Osu Caste system in Nigeria (Igbo community)

THE Igbos are found mostly in the South Eastern and South Central Nigeria called
igboland or Igbo society (Alaigbo or Anaigbo). By the late 20th Century the Osu caste system is an obnoxious practice among the Igbo in south east Nigeria which has refused to go away despite the impact of Christianity, education and civilization, and the human rights culture. The population of the Igbos was about 27 million. The majority of the Igbos are Christians, but some of them practice the indigenous traditional religion, whose major tenets are shared by all
Igbo speaking people of Nigeria

Igbo people

However, a relic of the indigenous religious practice of the Igbos is the dehumanizing Osu caste system, which has divided and alienated the Igbos.
I want to discuss Osu caste system, an indigenous religious belief
system, practiced within the Igbo nation, with the purpose of bringing the discriminatory, dehumanizing and obnoxious caste system to the attention of the international community. This is because whenever issues of discriminatory practices around the world are tabled for discussion in the international community, the repugnant and discriminatory Osu caste system is never mentioned.
The Osu, by definition, is a people sacrificed to the gods in Igbo community. And they assist the high priest of the traditional religion to serve the deities or the gods in their shrine. It is the belief of many Igbo traditionalists that the deities, which were (and are still) perceived in some quarters as being very powerful, would wreck havoc in the society, if they are not appeased.

A typical igbo shrine

In some special circumstances, those who hold the traditional beliefs of the Igbos could
transform a Diala who committed certain atrocities against the land into an Osu. This process involved intricate rituals (offering of libations and sacrificing animals to the earth goddess). Some of the ancestors of the present-day Osu people inherited their dehumanizing social status this way. That method is now a thing of the old; Western influence has affected this practice. Presently, one could acquire the Osu status through inheritance and marriage.
Osu caste system is a societal institution borne out of a primitive traditional belief system colored by superstition and propagated by ignorance. It is absurd
to categorize a human as a sub-human being. the Osu caste system, which is a form of discrimination, has caused inter-communal discords and wars between the Osu and the Diala in Igboland. And many lives and properties have been destroyed as a result.
According to the United Nations definition, discrimination includes any conduct based on
a distinction made on grounds of natural or social categories, which have no relation
either to individual capacities or merits, or to the concrete behavior of the individual
person.
The discriminatory Osu practices involves inequality in freedom of movement and choice of residence, inequality in the right of peaceful association, inequality in the enjoyment of the right to marry and establish a family, (and) inequality in access to public office. That is the crux of the matter with the Osu caste system in Igboland. If one may ask, could a right exist if it is not regularly enforced? To put it differently, can a right exist without a
specific legislation that provides for its protection and remedies if violated? Oddly
enough, the victims of the Osu system do not have any legal recourse in
Igboland. And strangely, some people believe that the humiliating Osu caste system is a part of the Igbo culture nobody should temper with. Fortunately, many Igbos have a contrary opinion.for me, i say enough is enough!
The Osu caste system and the indigenous religious practices of the Igbo nation. All
human beings are created equal, but human experiences are heterogeneous. Some people
have had it rough all their lives on earth, while others do not have a lot to complain about.
Naturally, life has the same meaning for everyone, but the Osu caste system in Igboland seems to have changed the meaning of life for a group of people branded Osu. No historical question gives the Igbos more concern than that of, “How did the Osu caste system come to be in Igboland?”
There is a paucity of written information on the issue of the Osu caste system. This is apparently because many people shy away from discussing the issue for fear of being branded Osu lovers.
An individual’s fortunes are determined by the by-product of interactions that exist between one’s “chi”, the deities and the Creator or “Chineke”.
Humans interact directly with deities, which function as intermediaries to the Supreme Spirit or Creator. Being in good terms with powerful deities in one’s domain is an assurance that one is likely to obtain the largesse of creation while, at same time,minimize the wrath of the forces of nature. It is an individual’s obligation to observe the customs of the land since their violation could offend the deities; and goodwill and protection from the deities depends on one’s cordial relationship with them.


