In commemoration of the world Press freedom day, Amnesty International has decried the state of intimidation and harassment of journalists and peaceful protesters in the country. The group in a statement by its country director Osai Ojigho on Wednesday May 2, 2018 states that the intimidation and harassment of journalists and bloggers as well as violent crackdowns on peaceful protests have shown the determination of the authorities to suppress the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly in Nigeria.
This statement by Amnesty International couldn’t have come at a better time than now in the life of our dear country, the administration at the federal level and state Governors has engaged a lots in harassment of journalists and individuals with dissenting opinions. The Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Security Services has been at the forefront of these arrests which has seen the unlawful intimidation and harassment of journalists and bloggers.
Peaceful protesters have also had a fair share of these anomalies as seen in the Bring Back Our Girls group, the Islamic Movement of Nigeria among other individuals have been at the receiving end of the government’s interference. In recent times staff of Trust Newspapers, Premium Times, Leadership Newspapers, Liberty Radio, elombah.com among others have been arrested and subjected to harassment for doing their job while the government looks the other way, some state Governors too have used their office to intimidate journalists while the right to protests has been placed under ban too.
The police in recent times have also harassed members of the BBOG group for observing their sit out at the unity fountain Abuja while IMN members protesting the unlawful detention of their leader Sheikh Ibrahim Elzakzaky were also teargassed and sprayed with water cannons while over 150 of them are in detention. The statement by Amnesty is a wake up call on the Nigerian authorities to desist from disturbing patterns of using security agencies to silence dissenting voices
