THE FUND FOR PEACE PARTNERSHIPS INITATIVE IN THE NIGER DELTA PARTNERSHIP INITIATIVE Rise in Cult Violence and Insecurity in

Briefing: November 2015

Reports of cult violence have increased report by the Fund for Peace in December Rivers State, sharply in the Niger Delta since the 2012 titled, ‘Nigeria: Beyond Terror and beginning of 2014. This has been Militants,’ confraternities were initially particularly salient in Rivers State, where the formed in the 1950’s at universities for the violence has been spread over a wide purposes of promoting relationships and geographic region. In Rivers, as in other bonds between and among various Niger Delta states, cult violence has taken students for social and economic advocacy on various criminal, militant, communal, and activism. Many of these groups focused and/or political undertones, depending on on the promotion of social and political the situation. In 2015 for instance, incidents principles, including resistance to included a major clash between rival cult colonialism and discriminatory, sexist, or groups Deywell and Deebam in the unfair university policies. northern Local Government Area (LGA) of Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni that killed as many as From the late 1980’s to the mid-1990’s, a 16 people in July. There was also a reported wave of militarization occurred among clash between rival cult groups confraternities against the backdrop of a Greenlanders and Icelanders in the broader militarization of society, particularly southern LGA of Degema; and political in Rivers and other key Niger Delta states. intimidation by cult groups such as the Contributing to this trend of militarization Icelanders and Greenlanders between was a growing perception that peaceful This briefing outlines the background and January and April in the central LGA of Port methods of advocacy and mobilization historical significance of confraternities in Harcourt, the south eastern LGA of , around issues of economic justice and the Niger Delta, and the emergence of cult and elsewhere. Given how pervasive the representative governance were yielding groups as a result in Rivers State. It summa- issue has become, for any program that limited results. Thus, the use of violence and rizes the recent trends in violence and seeks to mitigate conflict in the state, intimidation as political tools were cultism will have to be a key consideration increasingly embraced and many insecurity linked to the many active cult in the coming year as Rivers goes through confraternities began to evolve into what groups in the State, and provides recommen- significant socio-political changes has become the cult group phenomenon of dations for promoting greater peace and presenting both opportunities and risks to today. security within the region. sustainable peace and development. As noted in the April 2015 book, ‘Violence in Scope and Limitations: We recognize that the Background Nigeria: Patterns and Trends,’ by Patricia data collected in this project is not an Taft and Nate Haken, militants saw exhaustive tally of all incidents of violence. confraternities as a useful means to Cult violence has been a regular feature in However, to the extent that data are repre- confront and threaten opposing groups, the Rivers State socio-political setting for sentative of the patterns and trends, findings and began funnelling money and weapons more than two decades. According to a are indicated in the report. into their ranks, leading them to become NOVERMBER 2015: RIVERS CULT VIOLENCE BRIEFING

increasingly predatory and violent. Cult- Reported Fatalities in Rivers State related violence peaked in the mid-1990s, spreading rapidly to the streets as well as the creeks through militarized wings of the 250 Reported Fatalities due to confraternities and breakaway factions. Cult Violence in Rivers State In the 2007 elections, according to a report 200 Reported Fatalities due to by Human Rights Watch from October of

Poltical Tensions that year, wealthy patrons emerged as “Cult 150 Godfathers,” who provided money and Reported Fatalities Due to weapons to groups during election seasons Fatalities 100 Communal/Ethnic for intimidation and thuggery. Cult groups Tensions began being hired by crime syndicates to 50 provide onsite security and administer Reported Fatalities Due to criminal routes, leading them to become Overall Insecurity 0 deeply enmeshed in the illegal oil bunkering 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 market, as well as in the drugs and weapons trade. Cult gangs became highly active Trend shows a significant rise in reported cult-related fatalities between 2012 and 2015 in Rivers State. This is consistent with an within neighbourhoods and communities, overall rise in insecurity in Rivers, which has seen a steady increase in fatalities since 2013. By comparison, reported political and often recruiting youths to their ranks to help communal/ethnic related fatalities have both been notably lower than cult related fatalities. defend and expand their territory. Data source: Nigeria Watch www.nigeriawatch.org

