Nigeria–South Africa relations

Nigerian-South African relations

Nigeria	South Africa

Nigeria – South Africa relations refers to the current and historical relationship between Nigeria and South Africa.

Apartheid era

During the apartheid era in South Africa, Nigeria was one of the foremost supporters of Black South African liberation movements, including the African National Congress; the Nigerian government issued more than 300 passports to South Africans seeking to travel abroad.^[1] Sonny Okosun, a Nigerian musician, wrote the hit song "Fire in Soweto" in 1977 to commemorate the 1976 Soweto uprising against white-rule in South Africa.^[2]

Post-apartheid

Following the end of apartheid in 1994, South African businesses sought for professionals to immigrate and a large number of Nigerians did so.^[1]

Much of South Africa's good will towards Nigerians for supporting the country's liberation movements during apartheid has disappeared due to the activities of Nigerian criminals in the country.^[3] Nigerian orgaised crime groups, mostly involved in illegal drug trafficking, in South Africa grew rapidly between 1994 to 1998.^[4]

Human Rights Criticism

The Mandela-led ANC had been seeking to help resolve the political crisis in Nigeria since 1993 following the annulment of the Nigerian elections in June 1993. In June 1994 Nigeria's military ruler, General Sani Abacha arrested and sentenced for execution 40 political opponents including former Nigerian head of state Olusegun Obasanjo as well as Chief Moshood Abiola. Mandela sent Archbishop Desmond Tutu and then Deputy President Thabo Mbeki on successive missions to Nigeria to lobby for the release of Obasanjo, Abiola and nine others.

Right up until the Commonwelth Summit in 1995 Mandela was misled by Abacha into believing that there would be a stay of execution. However, one of South Africa's first experiments with quiet diplomacy failed when in November 1995 Abacha moved ahead with the execution of the nine Ogoni leaders including Ken Saro-Wiwa. After which South African president Mandela then publicly criticized General Abacha for human rights abuses and personally pushed for a two-year suspension of Nigeria's membership in the Commonwealth of Nations.^[5]:177 Mandela also criticized Royal Dutch Shell for going a head with a US$4 billion gas project in Nigeria despite its unpopularity within Nigeria and the rest of the world.^[4]

This led to South Africa being isolated in Africa amid accusations that it was:

“

"[M]anipulated" into taking up an anti-Nigerian position by "the forces of British and American imperialism".[6]

”

Within a month South Africa started back tracking in an attempt to patch up its relationship with other African nations; and in an attempt to regain regional prestige amongst other African governments at the expense of its international prestige. On 29 March 1995 Wole Soyinka, leader of an exiled Nigerian democratic movement, attempted to hold a conference in South Africa. The South African government responded by refusing to grant any visas to Nigerian democrats for six weeks prior to the conference. South Africa's ruling political party, the ANC, called for the conference to be canceled.^[6]

The Nigerian debacle forced South Africa into a new foreign policy approach. Leading the country to abandon a 'go it alone' policy and into a policy that sought to build partnerships with fellow African states through regional and continental bodies. It also made South Africa reluctant to engage in any confrontation with any other African states.^[5]:178

Trade

In November 2009, South Africa hosted the South Africa-Nigeria Bi-National Commission in Pretoria. At the conference, it was noted that Oando, an energy conglomerate based in Lagos had recently been listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and the Nigeria-based Dangote Group had invested a record $378 million dollars in South Africa's cement industry. In 2008, approximately $2.1 billion was traded between the two states.^[7]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} The love/hate relationship between Nigeria and South Africa NigeriaWorld.com, May 2008
2. ^ Discography of Sonny Okosun
3. ^ Ebhuomhan, Sebastine (2 September 2010). "South African envoy explains hostility to Nigerians". 234Next. http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/News/5614003-147/south_african_envoy_explains_hostility_to.csp. Retrieved 26 January 2011. 
4. ^ ^{a b} Shaw, Mark (28 January 1998). "ORGANISED CRIME IN POST-APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA". Institute for Security Studies. http://www.iss.co.za/pubs/Papers/28/Paper28.html. Retrieved 26 January 2011. 
5. ^ ^{a b} Landsberg, Christopher (2004). The Quiet Diplomacy of Liberation. Johannesburg: Jacana Media. pp. 264. ISBN 1-77009-028-2. 
6. ^ ^{a b} "South Africa's foreign policy: Human rights and national interests". Helen Suzman Foundation. second quarter 1996. http://www.hsf.org.za/resource-centre/focus/issues-1-10/issue-3-second-quarter-1996/south-africas-foreign-policy-human-rights-and-national-interests. Retrieved 26 January 2011. 
7. ^ SA, Nigeria to push trade, investment