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The 1945 Nigerian General Strike: How over 100,000 Nigerian Workers Challenged the Government

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In 1945, a pivotal moment in Nigeria’s history unfolded with the initiation of the first general strike, a nationwide labor movement led by thousands of workers later known in history as the 1945 Nigerian General Strike. This strike marked a turning point in Nigeria’s fight for independence from British colonial rule. The strike began with railway workers, spreading to encompass workers from other industries, including dock and civil service workers, with support even coming from employees at private firms…Click Here To Continue Reading>> …Click Here To Continue Reading>>

Historical Background

At the time, Nigeria was under British colonial rule, which had persisted since 1914 and would continue until 1960. The Second World War had left the country grappling with high inflation, rising prices, and stagnant wage growth. The government’s efforts to control prices had proven largely ineffective.

A coalition of workers, known as the Joint Executive of Government Technical Workers, made their demands clear on March 22, 1945. They sought a minimum wage of two shillings and six pence and a 50 percent increase in the Cost of Living Allowance (COLA), retroactive to April 1, 1944. Unfortunately, the colonial government denied these demands on May 2, 1945.

In response, the workers issued a statement, threatening to proceed on a general and lasting strike if their demands weren’t met by Thursday, June 21, 1945.

The Catalyst for the 1945 Nigerian General Strike

Despite negotiations between the colonial government and a delegation of workers led by their President, T.A. Bankole, on May 30, 1945, no resolution was reached. Just twelve days later, the colonial government made an offer that only slightly adjusted their previous position. This offer was promptly rejected.

On June 2, 1945, in a strategic move, the British Colonialists released Michael Imoudu, a prominent labor leader who had been in prison since 1943, perhaps hoping to pacify the angry workers. However, Imoudu’s actions acted as a catalyst for the strike, and as labor historian Wogu Ananaba noted, “There is little doubt that but for Imoudu’s activities there might have been no General Strike on June 22.”

The Commencement of the Strike

On June 22, the strike began with railway workers signaling its start in Lagos by blowing train whistles at midnight. While not all workers initially joined the strike, the support of numerous nationalists, including Herbert Macaulay, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Adunni Oluwole, and Obafemi Awolowo, boosted the strikers’ morale. Imoudu continued to play a prominent role in encouraging workers to join the movement.

Michael Imoudu
Michael Imoudu and a crowd of demonstrators

Some strikers began to confront those who tried to continue working. The strike, which originated with railway workers, quickly spread throughout the colony, with local labor leaders playing a crucial role in its management. READ FULL STORY HERE>>>CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>

Government’s Efforts and the Strike’s Impact

The colonial government made several attempts to persuade the workers to end the strike, including spreading propaganda and enlisting labor leaders to mediate negotiations. These efforts, however, proved largely ineffective.

As a result of the strike, transportation between localities ground to a halt, and many had to resort to biking or walking as their primary means of transport. Despite a warning on July 26 that workers continuing the strike into August would be fired, the strike endured.

However, by early August, the strikers became divided and entered into negotiations. On August 3, a compromise was reached, leading to the end of the strike, the withdrawal of lawsuits against strikers, and job security for the workers.

Divisions and Challenges

While the strike had the support of many nationalists, some, particularly those affiliated with the Nigeria Youth Movement, sought to sabotage it. The media played a contrasting role as well, with the Daily Service, the NYM’s newspaper, supporting the colonial authorities and downplaying the strike.

