Religious Minorities in Nigeria

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 18th April 2023 Westminster Hall

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Nokes. I pay tribute to the omnipresent Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) for securing this important debate, which close to our hearts; we often speak about Nigeria. As many Members know, my family heritage is from Nigeria. This subject is also close to the hearts of my constituents in Vauxhall. The Nigerian diaspora in the UK continues to grow its large community. The last figures from the Office for National Statistics estimated that there are 215,000 Nigerian-born people living in the UK. I am sure the real figure is much higher, so it will be interesting to see what the 2021 census highlights.

I declare an interest: I am an officer of the all-party parliamentary group on Nigeria. Two weeks ago, I joined many Christians across the world in celebrating Easter. I am very active in my church, and I read on Easter Sunday. Easter is the most important weekend in the Christian calendar; it symbolises rebirth, forgiveness and redemption. When I attended mass on Easter Sunday, it was not lost on me that I am blessed to be able to practise my religion and beliefs freely, as a number of people are able to do. It was not lost on me that it is not just Nigerians who face persecution, but a lot of people across many areas of the world.

I look back to my election in 2019. One of the first things I did as the new MP for Vauxhall in January 2020 was to respond to some really disgraceful anti-Islamic graffiti that was spray-painted on one of the mosques in central Brixton. I remember speaking to residents and people from the mosque, which showed me how devastating these cowardly attacks are—not just for individuals who want to freely practise their faith, but for the wider communities, who all feel targeted when issues like this arise. It is important that we look at the issue of people not being able to celebrate and practise their faith.

I have been appalled by the stories of religiously motivated persecution and violence in Nigeria. Members have mentioned the Open Doors report, which is concerning. I think a lot of Members were present at the Open Doors reception in January, and at that reception it struck me that Nigeria was in the top 10—it was No. 7—on the organisation’s world watch list of countries where Christians face persecution.

It is really disturbing to see frequent reports of kidnappings targeted at the Christian community. Last May, Samuel Kanu, the head of the Methodist Church in Nigeria, was kidnapped after being abducted on a highway in Abia. In September, dozens of members of the Cherubim and Seraphim Church were kidnapped while attending an all-night service in Magani. We have to be honest: these attacks have a clear religious aspect, and they are a terrifying reminder of incidents such as the kidnapping of the Chibok schoolgirls by Boko Haram. Kidnapping continues to happen. The Chibok kidnapping happened in 2014, but not all of those girls are free yet; some of them remain kidnapped.

Whether in conflict or persecution, women and girls are always the main targets. They are the ones who suffer. Throughout history, we have seen how unchecked religious persecution and violence does not dissipate. Instead, all too often it builds among the perpetrators and makes it harder to build the fair and free society we all deserve.

[Jim Shannon]

I commend the hon. Lady for her contribution. Her knowledge of Nigeria comes through in what she says, and we look forward to whatever else she will mention. Does she share my and others’ concern that the Nigerian police and army seem unable or unwilling to be involved in stopping such crimes taking place? All the reports that she and others have mentioned indicate that the security forces have sat by and done nothing. Does that worry her, just as it worries me?

[Florence Eshalomi]

I thank the hon. Member for making that really valid point. One thing that we in the all-party parliamentary group on Nigeria did was to meet the high commissioner, His Excellency the honourable Tunji Isola, last November. At that meeting, we highlighted issues with policing and security, and we spoke about what he was doing as the ambassador to the UK to work with the British Government. I will be honest: the reports I get from family members are quite disturbing. In the recent presidential elections, there were some incidents of violence at polling stations, and we have to look at how we can help and work with the new, incoming President—the inauguration will take place in May—to make sure that there is the stability that Nigeria desperately needs. It is not right that many citizens still feel fearful, yet they cannot report it to the police. I thank the hon. Member for highlighting that really important point.

It is important that the Minister considers how we can work with our counterparts to help bring stability to Nigeria. We would all like to see an end to the persecution faced by far too many people in Nigeria, but we know that it is not going to happen overnight. These situations have to be handled with diplomacy and tact, because we know that people will face reprisals on the ground if we go in too hard, so it is important that we use our soft powers to work with our counterparts and look at how the Government can help to secure freedom for believers and non-believers.

