Police threaten litigation, demand apology from Amnesty Int’l

Order police to stop threatening AI, SERAP tells Tinubu
The Nigeria Police Force has threatened legal action against Amnesty International (AI) over its #EndBadGovernance protest report.

The Force’s response followed an article titled: ‘Bloody August: Nigeria government’s Violent Crackdown and Bad Governance Protests’, which the police claim misrepresented the facts.

The police demanded an immediate retraction and a public apology from Amnesty International.

The NPF argued that the publication spread misleading information regarding the government’s handling of protests, and it had made it clear that legal steps would be taken if the issue was not addressed.

According to the Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the publication, which includes claims of human rights violations, police brutality, and excessive violence during the August 1 to 8, 2024 protests, was false.

“Upon careful review and investigation, the NPF categorically rejects these baseless allegations, affirming that the claims are entirely false and without foundation,” he said.

HOWEVER, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked President Bola Tinubu to direct the police to stop harassing and threatening Amnesty International, because they (Amnesty International) were defending Nigerians’ rights.

The call is coming against the backdrop of the police’s demand for the foreign organisation  to apologise over its report on last year’s end-bad-governance protests.

Reacting to the demand, SERAP asked the President to call the force to order.

A post by the advocacy group reads: “We urge President Tinubu to direct the police to immediately end their harassment and threat against Amnesty International in Nigeria solely for defending the rights of Nigerians.

“The threat shows an escalating crackdown on civic space in the country.”