37<? /V8/</ Ho,/V<J TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS AS ACTORS IN THE NIGERIAN CIVIL WAR, 1967-1970 DISSERTATION Presented to the Graduate Council of the North Texas State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY By Lawrence Chuks Osuji, B. A., M. A. Denton, Texas August, 1979 Osuji, Lawrence Chuks, Transnational Organizations as Actors in the Nigerian Civil War, 1967-1970. Doctor of Philosophy (Political Science), August, 1979, 285 pp., 20 tables, bibliography 280 titles. The purpose of this study is to explore the activities of transnational organizations which were involved in the Nigerian civil war, in order to evaluate the hypotheses of this study - that the trans- national organizations studied here contributed to the outbreak of the civil war; that they attempted to influence the behavior of the conflicting parties; that they helped to prolong the war; and that they served as instruments of conflict resolution in the civil war. It is assumed that the civil war, which attracted international attention, is a good case study to analyze the behavior of trasnational actors in internal conflict with international dimensions, It is also assumed that this analysis will throw more light on the view that transnational actors have become significant, apart from national governments, in affecting the course of international politics. Chapter I sets the stage for the analysis which follows, by examining the history of Nigeria before ttir the outbreak of the civil war. Evidence tends to point to the fact that among all the internal dynamics that precipitated the war, tribal suspicion was the most vivid. In a country brought together by forces of colonial politics, allegiance to a tribal unit and security of tribes became more paramount than national unity. Chapter II investigates the activities of two oil companies, Shell-BP and AGIP, which were involved in the war. In the course of their involvement each displayed a different behavioral pattern consistent with its objectives. As multinational businesses, their overriding concern was to protect their business interests, and their policies shifted accordingly. Chapter III explores the involvement of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), a humanitarian actor which until recently, had been neglected by international relations scholars. The ICRC adopted an aggressive stance in its relief opera- tions. This resulted in series of confrontations with the Nigerian authorities. To underscore her rejection of the ICRC approach, the Nigerian Federal Government ordered the Air Force to shoot down a relief plane belonging to the ICRC enroute to Biafra. Subsequently, ICRC relief operations in Nigeria and Biafra virtually came to an end. ttr Chapter IV deals with the activities of inter- confessional church groups - Caritas Internationalis, World Council of Churches and the Joint Church Aid. These groups adopted a more militant approach than the ICRC. They ignored all Nigeria's warnings, threats and aerial attacks on their relief planes and continued supplying Biafra with relief materials by night flights. In the process, they provided cover for Biafran gun- running planes. Until the war ended, these groups never stopped. The final chapter summarizes the conclusions arrived at in various chapters of the study. The evidence yielded varying degree of support to the hypotheses, These transnational actors are seen to have, through their different interactions with both sides affected the course of the war and have produced mixed impacts. They produced some evidence for the explanation of behavioral patterns likely to be displayed by trans- national actors in similar situations. Also, these interactions are seen as giving some validity to the perceived need to expand the analytic framework of actors in international politics. © Copyright by Lawrence Chuks Osuji 1979 in PREFACE The search for an adequate conceptual framework for the analysis of actors in international politics has stimulated recent scholarship in this field. In the process two views have emerged. The first,, which can be described as the traditional approach, recognizes the nation-states as the sole actors in international politics. The second approach, which is more recent, asserts that the state-centric view is not an adequate analytic framework for the investigation of contemporary international interactions. Rather, it recognizes the growing signifi- cance of new actors which can affect the course of international and domestic politics. It asserts that the framework for analyzing international interactions should, therefore, be expanded to include these transnational organizations. To refuse to do so is to fail to accept the realities of the changing political world. Currently, these two approaches co-exist. The Nigerian civil war presents a good case for analyzing the behaviors of transnational actors from the second standpoint. The purpose of this study is to investigate the activities of some transnational xv organizations which were involved in the war, in order to assess the relative