Biafran rebel leader living in Finland

Simon Ekpa is an immigrant living in Finland, and leads his armed Biafran forces in Nigeria via social media. When interviewed, he said that he accepts military - violent - behavior from his troops against Nigerian army or police, but not against civilians.

As my reader may recall, Biafra attempted to gain independence from Nigerian rule in the late 1960s but failed. The independence war is remembered for the first TV reports showing starving children. And that is why in Finland parents still say that children have to finish their food because Africans are starving - although no one knows how that could help children living far away.

In Finland, Biafra is also remembered for its national anthem, which is "Finlandia" composed by Jean Sibelius. And actually, in the opinion of many Finns, this composition should also be changed into the national anthem of Finland. 

Coming back to Simon Ekpa and his attempts to separate Biafra from Nigeria. His actions are not appreciated in Nigeria, and there has been contact with the Finnish government.

The Nigerians have said - referring to actions of Ekpa in Nigeria - that "it seems that the situation is getting out of hand. And we say: too much is too much. We are telling you in the strongest possible terms that it is high time that you support Nigeria's efforts to do something about it immediately as the situation threatens the upcoming elections."

The fact, however, is that Finland has freedom of speech and the government has no legal way to stop Ekba from taking the message he wants to his supporters in Nigeria. And therefore the man can go ahead and call on his supporters to boycott Nigeria's upcoming elections as long as he does not commit illegalities according to Finnish law. 

Ekpa may, however, face some troubles. That is because he is an active local politician of the major Conservative party of Finland, which is considering right now what to do with him. Perhaps he will be expelled from the party.

The case is interesting in many ways. One thing, however, is clear: if the people of Finland's autonomic region - Åland - wanted to become independent, it would happen without problems by organizing a referendum in that province. There would be no need for war or violent terrorism to achieve the goal.

So let us wait and see what happens to Simon Ekpa and his Biafran people in Nigeria. Will he become a major politician in independent new country, or is he going to be forgotten as someone who caused a bit of trouble far away from his home in northern Europe. 

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Independence day of Finland now and 83 years ago
Corruption in Nigeria may affect Europe
Aikamme uskonsodat (Religious wars of our time; readable in English using Google translator)