Hon. Members have highlighted the case of Mubarak Bala, who was sentenced to 24 years in prison. Nigeria is one of only 13 countries where breaking blasphemy laws remains punishable by death. That should not be right in 2023. We need to work with the international community to help to bring an end to that barbaric rule. People are still being killed, and that should not be happening. The Government have made their feelings clear to Nigerian Ministers on the subject. I would welcome an update from the Minister on that, especially in the light of the presidential elections that have just happened. I echo all hon. Members’ comments and concerns. What meaningful dialogue will we take part in to ensure that Nigerians can be safe and continue to be safe?

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[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Nokes. I congratulate the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) on securing this debate, and on his ongoing commitment to the cause of freedom of religion and belief. As the hon. Member for Torbay (Kevin Foster) pointed out, the hon. Member for Strangford has secured a number of debates on the subject in recent months—both on the global context and on the situation in specific countries and regions, including Nigeria. It is a tribute to his passion for the issue, its importance to our constituents, and the personal interest that many Members take in it that this has been a busy and well-informed debate. That is encouraging, because of late some debates have been quiet; this debate is on the busier end of the scale, which is good.

It is important and right to draw attention to Nigeria at this moment. The right hon. Member for Chipping Barnet (Theresa Villiers) was the first to use the word “potential” with regards to Nigeria. It is already Africa’s most populous country, and it is on course to have the world’s fourth-largest population by 2050, but potential can go in different directions.

With genuine peace and stability, Nigeria could be even more of an economic powerhouse. It could make the most of its natural resources and the talents of its people to build sustainable livelihoods, tackle climate change and support development across the region. The potential risk is of spiralling violence and economic decline, which would then give rise to further social, cultural, ethnic and religion tensions; that in turn could lead to the displacement of populations, more political instability and further violence. That has been recognised in the contributions today, and in the detailed and powerful briefings that international observers and non-governmental organisations have supplied in advance of the debate. That is why it is in the interests of the UK Government and the global community to work with the Government in Nigeria to ensure that the rights of all religious minorities are respected.

Briefings and research papers give slightly different statistics on the exact proportion of the population in Nigeria that follow different religions, but clearly by far the largest overall designations are Muslim and Christian.

[Florence Eshalomi]

It is possible to meet Christians who would say that they are Muslim as well. The figures are definitely disputed. On celebrating that diversity, and the fact that so many languages are spoken in Nigeria, does the hon. Gentleman agree that more work should be done to highlight the figures, so that we can work with the relevant communities—be they Christian, Muslim or people of no faith?

[Patrick Grady]

The hon. Lady is absolutely right. Even in our country, people can say that they are Christian or Muslim, and within those wide designations there are more specific doctrines, denominations, practices and branches. In reality, in the UK as in Nigeria, on some definitions, everybody is a religious minority in some way. That plurality and diversity should be celebrated, as she says.

Some groups are larger than others, and unfortunately sometimes religion or belief becomes an excuse for perpetrating violence, abuse and oppression. The hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Margaret Ferrier) was right to say that that is about power relationships, not practising a faith, not least because all the faiths we are talking about have in common a golden rule: the ethic of reciprocity. They state that we should do to each other as we would be done by; that is a principal teaching of all the major religions in the world. How is that principle reflected in the stories of one group committing atrocities and violence against another in the name of religion? I find that extremely difficult to believe.

As the  hon. Member for Vauxhall (Florence Eshalomi) and the  hon. Member for Strangford said, it is important to respect traditional indigenous cultures and diversity. If the state’s constitution is supposed to protect diversity of and freedom of religion and belief, that should be respected. Instead, we have seen the rise of militant factions of different kinds. Boko Haram, which translates as “Western education is forbidden”—an incredibly oppressive ideology just by name—has been described as one of the deadliest terror groups in the world, and its atrocities continue to horrify us. Several years ago, one of my parish priests, who was from Nigeria, powerfully read out the names of the Chibok schoolgirls at a prayer service, which had been organised to allow us to reflect on the situation and to pray for their release and safe homecoming, yet years later, so many of them have not been released.

