The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has declared that recent findings by Amnesty International have vindicated the group from longstanding allegations of fueling insecurity in the Southeast. The pro-Biafra organization, through its spokesperson, Emma Powerful, issued a statement on Saturday asserting that Nigerian politicians and security agencies were the true architects of violence in the region.
According to IPOB, Amnesty International’s latest report confirmed that the separatist group had no involvement in the killings and unrest in Igboland. Instead, the report allegedly detailed the role of the Nigerian military and security forces in extrajudicial killings, disappearances, and violence against civilians.
Canadian Ruling and Amnesty Report Highlight Nigerian Political Class
The statement also linked the recent ruling by a Canadian court proscribing Nigeria’s ruling parties, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), as terrorist organizations, with Amnesty International’s revelations. IPOB said both developments had “exposed the criminality of Nigeria’s ruling elite” and the orchestration of insecurity for political gain.
The group accused security agencies including the Nigerian Army, Police, and Department of State Services (DSS) of committing atrocities under the guise of combating IPOB, while allegedly being protected by corrupt politicians. It cited politicians such as Dave Umahi and late Justice Abdul Kafarati, who issued the court proscription against IPOB, as enablers of what it called “black-market” justifications for state violence.
“IPOB Has Been the Fall Guy”
IPOB emphasized that for years it had been wrongfully scapegoated as the cause of Southeast insecurity, despite being a self-determination movement. “For too long, IPOB has been the fall guy,” the statement read, insisting that the Nigerian state deliberately promoted the false narrative of “IPOB violence” to justify alleged state-sponsored killings.
The group said Amnesty International’s revelations provided “concrete evidence—names, addresses, and proof—of Nigerian military involvement” in the violence. It also claimed that the UK High Commission in Abuja had shielded Nigeria’s political class but would now be unable to deny the truth.
Commitment to Biafran Struggle
Reaffirming its mission, IPOB described its movement under the leadership of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu as “a heaven-ordained project for the liberation of Biafrans.” The statement stressed that the group would not abandon its pursuit of self-determination, regardless of persecution or political opposition.
“The blood of the innocent in Biafra land cries for justice,” IPOB declared, calling on the international community to hold the Nigerian government and its security agencies accountable for crimes against humanity in the region.
