23,000 Fulani herders flee unrest to Cameroon

At least 23,000 Fulani herders have fled Nigeria’s eastern Taraba State to Cameroon to escape clashes which broke out in the Mambilla plateau with farming communities at the beginning of the year, a pastoral association said. The Miyetti Alla Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) said in a statement made available to IRIN on Friday, it had counted 23,647 nomads who fled the Sarduana local government area of Taraba State into Cameroon. "Attacks on Fulani pastoralists who produce 75 percent of the protein needs of the country are becoming incessant, particularly in states like Plateau, Nasarawa, Bauchi, Taraba and Benue states," said the statement signed by MACBAN secretary general, Tukur Abashe. He said the incident in the Mambilla plateau between 1 and 7 January resulted in the death of more than 96 herdsmen and the loss of 53,791 cattle. Abashe blamed the violence on a Mambilla militia group known as "Ashana - no case to answer". He said they have operated freely in the area in the past year with the backing of local politicians. "Had they (the militia members) been arrested the carnage witnessed in early January would have been averted," the statement said. Officials of the Sarduana local government council, however, dispute the account of MACBAN and accuse the Fulani herdsmen of inviting "mercenaries" from neighbouring countries who launched attacks on farming communities of the Mambilla plateau. Zachariah Yieji, a special adviser to the Sarduana local government, said in a statement published in the "Thisday" daily on Thursday that the Fulani herdsmen had taken over most of the land for grazing purposes, leaving the local farmers little agricultural land. "Fulanis who constitute 10 percent of the population occupy 85 percent of the entire Mambilla land," Yieji said. "The Mambillas, Kakas, Pansos and Kambus, who are mostly farmers, use only 15 percent of the land for subsistence agriculture." Clashes between pastoral and farming communities revolving around disputes over grazing land have become frequent in various parts of Nigeria’s central and northern regions in recent years. Some analysts have blamed the trend on increasing desertification further north, which is pushing herders southwards in their search for pasture, often putting them in conflict with farming communities. The clashes fall into the pattern of violent conflicts in Nigeria between so-called settlers and indigenous people, that have rocked the north and centre of the country in recent years.