Between 5th and 7th October 1967, in the first year of the Nigeria-Biafra War, Nigerian soldiers reportedly killed several hundred people (one estimate puts the number at 2,000) in Asaba. Asaba is a town close to the Niger River, a gateway to parts of Igboland. Murtala Mohammed, who later became the Head of State, led the soldiers. Fifty years later, photographer Obuh Christopher Nelson returned to the town in commemoration of what is now known as the Asaba Massacre.
1. Mr Benjamin Obienwe, a survivor of the Asaba massacre, died four days after our conversation.
2. Most witnesses refused to be photographed after giving their testimony.
3. Mrs Lizzy Okonjo holds a framed image of her late uncle who was asked to dig his grave before being shot inside there with two other people.
4. Two boys play close to the bank of the Niger River, which served as a border between Nigeria and Biafra.
6. A welcome sign to the commemoration of the massacre.
5. An elderly couple leaves the memorial service marking the 50th anniversary of the Asaba massacre.
7. A student of Saint Patrick College walks in his school, which had been used as a refugee camp during the civil war.
8. The Saint Joseph Catholic Church was filled with people seeking refuge after their houses had been looted and destroyed.
9. A cenotaph constructed in memory of the victims at Ogbe Osowa.
10. Many people found Saint Patrick’s College safer than their homes.
11. Asaba Elders congregated at a symposium to mark the 50th anniversary of the Massacre.
12. General Muritala Mohammed, said to have led the soldiers that carried out the massacre, adorns the Nigerian 20 naira bill.
