Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu was the leader of Nigeria’s breakaway from the military dictatorship that divided Nigeria into 2 segregated sections that were dictated by religious differences. His actions are believed to have started the Nigerian War, which both helped to liberate the people of Nigeria and what started the perception of Africa as being a place of starvation, neglect, and war.
Ojukwu was born on November 4th, 1933 in Northern Nigeria as the son of one of the richest men in Nigeria, Sir Louis Odumegwu Ojukwu. He was a very well educated man, traveling to the UK to earn a Masters Degree in History at Oxford University. His involvement in the military started when he joined the Nigerian military aroun 1958. Considering his educated background, Ojukwu was promoted to Liutenant-Colonel. Out of the 250 officers, Ojukwu was one of only 15 Nigerians to join this rank.
During this time, Nigeria became independent from the United Kingdom. The newly independent country was divided by its’ different ethnic and religious inhabitants; the Hausa and Fulani in the north, Yoruba in the south-west, Ijaws in the south and Igbo in the south-east. In 1966, a group of Igbo rebels led a coup that resulted in the killing of 30 northern political leaders, including Nigeria’s Prime Minister. No political figures in the south were harmed. The north retaliated 8 months later, killing almost 30,000 Igbo. These events intensified the tension between the ethnic groups of Nigeria. After attempting to create a confederation of regions, federal and eastern governments failed to come up with a solution to help the rising conflicts between the ethnic parties. Finally the Eastern region, led by its military governor Ojukwu, announced that they were seceding from Nigeria to form the Republic of Biafra. Unfortunately, this area of Nigeria was a primary source of oil for the country as a whole which created difficulties.
On July of 1967, the federal government of the rest of Nigeria launched its first attack of “police measures” on the Republic of Biafra, which was well equipped to retaliate. Unfortunately, this fighting went on non-stop for 3 years, resulting in a large number of civilian deaths and famine. Images of The Republic of Biafra’s civilians travelled across the globe, creating the perpetuated stereotype that Africa as a whole is a place of genocide and starvation.
Critics of Ojukwu say that he is the reason Africa is still portrayed as a continent of suffering and starvation, which frustrates the millions of people who live there today. Others say that he was a revolutionary leader who emancipated the Igbo. Regardless of the opinion, he is a true revolutionary figure that stood up to take charge of a crumbling section of Nigeria.
Sources:
http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2101162,00.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biafra
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._Odumegwu_Ojukwu