Jacob McGee, Deputy Assistant Secretary at the US Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour, has defended the designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, CPC, under the administration of President Donald Trump.
McGee made the defence on Thursday during a public hearing
of the US Congress on Nigeria’s CPC status.
He cited the 2022 killing of Deborah Samuel, a student of
Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, who was lynched by a mob after
being accused of blasphemy.
“Her murderers remain free,” McGee said, describing the
incident as part of a troubling pattern of abuses, torture, disappearances and
extrajudicial killings linked to blasphemy accusations.
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McGee said the US “stands ready to champion the rights of
Christians,” stressing that the annual International Religious Freedom, IRF,
reports consistently document severe violations in Nigeria.
He noted that violence targeting Christian
communities—particularly in the Middle Belt—has become alarming. According to
him, numerous testimonies confirm that attackers “used religious language” and
“specifically targeted Christians for killing, abduction and rape.”
The official also accused the Nigerian government of failing
to protect religious leaders who speak out. He referenced Bishop Wilfred Anagbe
and Father Remigius, who he said received threats instead of protection after
testifying before US lawmakers last year.
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McGee further condemned Nigeria’s blasphemy laws, enforced
under Sharia penal codes in 12 states, saying they violate free speech and
place the country among only eight worldwide where blasphemy can carry the
death penalty.
He warned that the US would continue to monitor religious
freedom in Nigeria and “act until the Nigerian government protects vulnerable
Christians and holds perpetrators accountable.”
He said: “That the United States stands ready to champion
the rights of Christians and protect them from religious persecution. The
religious freedom situation in Nigeria is well documented in the annual IRF
reports. The IRF act, designed by Congress nearly three decades ago,
establishes religious freedom as a US foreign policy priority and mandates that
the President call out religious freedom violators as a reflection of the
importance our nation places on America’s first freedom.
“As my colleague stated, the levels of violence and
atrocities committed against Christians in Nigeria are appalling, particularly
in the Middle Belt. These attacks directly target Christian populations.
“Ample witness testimonies have confirmed attackers used
religious language during their attacks and specifically targeted Christians
for killing, abduction and rape. It is clear Nigerians are being attacked and
killed because of their faith, and the Nigerian government must uphold its duty
to protect them.
“The United States stands with civil society and religious
actors brave enough to speak about the tragic violence and discrimination they
face in Nigeria. When Bishop Wilfred Anagbe and Father Remigius testified
before Chairman Smith’s hearing last March about religious freedom, these two
courageous religious leaders reported they received threats rather than
protection from the Nigerian government.
“But the United States listened, and we will continue to
listen and act until the Nigerian government protects religious freedom,
strengthens its protections for vulnerable Christians and upholds and holds
perpetrators accountable.
“In addition to these failures, Nigerian officials also
continue to prosecute individuals for alleged blasphemy, which stands in clear
violation of Nigeria’s obligation to safeguard free speech under the Sharia
penal codes enforced in 12 of its states. Nigeria is one of only eight
countries in the world that allows for penalties up to execution for blasphemy,
along with Iran and Pakistan, which have long been designated CPCs.
“When authorities detain individuals accused of blasphemy,
the judicial process often takes years while they remain in prison, sometimes
on death row. Mobs often take the law into their own hands with impunity. For
example, in 2022 a mob killed Deborah Samuel Yakubu, a student of Shehu Shagari
College of Education, Sokoto, in a heinous attack after she was accused of
blasphemy; this young Christian woman’s life was taken too soon, yet her
murderers remain free with horrifying reports of discrimination, abuse,
torture, disappearance and even the murder of individuals.”
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