Between November 20 and November 23, 2002, a series of religiously motivated clashes engulfed the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna, killing approximately 250 people and destroying several properties.
Following violent clashes between Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, the Miss World beauty pageant was moved to London instead of Abuja, the nation’s capital. A “blasphemous” article in THISDAY that linked the adored Prophet Mohammed to the beauty pageant sparked these clashes, according to some Muslims.
How it Happened In 2001.
Queen Agbani Darego.
Nigerian model and beauty queen Agbani Darego won the Miss World pageant. As a result, Nigeria was chosen to host the competition in 2002. However, the decision was criticized by many Muslims in Nigeria, particularly in the country’s northern regions, who claimed that it was meant to encourage promiscuity and discourage female modesty.
The event was originally scheduled for November 2002, but due to the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, it was moved to December 7 that same year.
It is important to note that the Miss World Organization was already the target of attacks and pressure in Nigeria for a different reason. The organizers had opposed the execution of Amina Lawal, a young Nigerian woman who was found guilty of adultery by a Zamfara Islamic Sharia court. The Muslim groups in the state didn’t like this opposition, so they got in the way of the pageant organizers.
The Blasphemous Article For the competition, 92 contestants from various nations arrived in Nigeria. Isioma Daniel, a columnist for THISDAY, a national newspaper based in South-Western Lagos, wrote an article on November 16, 2002, to commemorate this achievement. She wrote in the article that the beauty pageant would have been okay with Prophet Mohammed and that he might have even married one of the contestants.
“The Muslims thought it was immoral to bring 92 women to Nigeria and ask them to revel in vanity,” she wrote. What is Mohammed’s opinion? Honestly, he probably would have chosen one of them as his wife.
The Muslim youth in Kaduna were outraged by this article, and word quickly spread. On the life of Isioma Daniel, a “fatwa” was issued; Before being resettled in Norway, she had to quit her job and flee the country to the Benin Republic. The Committee to Protect Journalists and Amnesty International assisted her with the resettlement process.
Isioma Daniel Isioma Daniel thought it was “funny and light-hearted” and “didn’t see it as anything anybody should take seriously or cause much fuss,” according to Isioma Daniel. The newspaper issued an apology to the Muslims who had been offended on its front page on November 18 and 19, but it was too late.
They wrote, “We regret the depiction of the Prophet Muhammad in the comments that were written by one of our staff. With all the responsibility, sensitivity, and respect for all Muslims, the staff, management, editors, and board of ThisDay Newspaper apologize for the grave editorial error of last Saturday’s Miss World Beauty Pageant.” Not only is it unjustifiable, but it is also extremely provocative.
The Riots On November 20, 2002, enraged youths stormed and set fire to THISDAY’s regional office in Malali, Kaduna, on Attahiru Road. Additionally pillaged and destroyed were the newspaper depot and distribution center; While chanting Allahu akbar!, they set fire to churches and beat bystanders who were thought to be Christians. No Tazarene! (God is great) for three days (no beauty contest).
We learned that neither the protesters nor the police made any arrests or intervened to stop the violence. Protests turned into actual violence after a number of radical groups vented their disapproval of the article for three days. Christians attacked Muslims in response to Muslims assaulting Christians.
Burning and looting properties were part of the ongoing murderous spree by both parties. The majority of those killed were unarmed civilians who were targeted solely on the basis of their religion or ethnicity.
Protesters in Kaduna during the Miss World riots in 2002.
Numerous Christians died and were injured; Others left their homes and valuables behind as they fled for their lives. Armed with a variety of weapons, including machetes, knives, iron bars, rods, and firearms, the rioters sought out Christian homes, particularly in areas with a mix of Christians and Muslims.
OldNaija gathered reports that local Hausa Muslims concealed Christians in their homes and claimed that the Christian homes belonged to them in order to prevent the enraged rioters from burning them.
Later, the police and military were brought in to quell the rioting, but at first, they were unable to stop the rioters from attacking people even when the military was present. Only on Sunday, November 24th, 2002, did Kaduna gradually regain its calm.
The Miss World Organization and Silver Bird Productions Limited, the event’s organizers, addressed the media and announced that, despite the riots and demonstrations, the event would continue. They later made it known that it had been relocated to London, England.
Despite all obstacles, the pageant was held. Turkish woman Azra Akin was crowned Miss World 2002 and received $156,000.