Nigeria:  Religious Tension On the Rise, Says Adventist Leader
Ikeja, Lagos State, Nigeria .... [Bettina Krause/ANN]
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The adoption of Islamic law, or Sharia, by 11 northern Nigerian states
has inflamed religious tensions and caused increasing difficulties for
church workers and members in those areas, according to Joseph Ola,
president of the Adventist Church in Nigeria. 

While affirming that "Seventh-day Adventists are law-abiding citizens,"
Ola points out that "Sharia is affecting us in many ways."  Not only is
preaching restricted in some areas, he says, but the lifestyle and
freedom of movement of Christians are impacted as well. 

"We are restricted to certain ways of life," he says. "You cannot even
ride in the same taxi with women, you must dress like a Muslim, and no
hotels are allowed [to operate]."

"Our stand as Adventists is that this law must be removed" so that
freedom of movement can be restored, says Ola.

Religious and ethnic tension often runs high in states where Sharia is
in force, Ola adds, citing an incident last month where an Adventist
pastor was threatened by members of an ethnic faction. 

Opponents of Sharia point to Nigeria's constitution, which guarantees
freedom of religion and prohibits the establishment of a state
religion. Advocates of Islamic law, however, say that Sharia does not
replace the secular civil legal system, but operates as a parallel
system with jurisdiction over only those who profess Islam.

"I request that you tell the world church that we need their prayers,"
Ola told Adventist News Network.  

"The issue is very sensitive but we are not afraid to speak," he says.
Ola reports that church leaders have voted to send representatives to
the national parliament to speak about the hardships created by Sharia.
While there, the representatives will also address the difficulty
raised by the practice of scheduling elections on Saturdays, the day
Adventists observe as Sabbath. 

In its 2000 Report on International Religious Freedom, the United
States State Department catalogues the difficulties faced by
non-Muslims under Sharia, including the use of zoning regulations to
stop the establishment of churches, and bans on public evangelism and
proselytism in some regions. 

The report also notes the corresponding rise in sectarian conflict in
areas where Sharia is introduced. 

In Bauchi State, 10 people were reportedly killed late June in
religious clashes. Four Christian churches were set ablaze earlier this
month in Jigawa State after the publication of a book by a Christian
writer that was declared blasphemous to Islam.

In February 2000, two Adventist Church members were among the 1,500
killed during riots sparked by the introduction of Sharia in Kaduna,
another northern Nigerian state.

Nigeria, a West African country located between Benin and Cameroon, is
Africa's most populous nation; of its 123 million citizens, an
estimated 50 percent are Muslim, and 40 percent are Christian. There
are some 150,000 Adventist Church members in Nigeria worshipping in
more than 1,000 congregations.
 

ANN World News Bulletin is a review of news and information issued by
the Communication department from the Seventh-day Adventist Church
World Headquarters and released as part of the service of Adventist
News Network. It is made available primarily to religious news editors.
Our news includes dispatches from the church's international offices
and the world headquarters.  The information provided in the Bulletin 
may be reproduced without permission providing that the source 
"Adventist News Network" is acknowledged. 

ANN Staff: Ray Dabrowski, director; 
Bettina Krause, news director; 
Ansel Oliver, editorial assistant. 
Copyright Adventist News Network 2001.