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34-689: Bakassi is a peninsula on the Gulf of Guinea . It lies between the Cross River estuary, near the city of Calabar and the Rio del Ray estuary on the east. It is governed by Cameroon , following the transfer of sovereignty from neighbouring Nigeria as a result of a judgment by the International Court of Justice . On 22 November 2007, the Nigerian Senate rejected the transfer, since

68-469: A basin . This may create peninsulas, and occurred for example in the Keweenaw Peninsula . In the case of formation from meltwater, melting glaciers deposit sediment and form moraines , which act as dams for the meltwater. This may create bodies of water that surround the land, forming peninsulas. If deposition formed the peninsula, the peninsula was composed of sedimentary rock , which

102-528: A "complete fraud". The Nigerian newspaper The Guardian went further, declaring that the judgment was "a rape and unforeseen potential international conspiracy against Nigerian territorial integrity and sovereignty" and "part of a Western ploy to foment and perpetuate trouble in Africa". The outcome of the controversy was a de facto Nigerian refusal to withdraw its troops from Bakassi and transfer sovereignty. The Nigerian government did not, however, openly reject

136-602: A Treaty of Protection with the King and Chiefs of Akwa Akpa , known to Europeans as Old Calabar , on 10 September 1884. This enabled the British Empire to exercise control over the entire territory around Calabar, including Bakassi. The territory subsequently became de facto part of Nigeria , although the border was never permanently delineated. However, documents released by the Cameroonians, in parity with that of

170-448: A commission to facilitate the peaceful implementation of the ICJ's judgement. A further summit was held on 31 January 2004. This made significant progress, but the process was complicated by the opposition of Bakassi's inhabitants to being transferred to Cameroon. Bakassian leaders threatened to seek independence if Nigeria renounced sovereignty. This secession was announced on 9 July 2006, as

204-566: Is the subject of some dispute, but is generally put at between 150,000 and 300,000 people. Bakassi is situated at the extreme eastern end of the Gulf of Guinea, where the warm east-flowing Guinea Current (called Aya Efiat in Efik ) meets the cold north-flowing Benguela Current (called Aya Ubenekang in Efik). These two ocean currents interact, creating huge foamy breakers which constantly advance towards

238-570: The Greentree Agreement ceding the area to Cameroon was contrary to Section 12(1) of the 1999 Constitution . Regardless, the territory was completely ceded to Cameroon on 14 August 2008, exactly two years after the first part of it was transferred. The peninsula lies between latitudes 4°25′ and 5°10′N and longitudes 8°20′ and 9°08′E . It consists of a number of low-lying, largely mangrove covered islands covering an area of around 665 km (257 sq mi). The population of Bakassi

272-460: The People's Democratic Party . In the 2010s and 2020s, Biafran separatists, most importantly Biafra Nations League, still continue a low-level militant resistance against Cameroon in regards to Bakassi. Peninsula The word peninsula derives from Latin paeninsula , from paene  'almost' and insula  'island'. The word entered English in

306-457: The "Democratic Republic of Bakassi". The decision was reportedly made at a meeting on 2 July 2006 and The Vanguard newspaper of Nigeria reported the decision to secede. The decision was reportedly made by groups of militants including Southern Cameroons under the aegis of Southern Cameroons Peoples Organisation (SCAPO), Bakassi Movement for Self-Determination (BAMOSD), and the Movement for

340-572: The 16th century. A peninsula is generally defined as a piece of land surrounded on most sides by water. A peninsula may be bordered by more than one body of water, and the body of water does not have to be an ocean or a sea. A piece of land on a very tight river bend or one between two rivers is sometimes said to form a peninsula, for example in the New Barbadoes Neck in New Jersey , United States. A peninsula may be connected to

374-615: The 1970s between Cameroon and Nigeria. These were the Yaoundé II Declaration of 4 April 1971 and the Maroua Declaration of 1 June 1975, which were devised to outline maritime boundaries between the two countries following their independence. The line was drawn through the Cross River estuary to the west of the peninsula, thereby implying Cameroonian ownership over Bakassi. However, Nigeria never ratified