In retrospect, the 1945 Nigerian General Strike stood as a watershed moment in the country’s journey toward independence. It showcased the power of collective action and determination among the workers and their allies, and it laid the foundation for future movements that would eventually lead Nigeria to its hard-fought independence in 1960. SOURCE

 

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METRO

Guy Fawkes’ punishment was one of the most severe in English history – here’s what happens when a body is hung, drawn and quartered

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Fawkes and his co-conspirators were sentenced to hanging, drawing and quartering. Crispijn van de Passe the Elder/ Wikimedia Commons

After their infamous plot to destroy parliament was foiled, Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators received one of the most severe judicial sentences in English history: hanging, drawing and quartering. According to the Treason Act 1351 , this punishment involved…Click Here To Continue Reading>> …Click Here To Continue Reading>>

 

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  • Michelle SpearProfessor of Anatomy, University of Bristol

That you be drawn on a hurdle to the place of execution, where you shall be hanged by the neck and being alive cut down, your privy members shall be cut off and your bowels taken out and burned before you, your head severed from your body and your body divided into four quarters to be disposed of at the King’s pleasure.

This process aimed not only to inflict excruciating pain on the condemned, but to serve as a deterrent – demonstrating the fate of those who betrayed the Crown. While Fawkes reportedly jumped from the gallows – which meant he avoided the full extent of his punishment – his co-conspirators apparently weren’t so lucky.

By dissecting each stage of this medieval punishment from an anatomical perspective, we can understand the profound agony each of them endured.

Torture for confession

Before his public execution on January 31 1606, Fawkes was tortured to force a confession about his involvement in the “gunpowder plot”.

The Tower of London records confirm that King James I personally authorised “the gentler tortures first”. Accounts reveal that Fawkes was stretched on the rack – a device designed to slowly pull the limbs in opposite directions. This stretching inflicted severe trauma on the shoulders, elbows and hips, as well as the spine.

The forces exerted by the rack probably exceeded those required for joint or hip dislocation under normal conditions.

Substantive differences between Fawkes’ signatures on confessions between November 8 and shortly before his execution may indicate the amount of nerve and soft tissue damage sustained. It also illustrates how remarkable his final leap from the gallows was.

An engraving depicting a person being tortured on the rack.
The rack slowly pulled a prisoner’s limbs in opposite directions. Wellcome Collection/ Wikimedia Commons , CC BY-SA

Stage 1: hanging (partial strangulation)

After surviving the torture of the rack, Fawkes and his gang faced the next stage of their punishment: hanging. But this form of hanging only partially strangled the condemned – preserving their consciousness and prolonging their suffering.

Partial strangulation exerts extreme pressure on several critical neck structures. The hyoid bone , a small u-shaped structure above the larynx, is prone to bruising or fracture under compression .

Simultaneously, pressure on the carotid arteries restricts blood flow to the brain, while compression of the jugular veins causes pooling of blood in the head – probably resulting in visible haemorrhages in the eyes and face.

Because the larynx and trachea (both essential for airflow) are partially obstructed, this makes breathing laboured. Strain on the cervical spine and surrounding muscles in the neck can lead to tearing, muscle spasms or dislocation of the vertebra – causing severe pain. READ FULL STORY HERE>>>CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>

Fawkes brought his agony to a premature end by leaping from the gallows. Accounts from the time tell us:

His body being weak with the torture and sickness, he was scarce able to go up the ladder – yet with much ado, by the help of the hangman, went high enough to break his neck by the fall.

This probably caused him to suffer a bilateral fracture of his second cervical vertebra, assisted by his own bodyweight – an injury known as the “hangman’s fracture” .

Stage 2: Drawing (disembowelment)

After enduring partial hanging, the victim would then be “drawn” – a process which involved disembowelling them while still alive. This act mainly targeted the organs of the abdominal cavity – including the intestines, liver and kidney, as well as major blood vessels such as the abdominal aorta.

The physiological response to disembowelment would have been immediate and severe. The abdominal cavity possesses a high concentration of pain receptors – particularly around the membranous lining of the abdomen . When punctured, these pain receptors would have sent intense pain signals to the brain, overwhelming the body’s capacity for pain management . Shock would soon follow due to the rapid drop in blood pressure caused by massive amounts of blood loss.

Stage 3: quartering (dismemberment)

Quartering was also supposed to be performed while the victim was still alive. Though no accounts exist detailing at what phase victims typically lost consciousness during execution, it’s highly unlikely many survived the shock of being drawn.

