Committee for Peace in Nigeria archive

This material is held atSchool of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) Archives, University of London

Reference
- GB 102 MCF/14
Alternative Id.
Dates of Creation
- 1967-1969
Name of Creator
- Committee for Peace in Nigeria
Language of Material
- English
Physical Description
- 5 boxes

Scope and Content

The records of the Committee for Peace in Nigeria, a UK based political pressure group campaigning for a peaceful resolution to the Nigerian Civil War/Biafran War (1967-1970). Comprises: membership, minutes and finance papers: correspondence, including with the UK Prime Minister Harold Wilson; newsletters and press releases; press cuttings and articles; pamphlets and publicity material; deputation papers; appeal papers; Co-ordinating Committee for action on Nigeria/Biafra papers; and miscellaneous files.

Administrative / Biographical History

The Committee for Peace in Nigeria was UK based political pressure group campaigning for a peaceful resolution to the Nigerian Civil War/Biafran War between 1967 and 1970. The conflict which broke out following the declaration of independence in 1967 of the Eastern region of Nigeria, as the Republic of Biafra.

The Committee for Peace in Nigeria campaigned for a negotiated end to the conflict, an embargo on the supply of arms to the region, and as the conflict developed against the use of starvation as a weapon of war. It had a close association with the Movement for Colonial Freedom, a UK based anticolonial campaign group and civil rights organisation.

A delegation from the Committee for Peace in Nigeria, including Lord Fenner Brockway, a Labour peer, and James Griffiths MP ravelled to the conflict zone in December 1969 and succeeded in arranging a Christmas truce between Nigerian and Biafran combatants. The truce was short-lived and fighting continued until the eventual defeat of Biafran forces in 1970.