Rioting in Nigeria over Beauty Pageant Claims 50 Lives..

OK, somebody please explain this one to me…Tell me things are not getting a little out of control…

By GLENN McKENZIE, Associated Press Writer

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) - Rioters stabbed pedestrians and torched churches during violent demonstrations Thursday in the northern city of Kaduna. The Red Cross said more than 50 people died and 200 were wounded.

The protests were triggered by a newspaper article suggesting Islam’s founding prophet might have chosen a wife from among contestants in the Miss World (news - web sites) beauty pageant in Nigeria.

More than 50 people were stabbed, bludgeoned or burned to death and 200 were seriously injured in the violence in predominantly Muslim neighborhoods, Nigerian Red Cross President Emmanuel Ijewere told The Associated Press. At least four churches were destroyed, he said.

Many of the bodies were taken by Red Cross workers and other volunteers to local mortuaries. Many others remained inside homes that were set afire by the demonstrators, Ijewere said.

“A lot of people died. We don’t know yet exactly how many … more than 50,” he said.

Shehu Sani of the Kaduna-based Civil Rights Congress said he watched a crowd stab one young man, then force a tire filled with gasoline around his neck and burn him alive. Sani said he saw three other bodies elsewhere in the city.

Alsa Hassan, founder of another human rights group, Alsa Care, said he saw a commuter being dragged out of his car and beaten to death by protesters.

Schools and shops hurriedly closed Thursday morning as hordes of young men, shouting “Allahu Akhbar,” or “God is great,” ignited makeshift street barricades made of tires and garbage, sending plumes of black smoke rising above the city. Others were heard chanting, “Down with beauty” and “Miss World is sin.”

Very sad. What good is all this violence.

Re: Rioting in Nigeria over Beauty Pageant Claims 50 Lives..

[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Ohioguy: *
Others were heard chanting, "Down with beauty"
[/QUOTE]

I am sure this is an extremely serious subject, but this one slogan did bring a smile to my face. Those Nigerians would rather say "Go Ugliness Go!" :)

Re: Re: Rioting in Nigeria over Beauty Pageant Claims 50 Lives..

[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Faisal: *

I am sure this is an extremely serious subject, but this one slogan did bring a smile to my face. Those Nigerians would rather say "Go Ugliness Go!" :)
[/QUOTE]

What do you mean by that? I don't quite understand.

"Down with beauty" <- what does that mean? If they don't like beauty, they might prefer Ugliness. Or no? :)

[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Faisal: *
"Down with beauty" <- what does that mean? If they don't like beauty, they might prefer Ugliness. Or no? :)
[/QUOTE]

No, I don't think it's funny :p

People dying over such things is never funny.

I didn't say it was funny. I thought the slogan was too absurd and frankly completely weird, and hence amusing.

Re: Rioting in Nigeria over Beauty Pageant Claims 50 Lives..

3 points

  1. Nigerian authorities should have been better prepared. I mean they should have known stuff can happen..
  2. The headline is offensive, its lame to not be sensitive to personalities peopel hold sacred.
  3. Regardless, these protestors are a bunch of idiots and it is a further reason for us top work towards education, information and understanding to bring these populations to a much more mature mindset.

hmcq can probably speak to the general situation there these days. I know from my parents that during the Nigerian civil war, the forigeners were being targetted and my mum and my dad had to escape the country separately and my dad was actually stuck and in hiding until he was able to make his way out. My impression is of a fairly tribal mentality. is this the case?

Faisal- I'm with you, people chanting & shouting "down with beauty" is strage enough to be funny. Otherwise, this is a horrible tragedy - the epitome of fanatacism.

Reading the news story, it seems that the Govt of Nigeria, in a bid to host the contest, pledged to stop stoning sentences. Now I am not saying what is right and what is wrong about the stoning and other shariya sentences.... point is if Nigeria already had such high tensions in major parts of the country over implementation of sharia, its stupid to be inviting and hosting such a contest, which is quite controversial even in other parts of the world.

It seems 12 participants bycotted the finale anyway due to Nigeria's recent legal decisions.

On top of that, to invite the participants in the month of Ramadhan is like putting salt on the wounds of muslims there.

This is like creating a security nightmare by yourself.

On top of that, to invite the participants in the month of Ramadhan is like putting salt on the wounds of muslims there. <<<

Faisal, why is it so? By making that statement you are indirectly agreeing with the morons who are shouting - down with beauty.

No, I am not agreeing with them. I am just saying, people over there are already agitating over islamic sharia laws, they are pumped up during the month of Ramadhan, the whole world's attention is focused on that mother who has been ordered death by stoning, and just at this moment, the Nigerian government also agreed to hosting Miss World. In my mind, this is just asking for trouble.

And also, whether you or anyone appreciates the religious sensititivities or not, Ramadhan is considered the most sacred month in islamic calendar amongst most muslims, and Miss World competition does push the line of permissiblity, and to most is down right prohibited anyway. To do it in Ramdhan is just asking for trouble, especially when they are already dealing with violent protestors on the issue of islamic sharia.

Such events are scheduled months (or even years) in advance, but Nigerian government obviously miscalculated what was already a big security timebomb in their country. They should have recused themselves and some other country should have stepped in. In any case, hindsight is always 20/20.

