Much is currently being made nationally and internationally about alleged discrimination against the Hausa-Fulani in Plateau State, an issue that has led to calls for the reform of the system whereby tribes considered indigenous to a given state are afforded certain privileges. However, the systematic, and in some cases comprehensive marginalisation of indigenous and non-indigenous non-Muslims in northern states where the Hausa-Fulani are indigenous and often in the majority continues to go un-noted.
This report, which contains the findings of a two week visit to six northern states, confirms the existence in these states of discrimination at almost every level, a general lack of accountability on the part of state governments, local authorities and traditional leaders that institute or allow discriminatory policies and/or violence against non-Muslims to rage unchecked, and the inability of non-Muslims in these areas to access justice in the face of unremitting repression.