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408-627: The British and Germans, clearly places Bakassi under Cameroonian Territory as a consequence of colonial era Anglo-German agreements. After Southern Cameroons voted in 1961 to leave Nigeria and became a part of Cameroon, Bakassi remained under Calabar administration in Nigeria until ICJ judgement of 2002. Bakassi inhabitants are mainly the Oron people , the people of Cross River State and Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria. Nigeria and Cameroon have disputed

442-547: The Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). The Biafra separatist group, Biafra Nations League (BNL), initially known as Biafra Nations Youth League, led by Princewill Chimezie Richard (known as Prince Obuka) and Ebuta Akor Takon (not the former Deputy, Ebuta Ogar Takon) moved their operational base to the peninsula, after series of warnings to the Nigeria government over the plight of the internally displaced natives and

476-656: The Gulf of Guinea from the mouth of the Akwayafe River . In 2002, the International Court of Justice issued a judgment in a case between Cameroon and Nigeria on their longstanding boundary dispute . Nigeria argued that the Maroua Declaration was invalid and nonbinding because although the Nigerian head of state had signed it, the agreement had not been ratified either by Parliament or any other governmental process. The ICJ held that under international law

510-495: The agreement, while Cameroon regarded it as being in force. The ICJ delivered its judgment on 10 October 2002, finding (based principally on the Anglo-German agreements) that sovereignty over Bakassi did indeed rest with Cameroon. It instructed Nigeria to transfer possession of the peninsula, but did not require the inhabitants to move or to change their nationality. Cameroon was thus given a substantial Nigerian population and

544-499: The case of Florida , continental drift, marine sediment, and marine transgressions were all contributing factors to its shape. In the case of formation from glaciers (e.g., the Antarctic Peninsula or Cape Cod ), peninsulas can be created due to glacial erosion , meltwater or deposition . If erosion formed the peninsula, softer and harder rocks were present, and since the glacier only erodes softer rock, it formed

578-700: The formal handover of Bakassi by Nigeria to Cameroon in 2006, the territory of Bakassi is still mentioned as part of the 774 local governments in Nigeria as embodied in the First Schedule, Part I of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. After the Nigerian 2015 general elections, Nigeria's 8th National Assembly still accommodates the Calabar-South/Akpabuyo/Bakassi Federal Constituency represented by Hon. Essien Ekpeyong Ayi of

612-440: The government did not seem to plan to heed this court order, and set the necessary mechanisms into motion to override it. Fishermen displaced from Bakassi were first settled in a landlocked area called New Bakassi, which they claimed was already inhabited and not suitable for fishermen like them but only for farmers. The displaced people were then moved to Akpabuyo , and eventually established a new community of Dayspring . Despite

646-519: The judgment but instead called for an agreement that would provide "peace with honour, with the interest and welfare of our people". The ICJ judgement was backed up by the United Nations , whose charter potentially allowed sanctions or even the use of force to enforce the court's ruling. Secretary-General Kofi Annan stepped in as a mediator and chaired a tripartite summit with the two countries' presidents on 15 November 2002, which established

680-512: The light of the discovery of rich reserves of high grade crude oil in Nigeria. At least eight multinational oil companies have participated in the exploration of the peninsula and its offshore waters. In October 2012, China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation announced it had discovered new oil and gas resources in the Bakassi region. During the Scramble for Africa , Queen Victoria signed

714-531: The mainland via an isthmus , for example, in the Isthmus of Corinth which connects to the Peloponnese peninsula. Peninsulas can be formed from continental drift , glacial erosion , glacial meltwater , glacial deposition , marine sediment , marine transgressions , volcanoes, divergent boundaries or river sedimentation. More than one factor may play into the formation of a peninsula. For example, in

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748-535: The militant groups. BNL demanded that oil companies authorized to drill for oil by Nigeria and Cameroon leave the maritime boundary area of Bakassi Peninsula. The group also threatened to attack Cameroon Forces. On 13 June 2006, President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria and President Paul Biya of Cameroon resolved the dispute in talks led by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in New York City . Obasanjo agreed to withdraw Nigerian troops within 60 days and to leave

782-532: The peninsula. The remainder stayed under Nigerian civil authority for two more years. On 22 November 2007, the Nigerian Senate passed a resolution declaring that the withdrawal from the Bakassi Peninsula was illegal. The government took no action, and handed the final parts of Bakassi over to Cameroon on 14 August 2008 as planned, but a Federal High Court had stated this should be delayed until all accommodations for resettled Bakassians had been settled;

