Renowned human rights activist and Chair of the Alliance on Surviving Covid-19 and Beyond, Femi Falana, has revealed that at least 2,111 protesters were arrested during the 10-day #Endbadgovernance protests held across Nigeria from August 1st to 10th.
In a powerful statement titled, ‘HALT THE CLAMPDOWN ON PROTESTERS’,Falana demanded that the government either charge the detainees to court or release them. He disclosed that 1,403 of those arrested had been quietly arraigned in various courts, with many being remanded in prison due to the absence of legal representation.
This occurred despite the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) publicly declaring its readiness to provide legal defense for the protesters.
Falana highlighted the arrest of seven Polish students participating in an exchange program at Bayero University, Kano.
They were detained for taking photographs during the protests and now face possible charges of espionage, a move Falana suggested was aimed at portraying the protests as being influenced by foreign interests.
Regarding the arrested protesters, Falana insisted, “Whenever the suspects are going to be arraigned, they must be given adequate notice to contact the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, and their family members to make arrangements for their defense.”
Falana also provided a breakdown of the arrests across Nigeria, with the highest numbers reported in Kano, 873, Jigawa l,403, Katsina (120), Gombe, 111, and Sokoto, 110,, among other states.
Criticizing the differential treatment of detainees, Falana stated, “We have also confirmed that individual lawyers who had applied for the bail of the detained suspects in police stations were not informed that they were going to be arraigned in the courts. We submit that the decision of the authorities to deny the suspects legal representation constitutes a violent breach of their fundamental right to fair hearing guaranteed by section 36 of the Constitution and article 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act.”
He further noted the stark contrast in the treatment of these protesters compared to politically exposed persons accused of embezzling public funds. “Such highly placed suspected looters are always granted bail in liberal terms and even authorized by trial judges to travel abroad for medical treatment,” Falana remarked.
Falana also highlighted the absurdity of some charges, noting that 783 suspects were arrested in Kano simply for displaying the Russian flag during the protest. Even a tailor who was sewing the flag was taken into custody.
He argued that it would be challenging to press charges against these individuals in a country where the flags of various foreign nations are commonly displayed, including those of the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Israel.
Below is the list of the number of protesters arrested in states across Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory:
1. Kano — 873
2. Jigawa — 403
3. Katsina–120
4. Gombe — 111
5. Sokoto — 110
6. Borno — 99
7. Yobe — 90
8. Bauchi-60
9. Plateau — 51
10. Kaduna — 50
11. FCT — 50
12. Nasarawa — 40
13. Niger — 25
14. Zamfara — 19
15. Cross Rivers — 10
