SUMMARY
The non-state conflicts in Plateau State, most notably in Jos town (as well as neighboring Taraba state and adjacent Adamawa state) are connected to a larger pattern of tensions between ethnic and religious communities. The states are home to over 30 distinct ethnic communities, which have coexisted in relative peace for a long time. Around the turn of the century, however, conflicts started to arise over land ownership and access to political and economic power. At the root of these conflicts is the notion of "indigeneity", which often serves as the basis for citizenship, land ownership and political power. This has led to recurring conflicts between groups perceived as indigenous to the area and groups that have migrated to the region more recently. These tensions have been further exacerbated by religious differences and perceived marginalization.
The other dyads that belong to the same Plateau state cluster of non-state conflicts are; Afisare, Anaguta, Birom - Fulani, Hausa, Hausa – Tarok, Fulani – Mambila, Azara – Tiv, Junkun – Tiv, Karimjo – Fulani, Kwala – Tiv and Birom – Fulani, Hausa.
According to analysts, the Gamai and Pan communities have coexisted in Plateau State in relative peace for a long time. Since the early 2000s, however, violent conflicts have arisen over issues of land ownership. Plateau State is home to a range of ethnic groups and has seen longstanding grievances between different communities, and since 2001 many of them have erupted into violence. Other conflicts in Plateau State have often been attributed to divisions between Muslims and Christians, herders and farmers, or "indigenous" groups and settlers; however, these factors do not seem to be the cause of animosities between the Gamai and Pan, who share a similar history and religious composition. Rather, analysts have pointed toward limited economic opportunities, a decline in agricultural productivity, and issues of local politics and governance as causes for disputes between the groups.
There are groups that claim to represent the interests of different groups in Plateau State, but none of them openly advocate violence. In the non-state conflict between the Gamai and Pan, the groups have not seemed to deploy formally organized militia, but instead relied on more loosely organized groupings to carry out violence against each other.
The Gamai - Pan conflict must also be viewed in the broader spectrum of the ethnic and religious non-state conflicts that have ravaged Nigeria in the past and intensified with the end of military rule, from 1999 and onwards. The conflicts throughout Nigeria have ethnic, political, economic, and religious components, which have become inextricably linked over time, pitting various groups and alliances of groups against each other along different dividing lines.
The non-state conflict between Gamai and Pan is first included in UCDP data in 2006. In April that year, clashes broke out between Gamai and Pan in Namu, resulting in over 25 battle-related deaths.