Many people have condemned the system which has traumatized many innocent people but the problem persists. one fact is that the Osu system of discrimination is an outdated tradition with no basis for its continued practice and observance in the contemporary Igbo society.
Traditionally, there are two classes of people in Igboland – the Nwadiala and the Osu.
The Nwadiala literally meaning ‘sons of the soil’. They are the masters while the Osu are the people dedicated to the gods; so they are regarded as slaves, strangers, outcasts and untouchables. Chinua Achebe in his book, No longer At Ease, aptly describes Osu thus: “Our fathers in their darkness and ignorance called an innocent man Osu, a thing given to the idols, and thereafter he became an . outcast, and his children, and his children’s children forever”.
The Osus are treated as inferior human beings and kept in a state of permanent and irreversible disability; they are subjected to various forms of abuse and discrimination. The Osu are made to live separately from the freeborn; they reside very close to shrines and market places.
The Osu are not allowed to dance, drink, hold hands, associate or have sexual relationship with the Nwadiala. They are not even allowed to break kola nut at meetings or pour libation or pray to God on behalf of a freeborn at any community gathering.
It is believed that such prayers will bring calamity and misfortune.

breaking of bitter kola during cultural events

According to human rights groups, some of the atrocities meted out against the Osu in Igboland
include: parents administering poison to their children, disinheritance, ostracism, organized attacks, heaping harvest offering separately in churches, denial of membership in social clubs, violent disruption of marriage ceremonies, denial of chieftaincy titles, deprivation of property and expulsion of wives.
The Osu caste discrimination is very pronounced in the area of marriage. An Osu cannot marry a freeborn. The belief is that any freeborn that marries an Osu defiles the family. So freeborn families are always up in arms against any of their members who wants to . marry an Osu.
They go to any length to scuttle the plan. Because of the Osu factor, marriages in Igboland are preceded by investigations– elders on both side travel to native villages to find out the social status of the other party. And if it is found that one of them is an Osu, the plan would be automatically abandoned. Many marriage plans have been aborted, while married couples have been forced to divorce because of the Osu factor. Chinua Achebe also notes this in his book. When Okonkwo learns that his son wants to marry Clara, an Osu, Okonkwo says: “Osu is like a leprosy in the minds of my people. I beg of you my son not to bring the mark of shame and leprosy into your family. If you do, your children and your children’s children will curse you and your memory – you will bring sorrow on your head and on the heads of your children.”
Sometime last year, a young educated Igbo man, a successful business entrepreneur based in Atlanta (USA) had been engaged to be married to an Igbo lady, who was a medical doctor. The Igbo lady was already pregnant for the man. During the customary family introduction, it was discovered that the lady was an “Osu” and immediately the wedding arrangements were terminated. The lady gave birth to a baby boy and now lives in Houston (USA) as a single parent. The Igbo man has refused any form of contact with the lady and his child with all the education, western culture, civilization and exposure to Christian teachings.

There have been several instances like that where young men and women of Igbo extraction have suffered emotional trauma as a result of this cultural malaise. And now the question is, why is it that this cultural practice has refused to go away even among educated Igbos? The reason is not far fetched. The practice of Osu caste system is hinged on religion, supernaturalism and theism. And Igbos are deeply religious and theistic people. Osu are regarded as unclean or untouchable because they are (alleged to be) dedicated to the gods. So it is the dedication to the gods that makes the Osu status a condition of permanent and irreversible disability and stigma.
The discriminatory Osu practice involves inequality in freedom of movement and choice of residence, inequality in the right of peaceful association, inequality of residence, inquality in the right of peaceful association, inequality in the enjoyment of the right to marry and establish a family, (and) inequality in access to public office. That is the crux of the matter with Osu caste in Igboland. If one may ask, could a right exist if it is not enforced? To put it differently, can a right exist without a specific legislation that provides for its protection and remedies when violated? Oddly enough, the victims of the Osu system do not have any legal remedy in Igboland. And strangely, some people believe that the humiliating Osu caste system is a part of the Igbo culture nobody should tamper with.
The Osu case system in Igboland seems to have changed the meaning of life for the group of people branded Osu.

osu caste being maltreated

The maltreatment meted out to the Osu has forced many of them to migrate to other countries, many development projects abandoned, marriages dissolved and pregnancies terminated. In fact, so many crimes against humanity have been committed against individuals and groups in Igboland in the name of Osu.
The Osu caste system has caused communal strifes and wars between the Osu and the Nwadiala in Igboland. According to the United Nations definition, discrimination includes any conduct based on a distinction made on grounds of natural or social categories, which have no relation either to individual capacities or merits or to the concrete behavior of the individual person.
Based on the above, I suggest that something drastic has to be done to eradicate this obnoxious system. There is the urgent need for all Igbo leaders of thought, the traditional rulers, the governors, the clergymen and all the people that matter to come together and enact a law out rightly banning the system generally in Igboland as there is no basis for its continued existence. that was why i put up a TV Drama, GURU GUANO.i need partnerships to shoot this film and use it as a campaign against OSU CASTE SYSTEM IN IGBOLAND. to know more about the Screenplay, call me on +234-803-8843041