31/07/2025
An Open Letter: To Whom It May Concern
On the Continued Attacks on Plateau, the Burning of Homes, and the Occupation of Ancestral Lands
We, the sons and daughters of Plateau, write with heavy hearts and trembling hands. Our lands, once peaceful and filled with life, have become a theatre of death, violence, and injustice. We speak not out of bitterness, but out of the responsibility to preserve our heritage and defend our right to exist.
Over the years, and especially in recent times, our communities have been ravaged by systematic attacks. Villages have been invaded, homes burnt to ashes, lives—young and old—cut short without mercy. The tears of mothers, the cries of the orphaned children, the silence of mass graves—these are the haunting testimonies of a people under siege.
The tragedy does not end with the violence. What is more alarming is what follows the bloodshed. The very lands that were forcefully emptied through blood and fire are now being occupied. The attackers have become settlers. Our ancestral lands—where our fathers were buried, where our mothers tilled the soil, where our children found joy—are now being claimed and inhabited by those who came with weapons, not dialogue.
We ask:
Is this a holy war?
Is this a tribal conquest?
Or is this a silent colonization, executed with guns instead of treaties?
We deserve an answer.
If it is a religious war, let it be stated clearly. If it is an ethnic cleansing, let the world know. If our lands have indeed been taken, then tell us so we may plan, organize, and reclaim what is ours. Silence is no longer an option. Confusion only enables impunity.
Let it be known that our dead are not just numbers. They lie buried in the soil we now see others claim. Our sources of livelihood—our farmlands, water springs, and grazing fields—are not to be taken by force. We have always lived in peace with our neighbours, but peace must not be mistaken for weakness.
This is a call to all men and women of conscience, both within Nigeria and beyond: look into the plight of the Plateau people. We demand justice. We demand the return of our lands. We demand security, protection, and dignity.
Our silence has been long. Our patience, tested. But our spirit remains unbroken.
We will not be forgotten.
We will not be erased.
We will rise, not in hatred, but in justice, peace, and determined courage.
Signed:
A Concerned Voice from the Plateau
