Nigeria wants mining reparations

Nigeria's Plateau State wants $100bn (£50bn) in compensation from the UK and Europe for environmental damage caused, it says, by mining in colonial times.

The Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Agency says it has discovered radioactive materials buried under the soil.

Many children and cattle are also reported to have fallen into disused quarries and died.

The mines were owned by British and other European companies between the early 1900s and the 1960s.

The state government has compiled a report showing the extent of the damage during that time.

It says mining companies dug around 5,000 quarries that have since filled with water.

The Jos Plateau - which the state is named after - became one of the world's major suppliers of tin.

Nigeria map

But other metals such as lead, uranium, tantalite and zircon have also been mined.

Tin was exported to cities in the UK such as Liverpool and Manchester.

The BBC's Shehu Saulawa in Plateau State says the mining has affected farmers, fishermen and grazing grounds belonging to Fulani herdsmen.

Other people have suffered health problems from drinking water from the ponds which contains a lot of iron, the report says.

The state government is asking for representatives from the UK and other countries to visit affected areas to see the damage.

It said if there is no reparation or compensation then it would take "appropriate legal action".

BBC NEWS | World | Africa | Nigeria wants mining reparations

Hello Black Lion,
The unfortunate thing is that these type of exploitation is still happening today.It is commendable that this state is seeking redress and it ends up in the courts.It is one of the routes which can prove effective if done on a collective basis.There are lots of cases like this which can be brought against lot of European countries and they should be answerable to these destructive acts.
Whilst governments and states can do their bit ,it is for the mass of black people to make their disgust felt with demonstrations and protest across the world ,educating the new generation in good governmental practices which seeks to alleviate poverty.The African continent has fueled the development of other countries/continents and in the age of mass communication we should not let the subversive leaders who collaborate with Western and Oriental exploiters be successful with their exploits.
The unfortunate thing for us as a people we seem less able to unite in a consolidated front to expose and bring pressure to bear on the perpetrators before a great deal of damage is done.We too easily turn the guns on our own selves while the real enemies is among us doing their deeds.
The mindset has been created that the Blackman doesn't need or deserve the good things in life whenever he may be.Of-course there will always be token examples of success,but even then they are not educated to have control over their finances, because it ends back in the institutions who exploit in the first place.
One of the areas where Blacks have made some impact is in Sport and Entertainment( not excluding blacks in Education and Finance)but the control of the finances ends up invariably back in the institutions which invests in white enterprise.
This is one of the reversal of thinking which needs to be achieved but it is going to prove difficult when some of these same people are articulating the very things which holds us back as people.Live like a gangster kill your brother.When you have wealth show it off on your brother.
From time to time I have met white millionaires in my work as an engineer and have taken to me through some intellect and general demeanor.The thing which always seem to amaze me,these people live a very unpretentious life.They often have a bicycle for transport or none at all because it is not needed to make a statement
The television set sometimes a vintage which has lasted them years (costs less in the long run).
The opposite can be said for blacks too often,because as soon as there is a semblance of wealth we need to show off this opulece to our brothers.

Live and Learn then Act
Bugler

Good luck to them I say. I was in Jos at the beginning of the year and I did see some massive craters in the land. I visited a site where they used to mine, it wasn't pretty..........

Its a shame because Jos ans Plateau state is endowed with natural beauty.

This is somewhere i would love to visit and live eventually..so serene..nice weather ..nice folks..e.t.c
I'm not against reparations but when i think how this governors and ministers have stolen govt funds I just ponder on what they would do with the reparations..this is what @Gmahogany doesn't seem to understand..they might cut the cheque but then the scramble for who gets what is scary to even think off!!
Still it would be nice just to get the acknowledgement that they did wrong through this payments 'cos they have been so arrogant towards the injustice meted out to all Africans through Colonialism and Slavery..not changing tact but would be nice just to be acknowledged!!