We have heard other examples of violence by different factions, and of insurgencies; they appear to be getting worse. An example is the Pentecost Sunday attack at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in the Ondo diocese last year. As the hon. Members for Torbay, and for St Helens South and Whiston (Ms Rimmer), have said, events of that kind have led Open Doors to conclude that the majority of Christians who are killed for their faith across the world are killed in Nigeria. Other forms of abuse and violence are also taking place: around 100 million people are trafficked, usually within the country. As the Islamic State West Africa Province grows and displaces Boko Haram, there is real concern that it may use its presence in Nigeria as a base for attacks further afield.

I briefly want to echo some of the cases mentioned. A number of hon. Members have raised the serious concerns expressed by Humanists International about the treatment of Mubarak Bala, the atheist activist who was arrested in April 2020 and held without charge for more than a year. He was accused of insulting the Prophet Mohammed on Facebook, but was denied access to legal support. The authorities have been accused of denying him access to adequate medical care. He received a sentence of 24 years for a Facebook post. We have issues with online safety Bills here, and different views on how to regulate social media, but everyone in this part of the world would think that was quite extreme.

An even more serious example is the death penalty being applied for blasphemy. Nobody should face the death penalty anywhere in the world, least of all for what is essentially a prayer. The hon. Member for Strangford raised the case of the young woman who, after passing her exams, wanted to thank Jesus, who is recognised as a prophet in the Koran, for his inspiration and support. To be executed for that is quite incredible.

Attention has been drawn to different parts of the country, and the way that the violence has moved from the north down to the middle and central belt. Christian Solidarity Worldwide’s briefing drew attention to the situation in southern Kaduna; it called the situation a crisis, and documented abductions, physical and psychological torture, sexual violence and militia attacks. It notes that

“Christian leaders, their families, and congregations are particularly targeted for abduction for ransom, and even execution.”

As the hon. Member for Torbay and others have said, today’s debate is an important opportunity to draw attention to these outrages, and to ensure that the Nigerian Government and authorities know that these atrocities are not going unnoticed by the global community. It falls to the UK Government to outline how they will respond. They could, for example, support initiatives to establish a joint United Nations and Nigerian Government commission of inquiry, which would investigate sectarian attacks on civilians and report back to the UN Human Rights Council.

A number of hon. Members have mentioned the important opportunity presented by a change in Government and the outcome of the election. There is an opportunity to look at the blasphemy laws, and the penalties, including the death penalty, associated with them, and to call them out for being inconsistent with international human rights law and conventions to which Nigeria is party.

The hon. Member for Vauxhall rightly said that perhaps we can think about the diaspora community in the UK as well. Glasgow is incredibly proud to welcome the many Nigerians who make our city their home. Many of them come as talented economic migrants, but sadly many come seeking refuge and asylum, precisely because of the kind of oppression that we have been talking about. I hope the Minister will speak with her colleagues in the Home Office to ensure that asylum seekers from Nigeria do not experience a hostile environment when making an application for settlement in the UK. Perhaps the Government could also think about how to work with community groups, so that the Government can better understand the challenges that community groups are aware of back in their homeland, and could think about how to support peace and stability through those different kinds of contact.

No intervention is cost-free, and the reality is that the Government’s decision to dramatically reduce the aid budget has real and ongoing consequences. In April 2021, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office cancelled £12 million-worth of conflict resolution projects in some of the world’s most volatile regions, including Myanmar and Nigeria, which, as we have heard, endure considerable insecurity and violence. In April 2022, CARE International found that the UK Government had cut £120 million from gender equality projects in Nigeria. Now that the FCDO is merging the conflict, stability and security fund into a new UK integrated security fund, how and when will it detail how much money will be earmarked for conflict and atrocity prevention and accountability projects, including in Nigeria?

As we have heard throughout the debate, Nigeria has so much promise and potential, but clearly a tipping point is being reached. For the benefit of the country and its people, but also the wider region and indeed the world, we have to ensure that the positive potential prevails. The UK Government must have a role in achieving that.

