Religious Minorities in Nigeria

Gregory Campbell Excerpts

Tuesday 18th April 2023 Westminster Hall

[Jim Shannon]

I congratulate the hon. Lady for all she does. Each and every one of us in this House recognise her good work and I join with her in calling on the President to grant a pardon to this young man. It seems to me that he is guilty of no crime and it is only right that he should be released. I hope that will be the case.

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom raised concerns about a spate of lethal attacks against Christian communities in Kano and Kaduna states. Central Nigeria is known as the country’s bread basket, but because farmers are being killed in their fields, many are afraid to go out to work. First, we need to recognise that security must be obtained for everyone in Nigeria, and the police and the army must be active in making sure there is peace in the streets and securing peace for people to work, live and not be brutalised by others. That is really important. So often, much of the discussion focuses on Christians in Nigeria, and for many reasons. Attacks on Christians receive more headlines in the western media and often, monitoring groups have links to the global church networks. However, the situation for other religious minorities is precarious: the hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Margaret Ferrier) rightly mentioned the Baha’i. For humanists, atheists and non-religious belief groups, discrimination and persecution is a fact of life. Many in those groups are forced to live in hiding, making it hard to estimate the number of people in Nigeria of non-religious belief.

I want to give the example, along with a question for the Minister at the end, of Mubarak Bala, a Nigerian human rights activist and president of the Humanist Association of Nigeria. In April 2022, he was sentenced to 24 years in prison for posting blasphemous content on Facebook. He was originally arrested in 2020 and held without charge for more than a year. He faced charges before the Kano State High Court in connection with Facebook posts that were deemed to have caused a public disturbance because of their blasphemous content. In addition to being arbitrarily detained for more than a year before being charged, there have been several other violations of the rights to a fair trial, which include being denied access to his legal representation. I want to express my thanks to the Minister and to the United Kingdom Government, which have been repeatedly outspoken in support of Mubarak Bala’s release. When we were in Nigeria last year, we met some of the Ministers responsible. At that time, we felt we were moving towards a solution. Can the Minister update us on where that is?

Nigeria is also home to a variety of traditional beliefs and indigenous religions. However, they often face discrimination and have less legal recognition. The majority of the discrimination affects children and is particularly prevalent at school. While students have a legal right to wear headscarves, crosses and other symbols of Christian or Muslim faiths, schools have prohibited students from wearing symbols of traditional faiths, such as prayer beads. Schools are obligated to provide both Christian and Islamic education for students, but have no such requirements for traditional beliefs, leaving members of those communities forced to select either the Christian or Islamic course track against their parents’ wishes. Finally, the Nigerian Government recognise the official holidays of Islam and Christianity, but they have refused to recognise holy days common to traditional African religions. Therefore, when we speak for those of a Christian faith, those of other faiths and those of no faith, we do so for everyone in Nigeria—I want to put that on record.

I will come to the horrific case raised by the right hon. Member for Chipping Barnet (Theresa Villiers). On 12 May, Deborah Samuel was murdered by her classmates for blasphemy following a message on WhatsApp. She had passed her exams at Shehu Shagari College of Education in Wamako, Sokoto state, and she posted a voice message in a group WhatsApp saying:

“Jesus Christ is the greatest. He helped me pass my exams.”

Deborah was accused of blasphemy and forcibly taken from the security room. While they were trying to take her from the room to a local police station, she was attacked by a mob, stoned to death and burned beyond recognition.

Many of us in this room have said that Jesus Christ is the greatest and has helped us in our health and jobs, and in all our lives. We have done it and never had any fear; Deborah Samuel did it in Nigeria and lost her life because of it, so the right hon. Member for Chipping Barnet is absolutely right. Her killers acted with a sense of impunity. In one video, men with sticks can be seen beating the lifeless, bloody body of a woman reported to be Deborah Samuel. The video also showed young men celebrating, with one man holding up a matchbox and saying he used it to set her on fire and kill her—such gross social media and gross debauchery against an innocent Christian.

Efforts by the authorities to identify and arrest those involved in the murder of Deborah Samuel were met with violent protest. It is nearly one year later, and no one has been prosecuted for her murder. The last statement from the Sokoto state police in August said that they are still looking for the killers.

[Mr Gregory Campbell (East Londonderry) (DUP)]

The horrific case mentioned by my hon. Friend is one of many. Does he agree that, as others have suggested, the Nigerian authorities—hopefully approached by our own Government—need to make it absolutely clear that that type of activity is not only illegal, but unacceptable, and it must be clamped down on? Otherwise, they will become the pariah in Africa.

[Jim Shannon]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We know that the Minister and our Government cannot change the security policy in Nigeria, but we need to encourage our colleagues and friends in Nigeria. We have a diaspora here in the UK: we have contacts historically, economically, financially, socially and through families, and we need to use that influence to ensure that these cases are answered.

Deborah’s case is illustrative of the wider violence in Nigeria that targets people for their faith. Often, those who are targeted are women and children, with killings and sexual violence used to prevent that community having a future. Blasphemy allegations are often used as an excuse to justify violence or silence voices from minority communities. The brutality of the case illustrates the appalling violence that these communities face every day. There is a lack of prosecutions or arrests, exactly as my hon. Friend the Member for East Londonderry (Mr Campbell) said, despite video evidence. It is all there: why have the police not arrested these people and made them accountable? It illustrates the inaction of security forces to protect religious minority communities.

I am very aware of the agreement you and I, Ms Nokes, came to about the timescale of my speech. Let me ask the Minister the following questions. Deborah Samuel’s murder shocked the world, and the video footage went viral on social media. It was widely condemned by everyone in this House and by the wider international community. Despite promises to bring the perpetrators to justice, there have been no recent updates whatsoever. Will the Minister and her Department seek an update from her counterparts and inform them that the case has not been forgotten by UK parliamentarians in this debate or, indeed, outside of this House?

Secondly, will the Minister confirm whether a recent RICKS assessment has been carried out by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and will it be made available in the Libraries of the House of Commons and the House of Lords? It should be. I know the Minister will endeavour to respond to these four questions, and I appreciate that very much.

Thirdly, what assessment has the FCDO made of the impact of cuts to UK aid for internally displaced persons in Nigeria, particularly in the light of the conflict in Ukraine? We visited some of those IDP camps in Nigeria last year, and we are well aware of the pressures on the families who, in some cases, have been there for 10, 12 or 15 years. They want to go back to their land; they are farmers, and other land is available. We need to see action, and that goes beyond words.

Fourthly, have recent representations been made on the case of Mubarak Bala since his sentencing last year? These questions are really important. I believe that we in this House have highlighted the issue for many of the people across Nigeria—for Christians, those with other religions and those with no religion. Nigeria is very much in our thoughts, and this debate gives the chance to ask those questions of the Minister. I want to speak up for my Christian brothers and sisters, and everyone of a different religion. I hope the debate can achieve some of those goals.