degree of support or non-support for the following hypotheses: 1. That the transnational organizations contributed to the outbreak of the civil war; 2. That they attempted to influence the behavior of the conflicting leaders in the civil war; 3. That they prolonged the war by their behavior; and 4. That they served as instruments of conflict resolution in the war. The units for analysis in this study as transnational actors are Shell-BP and AGIP Oil Company (both multinational business enterprises), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) (an international humanitarian organi- zation) , and the Catholic and Protestant churches (both religious groups). Later on in the war, these two formed the Joint Church Aid, whose activities are also investigated with those of interconfessional groups. The inclusion of these diverse corporate bodies in one study calls for some explanation. For the purpose of this study, the definition of a "transnational organization" adopted is that of Keohane and Nye. To them transnational organizations may include any non-governmental organization which maintains a global interaction by way of moving tangible or intangible items across state boundaries. v Thus, "transnational interaction" describes "the movement of tangible or intangible items across state boundaries when at least one actor is not an agent of a government or an intergovernmental organization.The contention here is that these corporate bodies whose activities are the subject of this study readily fall within this definition. Chapter I explores the historical perspective of the Nigerian n&tion, her people, and the events that led to the outbreak of the war. The point that emerges in this chapter is that tribal hatred, rivalry, and suspicion culminated in military coup and counter coup as each, of the three major tribes, the Hausa-Fulani, the Ibos, and Yorubas struggled to maintain hegemony in the country. This chapter serves as a setting for other chapters. Chapter II delves into the operations of two oil companies as transnational actors—Shell-BP and AGIP. The first was caught between the conflicting sides over the payment of oil royalties due before the outbreak of the war. The issue generated international diplomacy in Enugu, Lagos, London, and New York as each side tried to receive the payment. In the ensuing confrontation, Robert Keohane and Joseph Nye, Jr., Transnational Relations and World Politics (Cambridge,Massachusetts, 1973), pp. ix-xii. vx Shell-BP found itself in a dilemma. Yet, it exhibited prudent diplomacy, constantly reviewing its stand as the war progressed. Finally, the military situation in favor of Nigeria apparently dictated a firm policy of support for the Nigerian side followed by a payment of the royalties. On its part, the AGIP Oil Company acted differently because it was operating in a more comfortable political climate than Shell-BP. This comfort was shattered when a unit of Biafran forces raided the company's location in Kwale in the Mid-western Region. In the operation, they killed eleven oil men and took another eighteen prisoners of war—all foreigners. This incident precipitated an international outcry. The outcry became louder when Biafran authorities announced that they would execute the eighteen men for aiding Nigeria in her war of "genocide" against Biafra. Finally, they were release;d, presumably after a substantial ransom had been paid by the company to the Biafran authorities. Chapter III studies the activities of "an old organi- zation in a new political controversy," the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The ICRC as a humani- tarian organization argued that it was its responsibility to provide relief for the war victims on both sides without any hinderance. It based its argument and authority on the vix provisions of the Geneva Conventions. In order to serve the war victims, it mounted night flights into Biafran territory. The Nigerian authorities argued that "all is fair in war," and that starvation is a weapon of war. Thus, by displaying what was referred to as "aggressive humanitarianism," the ICRC confronted Nigerian authorities. This was followed by the shooting down of an ICRC plane and the final ejection of the ICRC from Nigeria. Chapter IV treats the activities of interconfessional groups—Roman Catholic and Protestant churches' relief agencies—Caritas Internationalis and the World Council of Churches. These bodies adopted stubborn attitudes in their relief operations. They continued to supply Biafra not only with relief materials, but also with equipment to improve Biafra's only airstrip in order to make it safe for their relief planes. Like the Red Cross, the churches did not accept Nigeria's argument that all is fair in war, but unlike the Red Cross, they did not succumb to Nigeria's pressures. With the later coordinating body, the Joint Church Aid, they did not save Biafra in the long run, but they helped prolong her life and saved many of her people. Chapter V summarizes the conclusions of each of the chapters as they affect each of the hypotheses, but it goes further.