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[The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Anne-Marie Trevelyan)]

I am grateful to the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) for securing this vital debate and, as ever, I commend him for his long-standing commitment to highlighting and championing freedom of religion and belief for all.

I also welcome the passion to protect the rights of religious minorities that has been demonstrated by all Members who have spoken. If I am unable to answer all Members’ questions, as the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for West Ham (Ms Brown), has rightly identified, I will ensure that officials respond fully after the debate. In particular, there are whole debates to be had on the question of the weapons awash across Africa and the issue of sanctions, for which I have responsibility within the FCDO. I would be happy to pick that up, but as she rightly pointed out, we do not discuss potential sanctions because that could reduce their impact. However, we will swiftly pick up those areas separately, and I am happy to do that.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell), who is our Minister with responsibility for Africa and development, is disappointed not to be able to be here. This area is of real importance to him, but he is covering other ministerial duties. However, I will ensure that we cover off the much wider issues as best we can after the debate.

Promoting the right to freedom of religion or belief is one of the UK’s long-standing human rights priorities. The UK Government are committed to defending that freedom for all and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. Our special envoy, my hon. Friend the Member for Congleton (Fiona Bruce), who was present earlier, chairs the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance, which is an important part of our toolbox in helping to bolster joint international action in this important arena.

In July last year, we hosted the ministerial conference on freedom of religion or belief, which brought together more than 100 Government delegations and 800 faith and belief group leaders. The conference was attended by delegates who work on peace building, social justice and relations between faith groups across Nigeria. The high commissioner for Nigeria in London reiterated at that event his Government’s commitment to freedom of religion or belief.

As hon. Members may know, Nigeria has an even balance of Muslims and Christians, and we welcome Nigeria’s constitutional commitment to protecting religious freedom for all groups to ensure that all can live peacefully together. Sadly, that commitment is not shared by every Nigerian and, in some places, it is under violent attack. Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa, which operate predominantly in north-east Nigeria and the Lake Chad basin, undermine the rights of anyone who does not subscribe to their extremist ideologies. The region’s predominantly Muslim population have borne the brunt of this insurgency, but Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa have also specifically targeted Christians.

My hon. Friend the Member for Strangford and others raised the case of Mubarak Bala. The UK Government continue to monitor that case closely, following his sentencing by Kano state courts to 24 years in prison for blasphemy in a Facebook post. Most recently, our officials raised Mr Bala’s case with the deputy governor of Kano state on 19 January, and in April, the British high commissioner joined a meeting with Mr Bala’s humanist organisational associates, along with other international partners, to continue to raise our disquiet about the situation.

Other specific cases have been raised. The shocking murder of Deborah Samuel last year following an allegation of blasphemy was a barbarous and heinous act. My right hon. Friend the Member for Sutton Coldfield, the Minister with responsibility for Africa, expressed public condemnation, and in May, our deputy high commissioner raised the case with the President’s chief of staff. This is not a forgotten situation.

My hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Kevin Foster) asked about death penalty laws more widely. Of course, the UK Government regularly raise human rights issues with the Nigerian authorities, including calling for the removal of the death penalty. Most recently, these issues were raised by officials in January in Kano state in relation to the blasphemy case.

The strong calls from parliamentarians here in Westminster Hall today really have been heard. I know that my officials will take away the strength of feeling about these issues, so that Ministers and officials, who have regular contact with Nigerian authorities at lots of levels, will be able to raise them.

[Florence Eshalomi]

I thank the Minister for her commitment to pass the comments on to other Ministers. Will she highlight to them the scarcity of cash in Nigeria? The outgoing President recently announced that Nigeria is withdrawing the 1,000, 200 and 500 naira notes in a bid to curb money laundering and fraud, but that has caused real situations and issues and violence on the ground in Nigeria, where a number of people still rely on cash. Will she raise that and get other Ministers to raise it as well?

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

The hon. Lady raises an important issue. We have seen this done in other countries, possibly for good reasons, but that does create disputes, so I will ensure that it is picked up and that the high commissioner can discuss it with officials, as required.

