Biafra War Documentaries: Explaining Continual Resurgence of Secessionist Agitations in the South-East, Nigeria

Abstract

ABSTRACT Fifty years after the Biafra war, its discourse in public sphere remains dominant as though the war just ended. Existing studies attribute this to several factors, including perceived marginalisation and collective victimhood of the Igbo (that is, the people of South-East, Nigeria) and the failure of Nigerian state to pursue the post-Biafra war peace-building initiatives. Although research has used framing perspective to explain why Biafra separatist agitators have remained non-violent despite organised provocations, the impact of Biafra war documentaries on continual resurgence of secessionist agitations is yet to be given adequate attention in literature. Thus, this article provides empirical evidence of how documentaries of Biafra war fuel secessionist agitations among the Igbo by helping the movement gain more converts. Using a mixed-methods approach, the paper argues that constant (re)distribution of Biafra war documentaries in the social and other media draws more supporters to secessionist agitations. The implication is that until Nigerian government counters the narratives contained in these documentaries by visibly implementing the post-Biafra war peace-building initiatives, the secessionist agitations will likely continue to gain momentum.