In Rivers State in particular, cults have Nexus Between Rivers Politics and Cultism may have direct or indirect affiliations with served as a gateway to all kinds of the more prominent groups in the state. criminality and violence, including militancy. Political tensions in 2015 were sharply These groups and networks of groups have Furthermore, many of the hotbeds of cult elevated in Rivers State in the run-up to the wide geographical penetration in the state violence are located in centres of political March federal election, the April and are heavily armed. In Rivers, as well as activities such as the state capital of Port gubernatorial elections, and the May local other states, cult groups overlap with street Harcourt and other local government elections. Based on Peace Map analysis of gangs, criminal syndicates, youth headquarters, as indicated in the heat map Nigeria Watch data, political tensions far associations, and other militias. From the on page 3 of this briefing. The emergence exceeded ethnic/communal tensions during more notorious Deebam, Deywell, of known ex-agitators and cult leaders in the period. Greenlanders and Icelanders, to the lesser the current Rivers State House of Assembly known Doctor’s Squad, Italians, Blood suggests a further linkage between the As noted in the publications cited above and Hunters, Junior Vikings, Bermudas and struggle for political power and cult violence consistent with recent Peace Map and IPDU others, cult groups have proliferated in in the state. research findings, cult violence tends to Rivers State with reach into the escalate during the election cycle. This is communities of , Ikwerre, Khana, Gang violence and cult clashes have also typically because many cult groups depend Ogba Egbema Ndoni, and the been observed in connection to oil on the patronage of politicians, who either Kalabari and villages. bunkering and illegal refining activities. employ them as informal security or use There were multiple reported incidents of them to intimidate, attack or kill their clashes between rival cult groups over Patterns of Insecurity opponents. Due to the political issues such as access to illegal bunkering underpinnings of cult violence, many cult camps, royalties from oil businesses, and Since the 2009 Presidential Amnesty groups are either community-based or built job opportunities provided by oil companies program went into effect, 2015 has around certain charismatic individuals who in Ikwerre, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni, Port represented the most violent year in Rivers serve as rallying points for members. In Harcourt and Okrika LGAs. Communities in State. As outlined in the above right graph, addition to community-based groups and LGAs such as Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni, Akuku- 2015 had the highest number of reported those built around certain individuals or Toru, Asari-Toru, Degema, Eleme and Port fatalities in the past six years. Violence groups of individuals (including ex-militant Harcourt have been witnessing increasing perpetrated by suspected cultists makes up leaders), there are also what is known as cult and gang related violence. a significant proportion of those incidents. ‘feeder groups’. These are associations that

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Cult Related Incidents by LGA

The following summaries highlight cult- Obio/Akpor Cult-Related Fatalities in Rivers State related violence in some of the key LGAs in

Rivers State during 2015. The incidents were 70 In January, two cult groups allegedly reported in on the online Peace Map clashed, although there were no fatalities 60 (www.p4p-nigerdelta.org) and the IPDU SMS reported. Early Warning Platform. 50

Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Asari Toru 40

With as many as 68 people killed so far this 30 Reported cult-related violence in 2015 in- year as a result of cult activities, Ogba/ 20 cluded robbery, stockpiling of weapons, and Egbama/Ndoni was the most violent LGA in political thuggery during the elections. Rivers state. In May, police reportedly en- 10 gaged cultists in a gun battle, killing over 20

0

Okira Degema Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Eleme Ikwerre Tai Obio/Akpor Asari

Degema of them. Two months later, in July, there

was a reported clash between Deywell and

-

Toru

Deebam cult groups that killed 18. In Sep-

Reported cult-related violence in 2015 in-

cluded a clash between Greenlanders and tember, another clash between cult groups

Icelanders over oil bunkering, which alleged- reportedly killed another 17.

ly resulted in one fatality. In a separate incident, a cultist was reportedly beaten up Okrika in a political dispute. Trend shows that Ogba/Egbama/Ndoni has the highest levels of cult violence reported for 2015, with 68 fatalities reported since In February, cultists and armed gangs re- January. Eleme has the second highest tally in cult-related fatali- Eleme portedly attacked party supporters during a ties, driven by the Deebam and Deywell cult group clashes. campaign rally and killed a police officer and Data source: Nigeria Watch www.nigeriawatch.org In April two people were killed in a clash stabbed a news media personnel. Then in suspected to be between the Deebam and July in attack that was believed to be cult- Deywell cult groups. Then in July, as many related, a clash between two communities as fifteen people were reportedly killed reportedly killed five. when cultists shot indiscriminately into a market place. Tai

