Amnesty International has condemned the arrest of the African Action Congress presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Omoyele Sowore, by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), calling it an arbitrary restriction on his freedom.
On Monday, The New Daily Prime reported that Mr Sowore was apprehended at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos State upon his arrival from the United States. He was briefly detained but later released.
In a statement on its website, Amnesty International expressed deep concern over the Nigerian authority’s plans to arrest the human rights activist and journalist. The group said Mr Sowore was being targeted solely for peacefully exercising his human rights.
The statement partly read: “The government of President Bola Tinubu must publicly commit to allowing Sowore and other Nigerians to freely exercise their constitutionally and internationally recognized human rights, including the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, association, and movement. Omoyele Sowore is Amnesty International’s Prisoner of Conscience.
“The alleged plans to arrest Omoyele Sowore upon his arrival in Nigeria would amount to arbitrary restrictions, which would have a chilling effect on Nigerians’ exercise of human rights and discourage the public from criticizing the authorities.
“Under the Nigerian Constitution of 1999 [as amended], the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, all of which Nigeria has ratified, everyone has the right to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, association, and movement”, the statement added.
The group called on relevant authorities for proper safeguarding of Mr Sowore’s rights upon his return to Nigeria, as well as other human rights defenders, activists, and journalists.
Furthermore, they called for an end to the misuse of security agencies for the harassment, intimidation, and abuse of critics, activists, journalists, and whistleblowers and demanded that the government prioritize the protection of human rights for all citizens.
“The alleged threat to arrest Omoyele Sowore upon his return to Nigeria follows the escalating crackdown on human rights, peaceful dissent, and media freedom in the country.
“Last week, Nigeria’s Department of State Services arbitrarily arrested NLC President Joe Ajaero and invaded the Abuja office of the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, barely 24 hours after the organization urged President Tinubu to instruct the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to reverse the hike in the pump price of petrol promptly and to probe allegations of corruption and mismanagement in the NNPC.”
