SUMMARY
The non-state conflicts in Nigeria’s 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, Gamai – Pan, Fulani – Mambila, Azara – Tiv, Junkun – Tiv, Karimjo – Fulani, Kwala – Tiv and Birom – Fulani, Hausa.
Historically, relations between Hausa - Fulani and Tarok in Plateau State have been peaceful, with strong links between the two groups in terms of trade and cooperation regarding cattle. Such relationships were however shattered when a non-state conflict broke out between Hausa and Tarok in 2002. The Hausa versus Tarok conflict must be viewed in the broader spectrum of the ethnic and religious non-state conflicts that began to ravage Nigeria primarily from 1999. The conflicts in Plateau State, where the Hausa - Tarok clashes took place, have ethnic, political, economic, and religious components, which have become inextricably linked over time. After the return to civilian rule in 1999 the Christian dominance within local governance began to be questioned by the large community of Muslim groups, simultaneously Christian groups found grievances in perceived economic domination by the Muslims. As in most other ethnic/religious conflicts in Nigeria the issue of what groups are “indigenous” and which ones are settlers also has relevance for political, economic, and resource conflicts since it defines patterns of political influence.
In this atmosphere of mistrust the violence in 2002 appears to have been triggered by the issue of Muslim boys meeting Christian girls in an unsuitable manner. The issue of cattle having been stolen from the Hausa appears to also have been relevant throughout the year, underscoring the wider issue of land ownership and grazing lands. The clashes also took place in the context of the much wider fighting that stood between other Christian and Muslim groups (the Hausa - Fulani community against the Yoruba and Igbo, and more generally with farmers), which cannot be disaggregated to a more exact group level.
Fighting took place in bouts throughout the year, with militias of a varying degree of organization fighting each other and attacking the other group's villages and towns. Much of the fighting stood in the bush, and became fiercer as the two groups began to arm themselves with modern weapons. Fighting slowed towards the end of 2002, as government soldiers were posted to the area.
The non-state conflict between Hausa and Tarok is first included in UCDP data in 2002. In July that year, clashes between the two groups in Wase (Plateau State) resulted in more than 25 battle-related deaths.
