A top African court has found that blasphemy laws in Nigeria breach international human rights standards. In its ruling, the Community Court of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) found that Section 210 of Kano State’s Penal Code was too vague to uphold the right to freedom of expression as laid out in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Humanists UK has welcomed the news.
This is one of the two sections of the Penal Code used to prosecute President of the Humanist Association of Nigeria Mubarak Bala in 2022 when he was sentenced to 24 years in prison for posting ‘blasphemous’ content on Facebook that was deemed likely to cause a disturbance. His sentence was drastically reduced to 5 years after the Court of Appeal in Kano found his original sentence to be excessive and in contravention of the law, and he was eventually released after nearly four-and-a-half years in prison. Humanists UK campaigned tirelessly for his release, stressing that Bala should never have been imprisoned in the first place.
The ECOWAS Court also described the imposition of the death penalty for blasphemy, under Section 382(b) of the Kano State Sharia Penalty Code Law, as ‘excessive and disproportionate’. Humanists UK has long called for the repeal of the laws against blasphemy and apostasy in Nigeria, highlighting that it is one of 12 countries where these so-called crimes remain subject to capital punishment.
Humanists UK’s Director of Public Affairs and Policy Richy Thompson commented:
‘We welcome the Court’s ruling to strike down Nigeria’s blasphemy laws, especially in light of the appalling case of our friend and colleague Mubarak Bala, who has suffered a great deal under them. We have repeatedly raised that Mubarak should never have been arrested for so-called blasphemous expression in the first place, and this ruling supports our position.
‘We urge the Nigerian government to repeal its blasphemy laws once and for all.’
Notes
For further comment or information, media should contact Humanists UK Director of Public Affairs and Policy Richy Thompson at press@humanists.uk or phone 0203 675 0959.
Read the ECOWAS Court’s press release.
Read more about our work on repealing blasphemy laws.
Read more about our international work.
Read Humanists International’s case file on Mubarak Bala.
Read Humanist’s International’s Freedom of Thought Report on Nigeria.
Humanists UK is the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people. Powered by over 130,000 members and supporters, we advance free thinking and promote humanism to create a tolerant society where rational thinking and kindness prevail. We provide ceremonies, pastoral care, education, and support services benefitting over a million people every year and our campaigns advance humanist thinking on ethical issues, human rights, and equal treatment for all.