Etche In July it was reported that two people were killed during a cult clash in a community. In January, the rivalry between the Deebam and Deywell cult groups had been elevated Port Harcourt in the LGA when three cultists were killed in a clash, leading to increased communal Although it didn’t have the highest number tensions in the area. of fatalities reported in the state, as a result

of cult violence, Port Harcourt had by far the Heat Map: Hot spots for reported cult-related incidents from 2009 Ikwerre highest number of incidents in 2015. These to 2015 in Rivers State. included robbery, kidnappings, killings (eg. The graphic above is a Heat Map (screenshot) of incidents reported In July there was reported to be a clash be- of an ex-militant, four men in a restaurant, using Nigeria Watch Data — www.p4p-nigerdelta.org. tween the Dewell and Axelander cult groups and several people in a bar), as well as sev- that killed three. eral reports of political intimidation in the

run-up to the elections. There were also reported conflicts over the control of an oil bunkering camp and revenue from banana dealers.

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Key Cult Groups in Rivers State

The Vikings notes that violence involving the Deebam Cult Group Emergence in Rivers usually occurs when individuals fail to pay

bribes, or when clashes with rival cult The Supreme Vikings Confraternity also 1980s groups, such as the Deewell. called the Norsemen Klub of Nigeria, was Academic and advocacy groups known as formed at the University of Port Harcourt in ‘confraternities ‘ form in Nigerian Universities, including the Vikings Rivers State in 1982 with the mission to Deewell promote unity and brotherhood on campus 1990s and the betterment of society overall. Even Like Deebam, members of Deewell were not Driven by wave of militarisation, confraternities today, the group maintains that its university-affiliated when they splintered splinter into violent ‘street wings’ , evolving into objectives are peaceful. During an interview from the Vikings. As Wellington describes, non-university membership conducted by Roy Chikwem for Nigeriaworld many of the Deewell members were already Deewell, Deebam & Icelanders from as splinter groups from the Vikings in October 2008, a high ranking leader in involved in petty crime and were known for the confraternity said that their mission was their participation in territorial street brawls 2005 to, using broken bottles, machetes and locally- Loose alliance between cult groups & other mili- “fight for and defend the oppressed and the weak. Our manufactured guns. According to an tant organizations forms Movement for the Eman- cipation of the Niger Delta organization adopts corrective and protective measures interview conducted by Wellington in April 2005 with a former cult commander, the 2013 for the defense of the masses against social injustice, Deewell lacked the resources of other cult Member of the Icelanders splits from the group victimization, and deprivation. The fundamental groups, and as a result were ineffective to form rival group the Greenlanders mission is to assemble men in the course of re- against its their rival the Deebam. Thus, Armed clashes in December between Icelanders enactment of the Vikings, develop leadership, promote another splinter group, the Icelanders was & Greenlanders lead to least 12 fatalities brotherhood, and provide service to humanity.” formed, and in the process helped to 2015 consolidate the power of the Deebam. This However, when a wave of militarization Cult groups reportedly engage in political thug- is consistent with other local media swept through confraternities across gery & intimidation during the presidential & accounts such as nairaland.com. gubernatorial election campaigns Nigeria in the 1990s, three splinter groups Clashes between Deebam & Deywell reportedly emerged from the Vikings. As Bestman kill as many as two dozen. Wellington described in his 2007 paper for The Icelanders the Jamestown Foundation Terrorism Greenlanders, due to “irreconcilable Monitor (Vol. 5, No. 8), these splinter groups The Icelanders have represented one of the differences” as reported in local news were the ‘Junior Vikings’, also known as the most violent groups in the Niger Delta sources such as pointblanknews.com on July Deewell, the Deebam, and the Icelanders. region, as described in a 2008 Human Rights 1st, 2013. The Greenlanders have since Unlike the original Vikings, these groups Watch report on Rivers State titled ‘Politics expanded their territory into areas in both were not bound by university code or a as War’. The report suggested in the 2003 Rivers and Bayelsa states. The group’s formal power structure. Thus, they were election won by the PDP, the Icelanders’ political influence in Bayelsa is also strong able to expand their influence outside of leader Akele Tom exerted political influence. as Mr. Ikiba ran for the Bayelsa House of campus and into surrounding communities. The report also suggested political Assembly in 2011 and for the Ijaw Youth racketeering was one of the ways for the Council in 2013. However, in 2013, he was Icelanders to generate revenue. The Deebam arrested and subsequently confessed to Icelanders are also known for attacks on charges of cultism according to news source energy infrastructure which have occurred Organized crime and racketeering have saharareporters.com on July 4th, 2013. regularly since the early 2000s. In 2014 become typical activities for Deebam to clashes with the Greenlanders, a number of offset expensive membership dues, Clashes over disputed territory in Rivers fatalities were reported in local media such according Bestman Wellington in his 2007 State with the Icelanders have been as the Naijagists.com blog on September 17, paper. Wellington also asserts that the numerous and violent. In September 2014, 2014. group’s influence in Emuoha LGA of Rivers is clashes between the two groups killed ten so profound that it has extended into the people according to news source political sphere. Before his death in 2007, a The Greenlanders Naijagists.com, and consistent with incident prominent Deebam member was known to reports on the P4P Peacemap. work for the People's Democratic Party In 2013, a member of the Icelanders Mr. (PDP), with the group also tied to election Nengi Ikiba split from the group to form the rigging in exchange for money. Wellington