The UK is the lead in the UN Security Council on the Lake Chad basin issues and we convene the international community to tackle the challenges regarding violent extremism in north-east Nigeria. We contribute to the demobilisation, deradicalisation and reintegration of former group members. Since 2019, we have contributed £16.9 million to the United Nations Development Programme’s regional stabilisation facility, which improves security, services and economic opportunities for people in affected areas.

We are a leading provider of life-saving humanitarian assistance to support Nigerians affected by this conflict, including religious minorities and internally displaced people. Between 2017 and 2022, our £425 million humanitarian programme provided life-saving food assistance to more than 2.1 million Nigerians and supported 660,000 people to resume agricultural livelihoods. We continue to invest in this priority area with our humanitarian and resilience programme, which seeks to protect those at risk of having their rights violated, including religious minorities.

Alongside that conflict, criminal gangs have extended their activities from the north-west of Nigeria into other regions, and tensions between communities across Nigeria have also increased. Together, these issues are resulting in a widespread deterioration in security. Heavy weapons smuggling into Nigeria has increased the deadliness of the violence, which has taken the lives of Muslims and Christians alike, and sadly displaced many communities.

Unlike attacks by violent extremist organisations, differences of religious opinion are often not the key driver of inter-communal conflict; economic disenfranchisement, historical grievances and criminality are stronger factors. Climate degradation has disrupted lives and agricultural income, increasing criminality and forcing nomadic herders to move southwards, where they come into conflict with settled farmers. However, these grievances are easily tied to communities’ religious and ethnic identities, which are closely associated in Nigeria. Conflicts can therefore increasingly take on a religious dimension as tensions build between communities and reprisal attacks take place. We have already seen that religious identity has been a factor in some of those attacks.

Nigeria’s recent elections have brought increased attention to relations between religious and ethnic groups. Across much of the country, people of different faiths live peacefully together. Its political leadership is diverse, reflecting the country’s different communities; however, in some places this is a fragile peace. All parties must promote tolerance and dialogue between communities through their messaging, recognising the complexity of the conflict and ensuring that disinformation is addressed.

My hon. Friend the Member for Torbay asked for more information on how the UK is supporting peace initiatives. In 2021, the FCDO launched a new initiative, strengthening the delivery of peace and security in Nigeria, which fosters dialogue in conflict-affected areas, supports responsible journalism, counters disinformation, and provides evidence-based analysis to support lasting peace. The FCDO has also funded peace-building projects in states such as Kaduna, Plateau, Niger and Benue, aimed at promoting tolerance and understanding between communities impacted by intercommunal violence. Those projects have included work to train peace ambassadors, including faith leaders, to engage with youths who are at risk of radicalisation.

Tackling insecurity and closing the space for criminality and extremists to operate in will be a critical part of creating an environment where religious tolerance can flourish. The UK’s wide-ranging bilateral security and defence partnership with Nigeria provides practical support to defend against all forms of insecurity that threaten the Nigerian people. We look forward to refreshing that partnership to address the ongoing challenges with the new Government. The partnership includes training Nigeria’s police force to work with local communities to tackle criminality and kidnappings, as well as helping them to prioritise the protection of vulnerable groups, such as religious minorities, in their operations and goals.

We are a strategic and technical partner for the multinational joint border taskforce, which has seized weapons intended for use against civilians. Earlier this month, we were pleased to launch our new strengthening peace and resilience in Nigeria programme, which will help Nigeria to tackle the interlinked root causes of intercommunal conflict, including security, justice and natural resource management challenges.

Nigeria is a sovereign and capable state, and addressing the challenges that we have discussed will be key for Nigeria’s incoming Administration. The Minister of State with responsibility for Africa and development raised the impact of insecurity on human rights, such as freedom of religion or belief, with President-elect Bola Tinubu when they met in December. We will continue to raise those challenges after the Government are inaugurated in May. FCDO staff will continue to work closely with state governors, local community and faith leaders and NGOs to promote social cohesion and understanding between communities, including religious minorities.

We will continue to lead the international community on our shared action plan across security, stabilisation and humanitarian agendas in areas affected by violent extremist organisations. Violence against civilians of any kind has an unacceptable impact on human rights, which we will continue to prioritise, including the freedom of religion or belief for all, across all areas of our valued partnership with Nigeria.