EFFECTS OF COMMUNAL CLASHES ON A TOURISM DESTINATION,CROSS RIVER STATE, NIGERIA

ABSTRACT ' This work assessed the communal violence experienced at selected communities in Cross River State with emphases on internal displacement that ensues, the pattern of movement of the displaced persons, the socio-economic impacts of the crises ranging from human fatalities to the destruction of properties. The factors that cause the clashes were also considered as wel as those that fuel it, even after its inception. The challenges faced by victims of communal clash remain the crust of this study. From the study, it was established that competition for resources such as land triggers most communal clashes in the area. Again, the result of the study also revealed that the relocation pattern of displaced persons varies significantly in different communal clash zones within the study area. The degree of impact of the clashes are evident in the number of lives lost, residential buildings destroyed, social amenities destroyed among others in different locality in the area. From the result, it is clear that there are signals of re-occurrence of crisis in some parts of the study area most especially clash berween Nko and Oyadama. In the light of the study findings, the researcher put