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Conclusion

Political tension in Rivers State is not the for violent confrontation at the community Cultists are not always criminals, or violent. only contributing factor exacerbating cult level. The rescheduled elections in the state Sometimes they are more like confraterni- violence. As described in this brief, other following recent decision of the election ties than syndicates. And it is a good thing factors include protection rackets, competi- tribunal that annulled the election of the when those who were criminals put aside tion over contracts, and control of illicit incumbent governor, as well as the sacking their criminality and engage constructively criminal enterprises such as oil bunkering of the Speaker of the State House of Assem- in the political system to achieve change for operations. However, in early 2014, the bly and 20 other members of the House, are the public good. However, if in the process, political environment became sharply polar- potential conflict triggers in the state. The the political system itself becomes criminal- ised, when then-Governor Chibuike trend and timeline of violence indicates that ized, then violence increasingly becomes the Amaechi and a host of his supporters de- the planned re-run election remains a po- norm in the political sphere. camped to the All Progressives Congress tential trigger of violence that requires ur- (APC). The electoral campaign that preced- gent attention from all stakeholders in the Those in the private and public sectors with ed the elections was characterized by vio- state. a stake in peace must work together to en- lence, including political killings, arson, kid- sure that Rivers State does not slide back napping, hate speech, violent confrontation, Meanwhile, there is the perception that into a climate of worsening insecurity. There and destruction of properties. This led to a cultists who sided with those who turned is a window of opportunity for all stakehold- situation where many cultists began taking out to be the electoral winners enjoy a de- ers to come together and promote econom- sides. gree of influence and impunity that they ic growth and peaceable livelihoods for the may not have had previously. These cultists state as a whole. The botched local government elections also have a stake in the outcome of current held in May 2015 and the subsequent ap- and future political disputes. pointment of caretaker committees have further polarised the state, making it ripe

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Recommendations

To the Government: To the Political Parties: To the Civil Society Organizations:

 Engage at-risk youths in economic pro-  Do not use cultists or other at-risk  Get involved in peacebuilding platforms grams that will give them a source of youths as "informal security" or political such as the Partners for Peace Network, livelihoods and keep them from being thugs. so as to build a culture of peace. susceptible to being hired as criminals  Encourage members to engage in con-  Link early warning efforts with conflict or thugs. structive criticism of government poli- assessment, advocacy, conflict manage-  Hold accountable those who engage in cies; publicly and repeatedly repudiate ment, and peace building. No single hate speech, criminality and political the use of all forms hate speech individual or organization can do this thuggery. and political violence. alone.

 Focus security efforts not just on the  Partner with media to promote peace protection of state assets and infrastruc- To the Security Agencies: education and peace messages. ture, but also on broad-based human  Report any verified incident of conflict security, so as to promote an environ- risk to the IPDU SMS early warning sys- ment of social well-being as a founda-  Prioritize the mitigation of cultism as tem at 080.9936.2222. Please indicate tion for development. part of a strategic plan for the state, given the high level of cult- the state, LGA, and date of incident in

related violence in comparison with your text message as well as a brief de- To the Media: other types. scription.

 Do not allow politicians to employ mili-  Cover news events fairly and accurately tants and cultists for informal security. so that the public will be well-informed  Let there be zero tolerance for abuses for effective advocacy and civic action. by any security officer. Building public  Do not inflame tensions with incom- trust in the security apparatus will go a plete, imbalanced, or sensationalist con- long way towards ensuring the neces- tent. sary cooperation and information shar- ing with the communities you serve.  Celebrate peace builders in the media so as to encourage a culture a peace.  For the same reason, avoid any percep- tion of political bias. In a politically  Partner with civil society organizations charged environment, the security agen- to promote peace education and peace cies need to be relied upon by citizens of messages. all political persuasions.

PIND NDPI 6 THE FUND FOR PEACE