Nigeria: Torching of shantytown prompts outrage

By Rafiu Ajakaye

LAGOS, Nigeria (AA) - Some tens of thousands of people were made homeless Sunday in a Nigerian waterfront shantytown in the capital Lagos after a government task force set the houses alight.

The special security task force’s action forced residents of the Otodo Gbame community to flee by boat, triggering outcries by the human rights community. Pictures of fleeing residents packing their belongings on canoes on the lagoon sparked criticism amid allegations of security forces using deadly force.

“The Government of Lagos is currently using violence in displacing the already traumatized residents of Otodo Gbame. This is a clear violation of rights,” Amnesty International said in a statement Sunday.

“After defying a court order and using brutal force and thugs several times at Otodo Gbame, now the world watches the bloody use of force again. Since coming to office, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode has embarked on a brutal eviction of waterfront communities to provide homes for the rich,” the group claimed.

The government and locals have been at loggerheads over the shanties, with the state saying erecting shanties along waterfronts violates the law and poses environmental threats to the people.

The state had earlier demolished several of the shanties but they were rebuilt by the people. A court earlier asked the government to stop the demolition pending resolution of a case filed by the community.