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Igboukwu
Roped Pot |
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The
Biafran Legacy
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| The
Biafran legacy has been a defining factor in the life of the Igbo
nation. The Republic of Biafra was declared on May 30, 1967 as a last-ditch
effort to stem the wanton massacres of Ndigbo and other Easterners
who resided in other parts of Nigeria. This act of self-determination
to found our own safe haven in our ancestral homeland in Biafra was
seen by those who dominated the Nigerian government as a call to war.
A vicious 30-month war was waged against Biafra from multiple fronts
by the Nigerian military junta which deployed a scorched-earth policy
and mass starvation to force the breakaway nation to capitulate on
January 10, 1970. Since the military defeat of Biafra, there have been many policies and practices which the Nigerian Federal Government has utilized to perpetuate the misery of Ndigbo who are the majority inhabitants of the territory that was Biafra. The ultimate injustice that Ndigbo endured since the Civil War was manifest in a tacit agreement amongst their rivals in the North and West to utilize prolonged military dictatorship to marginalize them for more than 3 decades knowing that Igbos were purged from the top echelons of the army and government bureaucracy since the war. The Biafra Memorial Project (BMP) is not a movement to renew secessionist threat to the Nigerian nation but rather it is a strong desire to bring all the outstanding issues that surround Biafra to a satisfactory resolution so as to enable Ndigbo to resume the leadership role which they have played in nation building since the colonial era. For Ndigbo, the BMP is like 'osondu' (a life struggle) because life must continue for millions of our kith and kin in spite of the cataclysmic experiences of Biafra. The Biafra Memorial Project is the harbinger that will herald the dawn of an era of Igbo renaissance. Osondu Newsletter and Osondu web site are the publication arms of the BMP. We invite you to review our publications and frequent this site because we promise to go the extra mile to satiate your curiosity and ensure that it will be worth your time and effort to visit with us. |