These flags in Africa are causing 21st century controversies

Biafra flag

The Igbo people of South East Nigeria have over the years been fighting for independence from Nigeria over concerns that they are being marginalized. An attempt to proclaim an independent Republic of Biafra in the same region in the 1960s led to the 1967-70 Nigerian Civil war which killed over 3 million people and displaced many. It’s been over 40 years and there is now a new campaign for Biafran independence which is mainly being championed by young people who were born after the civil war who do not have knowledge of the amount of pain and suffering the previous one caused. Known as the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), the group rose to fame after Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari assumed power. In September 2017, Nigeria’s military launched Operation Python Dance II, its second military exercise to deal with secessionists. The Operation Python Dance II in that same year had a violent confrontation with supporters of IPOB in which some people were killed and the home of the group’s leader, Nnamdi Kanu was raided. The IPOB has said it will continue its agitation despite being described by the Nigerian Army as a terror group. The IPOB has since hoisted Biafra flag in the South-East region of Nigeria, with Nigerian officials describing the move as an affront to the sovereignty and unity of the Nigerian state. The Biafra flag consists of three colours – red, black, and green, with a golden rising sun over a golden bar. Red represents the blood of those who were killed in northern Nigeria and the Nigeria-Biafra war. Black is for mourning them and Green is for prosperity. The golden sun represents a glorious future and the eleven rays around the sun stand for the eleven provinces of Biafra.