Horizontal inequalities and communal conflicts: the case of Aguleri and Umuleri communities of south-eastern Nigeria

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Periodical article

Title:	Horizontal inequalities and communal conflicts: the case of Aguleri and Umuleri communities of south-eastern Nigeria
Author:	Onwuzuruigbo, Ifeanyi
Year:	2011
Periodical:	Africa: Journal of the International African Institute (ISSN 0001-9720)
Volume:	81
Issue:	4
Pages:	567-587
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Nigeria
Subjects:	Igbo social conflicts inequality
External link:	https://www.jstor.org/stable/41485309
Abstract:	The relevance of horizontal inequality in accounting for the multitude of communal conflicts in Nigeria has been glossed over by scholars. Horizontal inequality refers to unequal access of culturally defined groups to economic and political resources. This article highlights local narratives of inequalities and how they provide impetus for violent conflicts between Aguleri and Umuleri communities in Anambra State, southeastern Nigeria. The Aguleri and Umuleri are regarded as subgroups of the Igbo ethnic group. The article first examines the relationship between horizontal inequality and conflict, and the background to the Aguleri-Umuleri conflicts. Then it demonstrates how the concept of horizontal inequality can be applied to analyse these conflicts. It also considers other factors, such as group perceptions of each other and memories of war between the two groups. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. in English and French. [ASC Leiden abstract]