Apparently the death toll has risen above 100.

At least 100 people are now known to have died in riots in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna over the Miss World beauty contest, according to Red Cross officials.
A heavy security presence has been imposed after protests started by Muslim youths which also left hundreds injured.

Nigeria: Hosting Miss World after Miss Nigeria won last year’s contest

They began after a newspaper suggested that the Prophet Mohammed would have probably chosen to marry one of the Miss World contestants if he had witnessed the beauty pageant - which Nigeria is hosting.

The contest’s organisers said on Friday they intend to go ahead with the event despite the protests.

Further sporadic clashes were reported on Friday despite the deployment of the hundreds of police and soldiers and the imposition of a curfew.

On Thursday, thousands of Muslim youths rampaged through the suburbs of the city, putting up barricades of burning tyres, setting fire to buildings, and attacking churches.

According to the Associated Press news agency, thousands of people have sought refuge in army bases and police stations.

Kaduna is one of Nigeria’s most volatile cities; more than 2,000 people died there in clashes between Christians and Muslims two years ago.

Muslim groups complain that the contest is immoral and degrading to women, and are also angry that preliminary events began during the holy month of Ramadan.

About 90 contestants are in Nigeria for the Miss World events, which are only taking place in southern areas which are largely Christian.

Text message

On Friday, mobs of minority Christian youths were reported to be retaliating against Muslims, and an overnight curfew was extended.

Red Cross spokesman George Bennett told the BBC that medical teams were working to give first aid to the injured, and that scores of bodies had been identified amid the debris.

Four hospitals in the city were coping with hundreds of casualties from the rioting that spread through many districts.

Armed security men have been posted all over the city, stopping and searching people.

A death sentence imposed on an unmarried mother prompted a boycott

The trouble in Kaduna escalated on Thursday after an attack the previous day by hundreds of people chanting “Allahu Akbar” (God is great) on the office of ThisDay newspaper, which printed the offending article.

Schools and shops hurriedly closed as crowds of young men ignited makeshift street barricades, sending up plumes of black smoke.

Four churches were said to have been destroyed, shops looted and cars overturned and burned.

Local mosques had been calling for action against the paper and some people were alerted to the article by text messages sent to their mobile phones, correspondents say.

Nigeria is clearly not a country that is able to host such a contest. There has been negative publicity abouty this event from day one. With talk of boycotts, stonings etc, not to mention previous unrest in Kaduna, the decision to stage a beauty contest looks pretty stupid as things have turned out. It should be moved somewhere else immediately.

If God strongly rejects vanity, beauty pageants and promiscuity, how does God feel about stabbing, murder and arson? Someone is not teaching these people tolerance. Who is responsible for this? Nigerian government...Islamic leaders in Nigeria?

It's tough to hear the constant hue and cry over the supposed intolerance in the fabric of U.S. society. Here, I can dunk the almighty in a beaker of piss, take a picture of it and charge admission. People raise a stink, but do not generally riot and murder scores of people over it. A religion and relationship with a god should be primarily a personal thing in my view. For an organized faith, I feel its main purpose is to foster commuinty, tolerance, peace and the good of all mankind...basically the golden rule. Christianity is rife with hypocracy in its ranks (child molesters) and there is a certain amount of negative influence Christian fundamentalists impart, though it doesn't seem to lead to the kind of violence suffered in Nigeria. Can anyone argue that at least in this part of Nigeria, the meaning of religion and the interpretaion of law has been tragically warped? Someone is not teaching the rioters in Nigeria the right messages. Who is it?

In any case this tragedy clearly illustrates the folly in injecting fundamentalist faith (of any type) into the governing of a society.

The comments abt Rasool-Allah are unfortunate and the paper should be shut down.

The violence agains tthe pagent is just stupid, abt time sometyhing good came to Africa.

[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by mo_best: *
The comments abt Rasool-Allah are unfortunate and the paper should be shut down.

The violence agains tthe pagent is just stupid, abt time sometyhing good came to Africa.
[/QUOTE]

Shut down? That type of Salman Rushdie thinking is what triggers such violence. What should be shut down are the groups that promote the intolerance which incite fanatics to stab and burn people alive in the name of a religion.

I will say that the comment published in the paper is unfortunate but it amazes me to no extent how people are going an extra mile in their arguments to say..it was supposed to happen...it is because of beauty contest....because it was Ramadhan....it was a wrong decision to host the contest in Nigeria....all these excuses to ignore and side track the real issue that 100 people have been killed....and the Government that allowed the hosting of the contest claims to be Islamic.

Who was hosting the contest? Is it a Christian only organization? who wrote the comment about Mohammad in the newspaper? What is his religion? Who owns the newspaper?

Everytime someone says something you don't like...shut him up and kill him..great thinking.

I'm sorry but if a paper doesnt have the sense to check what its publishing in a muslim majority state and in a situation of great tension then it is not responsible and should be shut down.

I have no opposition to the contest, there has never been 70~ pretty girls in Africa before-certanly not Nigeria. Outside the Arab North, Africans tend to be ugly as sin.

Mo_best

:k: for your first point

:nook: for your second point

Women should’nt be expolited in this manner islam treats woman as a honour not as an entertainment!