco, CA
About this Petition Petition Letter

On Thursday, Sept. 30, 2010 Secretary of State Clinton congratulated Nigeria on 50 years of independence.

 

"Nigeria and the United States share a close partnership, which is reflected in the U.S-Nigeria Binational Commission that we launched this year. Through the Commission, our countries have deepened our cooperation on many issues, including good governance and transparency, energy, regional security, and advancing peace and development in the Niger Delta. Working together, we can achieve even greater progress.” The Secretary also lauded the Nigerian military as peacekeepers that have helped stabilize the region.

 

Sadly, those living in oil producing communities of the Niger Delta haven’t seen much evidence of development—with most continuing to live on less than $1 a day and without access to electricity, clean drinking water, education or employment. And tragically, the “peacekeeping forces” she refers to in speaking of the Nigerian military destroyed village after village, killing and wounding innocent civilians, flattening whole communities in the oil producing Gbaramatu region of the Niger Delta between May and August 2009. These are communities in the vicinity of Shell and Chevron operations. Up to 20,000 people were internally displaced as a result of the operations that were carried out in the guise of rooting out militants. To date they have received no assistance despite having lost everything. Click here to see the destruction.

On the heels of this government violence against its own people, in mid-August 2009, while Secretary Clinton was in Nigeria meeting with the President and the Foreign Minister she pledged to explore providing additional military assistance to Nigeria.

 

Sign JINN’s letter below to send a message demanding that Secretary Clinton and the Obama administration rethink the U.S. role in bringing peace to the Niger Delta. Support diplomatic negotiations, not military assistance.

 

Nigeria is the one of the largest producers of oil in Africa, and is an important strategic partner for the U.S. – Nigeria exports 40% of its crude oil to the U.S., is Africa’s most populous country, and as noted by Clinton has played a key role in maintaining regional security in West Africa, ensuring that U.S. troops aren’t needed on the ground.

 

During her 2009 visit to Nigeria, Secretary Clinton rightly highlighted the importance of electoral reform, the need for transparency and the concern regarding widespread corruption, however her comments indicating the U.S. would explore military assistance for Nigeria is not the right approach to supporting Nigeria in resolving the crisis in the oil producing Niger Delta.  Residents of the Niger Delta have struggled for decades to demand their share of the oil wealth which makes up 80 percent of the Nigerian government’s revenues. Since oil was discovered in the late 1950’s the region has become poorer. In addition, the people have suffered mass human rights violations at the hand of the Nigerian military (sometimes at the behest of U.S. oil companies) when they have spoken up to demand jobs and an end to the environmental destruction by the oil companies including oil spills, water contamination and gas flares that burn 24 hours a day 7 days a week contributing to respiratory illnesses, cancer and significant Co2 emissions. Civil society groups and armed political militant groups alike have called for diplomatic negotiations as the way toward peace. They seek a say in their own governance and a genuine investment in the development of the Niger Delta. Ask Secretary Clinton to support diplomatic negotiations. Sign the letter below.

 

For more information about the crisis in the Niger Delta go to: http://www.justiceinnigerianow.org

Recent Signatures

Military Assistance in Nigeria is Not a Solution

Greetings,

October 03, 2010

Subject:
Military Assistance in Nigeria is Not a Solution

U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20520


Dear Secretary Clinton:

I am writing to urge you to rethink United States foreign policy with respect to Nigeria.

We agree with your statement to Nigeria on the occasion of its 50th anniversary of independence that the U.S. support for peace and development in the Niger Delta is imperative. We encourage the U.S. to shift course to support real development and investment in the Delta, which is a fundamental precondition for peace.

When you met with Nigerian Foreign Minister Ojo Maduekwe shortly after the bombings of innocent civilian villages in the Gbaramatu region of the Niger Delta in 2009, you stated your support for President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s approach to security in the country, which has been continued under the leadership of current President Goodluck Jonathan. You also pledged to explore U.S. military support for Nigeria with regards to the crisis in the Niger Delta. And, you referred to President Yar’Adua’s amnesty program for militants in the Delta that has been continued by President Jonathan as a “comprehensive political framework.” These statements are deeply disturbing and signal that the Obama administration’s foreign policy with regards to Nigeria is headed in the wrong direction.

As you know, Nigeria is confronting ongoing crisis, which can be turned into a moment of opportunity. The United States can help provide the leadership and influence to ensure that a creative and constructive solution to the root causes of the troubles in the Delta is undertaken. Peace and stability will result when the wealth gleaned from oil producing communities is invested in a legitimate way to develop local communities that today live without clean water, electricity, educational and employment opportunities; when the Delta’s residents are able to participate meaningfully in governance; when communities like those in Gbaramatu Kingdom destroyed by the military are rebuilt; when villagers don’t live under constant threat by the presence of the Nigerian military; when there is a legitimate environmental audit followed up with mitigation measures; when the wasteful, toxic and climate disrupting practice of flaring natural gas is ended; and when there is free and unfettered access to all parts of the Delta for journalists, human rights groups and humanitarian organizations.

The U.S. can help foster positive change in alignment with its values as a country that promotes democracy, freedom of the press, and peace through a process of diplomacy and independently monitored negotiations with all stakeholders including legitimate civil society representatives from the Delta, the political militants and the Nigerian government. Negotiations can bring true security to the people of the Niger Delta, the Nigerian government and to U.S. interests. Guns and gunboats won’t. Diplomatic negotiations are needed to remap how oil revenues are used to benefit Delta communities and ensure that Delta residents have a genuine say in their own governance. Diplomatic talks could truly be a comprehensive political framework for peace.

Nigerian villagers living on oil producing lands and U.S. interests will both benefit from a diplomatic approach instead of a military solution. Not only are diplomatic negotiations an effective means to peace, they would indicate a thriving federal democracy that respects the rights and needs of all its people. Supporting a diplomatic solution to the crisis of the Delta is an approach that is in alignment with American principles and values of democracy as Nigeria strives to resolve some of its thorniest issues.

Sincerely,


Cc: Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs, Johnnie Carson

[Your name]

Press Inquiries