Time, temporality and the reintegration of ex-combatants after the Nigerian-Biafra War

Abstract

This article examines the temporal approaches that the Nigerian government adopted in the aftermath of the Nigerian-Biafra War (1967–1970). First, the central government pursued speedy implementation of the demilitarisation of Igbo ex-combatants, often identifying them as a security threat. Second, the provision of social support for ex-combatants’ social reintegration was delayed and progressed slowly, especially in relation to Igbo soldiers. Third, the government refused to fairly acknowledge the economic and social legacy of the activities conducted by Igbos both before and during the civil war, identifying the post-war period as a new era disconnected from the past. Due to these arrangements, the Igbos (both ex-combatants and civilians) were subject to systematic suppression during the post-war DDR (demilitarisation, demobilisation and re-integration of ex-combatants) process and their resilience and capacity to settle into the civilian life were substantially diminished. Based on these findings, this study will argue that such temporal features of DDR were set by the Nigerian government to perpetuate hierarchies and exclusion against Igbos in post-hostility Nigeria.