Amnesty International Demands Immediate Withdrawal Of Charges Against Sowore In ‘sham’ Trial, Says Tinubu Must Stop Persecuting Critics

 

Amnesty International Nigeria’s Executive Director, Isa Sanusi, said Sowore had become the target of repeated human rights violations because of his activism.

Amnesty International Nigeria has called on the Nigerian government to immediately withdraw all charges against activist and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, describing his ongoing prosecution as politically motivated persecution aimed at silencing dissent.

The human rights organisation also condemned the use of Nigeria’s Cybercrimes Act against critics of government, insisting that public officials must tolerate criticism in a democratic society rather than deploy security agencies and the judiciary to suppress freedom of expression.

Speaking during an interview on Politics HQ on News Central Television, Amnesty International Nigeria’s Executive Director, Isa Sanusi, said Sowore had become the target of repeated human rights violations because of his activism.

According to him, Amnesty believes the charges against the activist are fabricated and incompatible with both Nigeria’s Constitution and international human rights law.

“Our position is that Sowore has been treated differently. He’s been subjected to persecution and a series of human rights violations,” Sanusi said.

“Our position is that the charges slammed on him are fabricated, they are unfounded, and the trial itself is a sham and does not have any ground in international law and the Nigerian Constitution.”

The Department of State Services (DSS) had charged Sowore under provisions of the Cybercrimes Act after he described President Bola Tinubu as a “criminal” in a social media post.

However, Amnesty insisted that the prosecution represents a dangerous abuse of legal processes designed to intimidate government critics.

Sanusi argued that rather than pursuing activists, the Tinubu administration should concentrate on Nigeria’s worsening economic hardship, insecurity and corruption.

“We are saying that the Nigerian government should focus on key Nigerian problems like security, poverty and corruption, and allow activists like Sowore to do their work,” he said.

“They should allow them to continue to exercise their civic rights without intimidation or manipulation of the judicial process to suppress freedom of expression.”

He described Sowore as one of Nigeria’s leading voices for democratic accountability whose activities amount to peaceful dissent rather than criminal conduct.

“We believe that Sowore is one of the leading figures of freedom in Nigeria,” he said.

“What he is doing is in the interest of society, in the interest of democracy. What he is doing is called peaceful dissent.”

According to Amnesty, there is no justification for subjecting the activist to prolonged prosecution merely because of criticism directed at those in power.

“There is no reason whatsoever for the government to go all this far, putting in place all these dramatic trials just to keep him out of circulation and shut him up,” Sanusi added.

Responding to questions over whether activists should have limits when criticising public office holders, particularly where criticism targets personalities rather than policies, Sanusi maintained that politicians must expect robust public scrutiny.

Under international human rights law and democratic principles, he said, criticism of elected leaders — even if harsh or offensive— is protected speech.

“Politics and politicians must always prepare themselves for public scrutiny, for criticism, for insults and everything,” he said.

“It’s not as if what Sowore said is something new. People say even worse things about other politicians, so why are they not arrested?”

Sanusi questioned why security agencies had selectively invoked the Cybercrimes Act against Sowore while ignoring similar or more severe statements made against other political figures.

“There was a journalist in this country that wrote even worse things about a leading politician and nothing happened. DSS did not pick any interest in that case. So why are they interested in this one?”

He accused the DSS of diverting attention from its constitutional responsibilities.

“We believe that the DSS should respect themselves and focus on protecting Nigeria and ensuring internal security instead of exhausting energy trying to give importance to an issue that is not important.”

According to him, citizens possess a constitutional right to criticise their leaders.

“As a citizen, you have the right to criticise your leaders. Just because someone said something unpalatable does not mean it is a crime.”

The Amnesty chief stressed that democracy requires leaders to tolerate criticism from citizens.

“It is part of the expectations that when you are in politics, when you are in leadership, you should expect people will scrutinise you.”

“Some criticisms may be harsh, but that is part of the democratic process.”

He added that anyone unwilling to face criticism should avoid public office altogether.

“Any leader that is not ready to take these kinds of things should go back either to open a shop in his village or become a traditional ruler where he will be surrounded by people taking only his words.”

“Nigeria is not a monarchy, and nobody has the right whatsoever to say, ‘I am above criticism.'”

Sanusi noted that Amnesty had declared Sowore a Prisoner of Conscience as far back as November 2019 following his arrest under the administration of late former President Muhammadu Buhari.

“When we declare someone a Prisoner of Conscience, we follow that person’s case diligently and continue to raise our voice until that person is free.”

He added that Amnesty had similarly intervened in other politically sensitive cases involving journalists and activists.

Assessing the Tinubu administration, Sanusi said worsening poverty and shrinking civic freedoms had overshadowed government claims of progress.

“We don’t need any statistics to know that the economy has turned millions of people into poverty.”

He said many Nigerians could no longer afford food, healthcare or education.

“The poverty level has increased.”

On civil liberties, he said repeated arrests of journalists, activists and critics under the Cybercrimes Act demonstrated that freedom of expression remained under serious threat.

“The trial of Sowore and the arrests of journalists since 2023 show that freedom is at risk.”

“I don’t think there is any difference between what is going on in this government and what happened under the previous government.”

Sanusi also called for the complete repeal of Nigeria’s Cybercrimes Act, describing it as legislation deliberately crafted to suppress dissent.

Asked how government should deal with defamatory online statements if the law were repealed, he argued that Nigeria already possesses sufficient civil and criminal legal remedies.

“We have laws to deal with those issues even before the Cybercrimes Act.”

He maintained that existing defamation and libel laws adequately address reputational disputes without criminalising political speech.

“The Cybercrimes Act is a very notorious piece of legislation.”

“It was meant to curb and harass people for expressing themselves.”

According to him, the legislation has dramatically narrowed Nigeria’s civic space by giving law enforcement agencies sweeping powers to arrest citizens for criticising government officials.

“One of the notorious things the Cybercrimes Act did was to shrink the civic space.”

“It gave licence to law enforcement agencies to arrest people simply for criticising somebody who is in power.”

Sanusi concluded by accusing those responsible for enacting the law of acting with anti-democratic motives.

“I believe that anybody who had a hand in bringing the Cybercrimes Act into being had a very bad intention.”

“They don’t like freedom.”

SOURCE: SAHARA REPORTERS