The United States Congress, Washington DC, has condemned the continued detention of the publisher of the Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, Jones Abiri, Kofi Bartels, Samuel Ogundipe and some other journalists and activists by the Nigerian government.
This was as the Congress also expressed worries and concerns over what it said was the closure of the media and civic space in Nigeria, noting that the actions of the government and the security agencies reflected lack of commitment to civic freedoms.
The US Congress made the allegations in a letter dated 25 November 2019 and addressed to Ambassador Sylvanus Nsofor, Head of Mission, Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Washington DC, USA.
It noted that the repressive actions of the Nigerian government were becoming more alarming because the government has been defying a series of court orders, freeing some detainees and also resorting to using of excessive force against non-violent protesters in some parts of the country.
The Congress, in the letter signed by Senator Robert Menedez and a member of the Congress, Josh Gottheimer, sighted on Wednesday by the Nigerian Tribune, condemned the Nigerian government for harassing and detaining Sowore and others, whom it said were investigating and speaking out against politically sensitive problems, including corruption and insecurity.
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“A number of troubling reports about Nigerian security services assaulting and detaining journalists, using excessive force on non-violent protesters and taking other actions that inhibit freedom of expression, and otherwise prevent Nigerians from fully exercising their fundamental constitutional rights,” the Congress wrote.
Alleging that there were reports of torture of some detainees, the Congress wrote: “In, at least, one instance, the Department of Security Service (DSS) has ignored a court order to release a detained activist.
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