How Gun Trafficking Fuels Religiously-Motivated Violence in Africa
A collection of guns used by Ghana’s army. Creative Commons photo.
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(OPINION) Despite having just 16% of the world’s population, Africa accounts for 52% of all global armed conflicts. Most of these crises have lingered for decades and many are religious conflicts with social and political undertones, making them even harder to curb. These crises have been fueled and sustained by uncontrolled arms movement across the continent.
Illegal Movements of Arms
The magnitude of illegal arms circulation in the continent is alarming. Out of an estimated 640 million small arms and light weapons globally, around 100 million are located in Africa, many of which are acquired illegally. The accumulation and circulation of these weapons are strongly linked to many religiously motivated armed conflicts across the continent.
Social and political leaders at different levels have tried various measures to control the menace. However, the challenges are great, including factors like porous borders and long coastlines. There are also saboteurs at various levels of government and within the ranks and files of the security agencies, making the problem seem impossible to curtail. Arms acquisition and circulation have many sources and channels, which can be traced to internal and external influences.
External elements from other continents, such as Europe, Asia and the Americas, work with African-based armed dealers and smugglers to illegally transport arms to and across the continent. Once they are on African soil, these weapons are either circulated within their country of destination or trafficked to other African countries. Most guns and other weapons used in Africa are imported from other continents. Most of them come from China, Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany, according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Many of these weapons are transferred illegally and end up in the wrong hands.
This unholy alliance between foreign and African arms dealers dates back to several decades. For example, a report by Jamestown Foundation found that some European arms dealers were involved in arms trafficking into and around the Niger Delta part of Nigeria during the resource control conflict between militants and the government in the 2000s. Between 2001 and 2003, during Charles Taylor’s time as Liberian president, Gus van Kouwenhoven, a Dutchman, was involved in the illegal transfer of Chinese made weapons to Liberia and was convicted in 2017.
Several other sources have also reported the importation of small arms and light weapons from China to Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Liberia, Namibia, Niger, Sierra Leone and other African countries. While many of these transfers have legal backings between some African governments and foreign arms manufacturers, records show that a good number of them end in the wrong hands. For instance, Small Arms Survey (SAS) shows that 80% of all small arms in the continent are in the hands of civilians, which include rebel and militant groups.
Apart from the ones imported, a sizeable portion of these weapons is manufactured locally. The locally produced small arms and light weapons range from firearms, grenades and small bombs. For instance, blacksmiths in some African countries engage in the illegal manufacturing of tens of thousands of unsophisticated arms, which end up in the hands of militia and rebel groups.
Of course, arms are not necessarily the root causes of religious conflicts in Africa. But without them, most warring parties would ordinarily settle their scores amicably in dialogue instead of resorting to violence.
Devastating Effects
Sadly, Africa has also become an epicenter for deadly religious persecution. For example, the anti-Balaka versus Seleka rivalry is one of the oldest and bloodiest armed conflicts in Africa, with a strong religious connection. The crisis started in 2013 when mainly Muslim Seleka rebels toppled the then-President François Bozizé, a Christian from the south, and installed a northern Muslim, Michel Djotodia. The event prompted the formation of anti-Balaka groups by the Christian south, which later overpowered their rival and forced Djotodia's resignation. Since then, the country has not enjoyed lasting peace. In just one year, 3,000 to 6,000 people lost their lives due to armed conflicts between the two groups.
A UN report showed that over 99% of the Muslims in the capital Bangui were either killed or forced to flee. Despite efforts by international stakeholders to resolve the crisis, it has always reoccurred, claiming dozens of lives on different occasions. Recently, the Seleka coalition, which had at some point splintered into rebel factions, reunited to form an alliance, raising fears of another resurgence of violence, considering the volatile political atmosphere in the country. Uncontrolled arms play a major role in sustaining this crisis for years. For instance, there has been an influx of arms and weapons from Sudan to the Central African Republic (CAR) recently.
Similarly, Nigeria has experienced many fatal religious-motivated crises that have claimed tens of thousands of lives. A timeline of violent armed events from 1980 to date shows that most of them occurred in the mainly Muslim north and are mostly against the minority Christian communities in the region. One of the bloodiest religious crises in Nigeria was the December 1980 riots by the Maitatsine sect that claimed 4,177 lives and destroyed many properties. There were also series of other religiously motivated crises in the country spanning through the 80s, 90s and early 2000s.
In 2010, another deadly Islamic group emerged: Boko Haram. Since its emergence, the daredevil group has killed more than 36,000 people and caused the displacement of millions of people. The proliferation of arms in Nigeria has helped Boko Haram grow from just a group of local, regional fighters to one of the four deadliest militant groups globally, having a strong connection to international terrorist groups such as the Islamic State (ISIS). One of their sources of stolen weapons is the diversion of arms legally purchased by the government. The group sometimes attack military bases and loot weapons. Also, some security agents have been nabbed for selling their weapons to the jihadist group.
The situation in CAR and Nigeria is a true reflection of what entails in all African countries experiencing religiously motivated armed crises. For instance, in Somalia, which is made of 99% of Muslims, the minority Christians practice their faith in secret for fear of being killed by the Islamic militias who have held sway for decades. Somalia is one of the African countries with strong black markets for arms. Many dangerous weapons circulate there. This explains why the conflicts persist for decades. Al-Shabab, the Islamic terrorist organization in the country, has killed around 4,000 people in the past decade.
Apart from the wanton killings, these religious crises have caused millions of forced migrations, making people internally displaced in their countries and refugees abroad. According to a 2019 report, Africa had around 17.8 million internally displaced persons, making it home to one-third of the global forced displacement population. In addition, many developed countries in Europe and the Americas have recently seen a spike in refugees from African violence-torn countries. For instance, the number of asylum seekers in the U.K. has increased in the past few years, and many of them are from African countries with ethnoreligious crises. Other effects include destructions of people’s properties and livelihood. In some cases, people’s lands and other resources are taken over by militias after displacing them from their settlements.
Curbing the Menace
The menace of arms proliferation vis-à-vis religious violence in Africa must be addressed as a matter of urgency. The continent needs reforms at all sociopolitical levels as religious crises are often interwoven with political interests. African leaders must give a level playing field for everyone to practice their faith without fear of harassment, displacement or killing. There is also a need for strong arms movement regulation in and around the continent. In addition, lingering economic issues like high rates of unemployment and poor educational systems must be addressed. This will help bridge the inequality gap between the leaders and the led and drastically reduce the urge to bear arms illegally. Putting an end to religiously motivated crises will signal a positive turnaround in the continent, leading to development, tranquility and lasting peace.
Olusegun Akinfenwa is a correspondent for Immigration News, a news organization affiliated with Immigration Advice Service (IAS). IAS is a leading U.K. immigration law firm that helps people migrate and settle in the U.K.