816-417: The possession of Bakassi for some years, leading to considerable tension between the two countries. In 1981 the two countries went to the brink of war over Bakassi and another area around Lake Chad , at the other end of the two countries' common border. More armed clashes broke out in the early 1990s. In response, Cameroon took the matter to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 29 March 1994. The case

850-649: The reported killing of remnants in the peninsula by Cameroon forces. This came amid clashes between Nigerian troops and the Bakassi Strike Force, a militant group that focused on attacking Nigerian and Cameroon forces. BNL Leaders were later apprehended in the Ikang-Cameroon border area on 9 November 2016 by Nigerian troops according to the Nigeria nation newspaper; reports linked the Biafra group to

884-468: The sediment is deposited, forming a delta peninsula. Marine transgressions (changes in sea level) may form peninsulas, but also may affect existing peninsulas. For example, the water level may change, which causes a peninsula to become an island during high water levels. Similarly, wet weather causing higher water levels make peninsulas appear smaller, while dry weather make them appear larger. Sea level rise from global warming will permanently reduce

918-410: The shore. This builds up shoals rich in fish, shrimps, and a wide variety of other marine life forms, thus making the area a very fertile fishing ground, from which most of the population make their living. The peninsula is commonly described as "oil-rich", though in fact no commercially viable deposits of oil have been discovered. However, the area has aroused considerable interest from oil companies in

952-417: The size of some peninsulas over time. Peninsulas are noted for their use as shelter for humans and Neanderthals . The landform is advantageous because it gives hunting access to both land and sea animals. They can also serve as markers of a nation's borders. Maroua Declaration The Maroua Declaration is a 1975 maritime boundary agreement between Cameroon and Nigeria . A question regarding

986-475: The territory completely in Cameroonian control within the next two years. Annan said, "With today's agreement on the Bakassi peninsula, a comprehensive resolution of the dispute is within our grasp. The momentum achieved must be sustained." Nigeria began to withdraw its forces, comprising some 3,000 troops, beginning 1 August 2006, and a ceremony on 14 August marked the formal handover of the northern part of

1020-472: The validity of the agreement arose during an International Court of Justice case that decided a boundary dispute between the two countries. The Maroua Declaration was signed on 1 June 1975 by Ahmadou Ahidjo , President of Cameroon , and Yakubu Gowon , the head of state of Nigeria in Maroua , Cameroon. The agreement extends a maritime boundary that previously existed between the two countries further into

1054-564: The volcano erupts near shallow water. Marine sediment may form peninsulas by the creation of limestone . A rift peninsula may form as a result of a divergent boundary in plate tectonics (e.g. the Arabian Peninsula ), while a convergent boundary may also form peninsulas (e.g. Gibraltar or the Indian subcontinent ). Peninsulas can also form due to sedimentation in rivers. When a river carrying sediment flows into an ocean,

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1088-504: Was created from a large deposit of glacial drift . The hill of drift becomes a peninsula if the hill formed near water but was still connected to the mainland, for example during the formation of Cape Cod about 23,000 years ago. In the case of formation from volcanoes, when a volcano erupts magma near water, it may form a peninsula (e.g., the Alaskan Peninsula ). Peninsulas formed from volcanoes are especially common when

1122-441: Was extremely complex, requiring the court to review diplomatic exchanges dating back over 100 years. Nigeria relied largely on Anglo-German correspondence dating from 1885 as well as treaties between the colonial powers and the indigenous rulers in the area, particularly the 1884 Treaty of Protection. Cameroon pointed to the Anglo-German treaty of 1913, which defined sphere of control in the region, as well as two agreements signed in

1156-473: Was required to protect their rights, infrastructure and welfare. The verdict caused consternation in Nigeria. It aroused vitriolic comments from Nigerian officials and the Nigerian media alike. Chief Richard Akinjide , a former Nigerian Attorney-General and Minister of Justice who had been a leading member of Nigeria's legal team, described the decision as "50% international law and 50% international politics", "blatantly biased and unfair", "a total disaster", and

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