Women's War

The Women's War (Igbo: Ogu Umunwanyi; Ibibio and Annang: Ekong Iban) was a period of unrest in colonial Nigeria in November 1929. The protests broke out when thousands of Igbo women from the Bende District, Umuahia and other places in Nigeria traveled to the town of Oloko to protest against the warrant chiefs, local men appointed by British colonial authorities to serve as administrative representatives and had no precedent in Igbo tradition, whom they accused of restricting the role of women in the government. The protest encompassed women from six ethnic groups (Igbo, Ibibio, Andoni, Ogoni, Efik, and Ijaw).

The term war in this context did not refer to combat but instead referenced the Igbo women's practice of 'making war on a man' (or 'sitting on a man'), a form of public shaming. It was organised and led by the rural women of Owerri and Calabar provinces. The modus operandi of the protests involved 'sit-in' by the women. During the events, many warrant chiefs were forced to resign, and 16 Native Courts were attacked, most of which were destroyed. It was the first major revolt by women in West Africa.

In 1930, the colonial government abolished the system of warrant chieftains, and appointed women to the Native Court system. These reforms were built upon by African women and have been seen as a prelude to the emergence of mass African nationalism.