So, at this stage, publicity superseded punishment given the victim’s likely earlier demise. Limbs that were removed from criminals were preserved by boiling them with spices. These were then toured around the country to act as a deterrent for others.

Though accounts suggest Fawkes’s body parts were sent to “the four corners of the United Kingdom”, there is no specific record of what was sent where. However, his head was displayed in London .

Traitor’s punishment

The punishment of hanging, drawing and quartering was designed to be as anatomically devastating as it was psychologically terrifying. Each stage of the process exploited the vulnerabilities of the human body to create maximum pain and suffering, while also serving as a grim reminder of the consequences of treason.

This punishment also gives us an insight into how medieval justice systems used the body as a canvas for social and political messaging. Fawkes’s fate, though unimaginable today, exemplifies the extremes to which the state could, and would, go to maintain control, power and authority over its subjects.

The sentence of hanging, drawing and quartering was officially removed from English law as part of the Forfeiture Act of 1870 .

 

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OPINION: 4 Children Who Were Sentenced to life imprisonment At A Young Age And what They Did

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There are many unusual things happening across the world. Children are charming and lovely, yet others are really dangerous and have been involved in a variety of illegal activities in society.

In this post, we’ll look at four children who were condemned to life in jail Please keep in mind that some of these children are now adults…Click Here To Continue Reading>> …Click Here To Continue Reading>>

 

1. Joshua Phillips:

Joshua Phillips stabbed his neighbor’s eight-year-old daughter and put the girl’s body under his bed at home. After eight days, his mother discovered the body.

Joshua Phillips was fourteen years old when he committed this act, according to reports, and he was sentenced to life in jail.

Take a look at how Joshua Phillips is now.

2. Eric Smith:

Eric Smith, according to sources, was condemned to life in jail many years ago. Eric Smith was just 13 years old when he hit a 4-year-old boy with a rock and killed him.

Following multiple conversations with Eric, he stated that he was bullied by several senior kids at his school and that he killed the youngster because he was irritated and upset. READ FULL STORY HERE>>>CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>

3. Lionel Tate:

Lionel Tate was one of the youngest people to get a life sentence.

According to sources, when he was 13 years old, Lionel Tate killed his neighbor’s six-year-old daughter.

Lionel Tate claimed he was boxing with the young girl.

4. Brian Lee Draper:

Brian Lee Draper was sentenced to life in prison in 2006 for murdering a classmate, according to reports.

The murder was committed by Brian Lee Draper and his friend Torey Adamcik, who was sixteen years old at the time.

Parents should always endeavor to teach their children how to be good children, as well as pray for them.

 

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Lady Caught Feeding Neighbor’s Baby With Faeces & Urine Speaks From Prison, Gives This Ugly Reason

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A woman named Stella Namwanje was arrested in Uganda for allegedly committing an atrocious act against her neighbor’s baby. Reports indicate that she was caught on video defecating and urinating on the infant before feeding him the waste. This shocking behavior has drawn widespread condemnation and raised serious concerns about the child’s welfare…Click Here To Continue Reading>> …Click Here To Continue Reading>>

 

The incident took place in the Binyonyi A area of the Nyendo-Mukungwe division. Local authorities acted swiftly after the disturbing footage circulated on social media, prompting community outrage. The police have since taken Namwanje into custody to investigate the circumstances surrounding her actions and ensure the safety of the child.

The case has sparked discussions about the need for stronger measures to protect vulnerable individuals, especially children, from abuse. It highlights the alarming reality of child torture and the psychological issues that may drive such behavior. READ FULL STORY HERE>>>CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING>>>

As the investigation unfolds, the community is rallying to support the affected family and prevent similar incidents in the future. The legal proceedings against Namwanje will likely focus on the extent of her actions and the necessary repercussions for such a heinous crime.

 

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