Inaugural Broadcast Address by the Voice of Biafra

By Indigenous People of Biafra 

*From the Studios of Biafra Voice International (BVI) 

With gratitude to God for the grace He has given to us all, we are glad tonight to witness and be part of this inaugural broadcast from the Voice of Biafra reaching the whole world from the studios of Biafra Voice International (BVI) within the Biafra Media Centre (BMC). 

Biafra Voice International is the official media outfit of all Indigenous People of Biafra under the Supreme Council of Elders of Indigenous People of Biafra. The Biafra Media Centre incorporates the print media, audio media and visual media. 

The audio media is the Voice of Biafra which you are hearing tonight. We are saddled with the responsibility of adequately informing, educating, enlightening and mobilizing all the Indigenous People of Biafra in all parts of the world as well as informing members of the international community about the right of Indigenous People of Biafra to self-determination and the need for the inevitable and unconditional liberation of Biafra from Nigeria. In accordance with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples made on 13th September 2007, we assert that the rights of indigenous people of Biafra include:

Foundational or Fundamental Righta

Life and Security

Language, Culture and Spiritual Identity

Education, Information and Employment

Participation, Development, Economic and Social Right

Right to Country, Resources and Knowledge

Right to Freedom of Thought, Conscience and Religion

Right to Personal Liberty

Right to Acquire and Own Immovable Property

Right to Self-Governance and Self-Determination 

Who are indigenous peoples?

Generally indigenous peoples are those who have historically inhabited a particular region of any part of the world from its foundation before the modern day government was introduced and established by the colonial masters. 

 They are the aborigines of the land and had inhabited their countries for thousands or millions of years before colonization or transformation into a nation-state under the United Nations. They often have unique cultural, linguistic, traditional and other social characteristics different from those of other dominant cultures and peoples merged with them in the nation-state created by the colonial masters. 

Historically they have often been dispossessed of their lands and mineral resources, or in the centre of conflicts for access to valuable resources because of where they live, or, in yet other cases, struggling to live the way they would like to. Indeed, indigenous peoples are often amongst the most disadvantaged peoples in the world. 

In the light of this, we as Indigenous People of Biafra have through the Customary Law as enshrined in the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigerian 1999 constituted the administration of all indigenous people of Biafra under the leadership and authority of the Supreme Council of Elders (S.C.E) known as the Government of Indigenous People of Biafra as a customary law government within the Nigeria polity to assert and exercise our right to self-determination by the rule of law.

 Pursuant to the Power of Attorney and Legal Instrument dated 13th September 2012 signed by the Supreme Council of Elders of Indigenous People of Biafra in the Federal High Court Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria, appointing and authorizing Bilie Human Rights Initiative to represent all indigenous people of Biafra in their national liberation struggle, the human rights organization filed the action in Suit No. FHC/OW/CS/102/2012 renumbered as FHC/OW/CS/192/2013, against the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Attorney General of the Federation, for the independence of Biafra. 

At the moment, we are in court with Nigeria within the provisions of the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

 

By The Indigenous People of Biafra