WORLD HUMAN RIGHTS DAY: MOBILIZE AND JOIN THE DECEMBER 10TH NATIONWIDE PROTEST

WE DEMAND AN END TO THE TREASON TRIAL OF ADARAMOYE MICHAEL LENIN AND 10 OTHER ENDBADGOVERNANCE ACTIVISTS

PRESIDENT TINUBU MUST STOP CRIMINALISATION OF PROTEST AND STIFLING OF DISSENT

We in the Youth Rights Campaign call on every Nigerian youth and worker to join the December 10th nationwide protest, declared by the #EndBadGovernance Movement, to observe this year’s World Human Rights Day. We consider this another day to reiterate our call for the respect of democratic rights and an end to all forms of abuse of human rights.

Nigeria is currently on the brink. The country consistently ranks low in global human rights and development indices. For instance, in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Index (HDI), Nigeria was ranked 157th out of 189 countries. Also, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) listed Nigeria among the worst countries for workers. Under the Tinubu/APC regime, the attacks on rights to protest and dissent have been unabated. Nigerians have been stripped of every human dignity. Rather than strengthening human Rights, Nigeria introduced a Cybercrime Act targeting critics of the government and ordinary people. Activists, journalists and other citizens are arrested and detained for simply holding political office holders accountable. This must stop!

The YRC is using this occasion to reiterate our demands for the immediate dropping of the outrageous, but false, charges against Adaramoye Michael Lenin and 10 other #EndBadGovernance protesters who spent 59 days in police cell and prison in 2024, and are still facing charges of treason for simply protesting to demand an end to hunger. This treason trial must be quashed, bank accounts of the activists unfrozen, and their properties returned. Since September 2nd of 2024, the Tinubu Government has instituted a case of treason and terrorism against these activists but for more than a year, no significant progress has been made, as the state deliberately delaying the trial to ensure that these activists continue to have the charges of treason and terrorism wrapped around their necks.

Fittingly, the next adjourned date of the trial is December 10 and thus coincides with the International Human Rights Day. Therefore, we urge organisations and individuals locally and internationally marking the human right day to include in their demands an end to sham treason trial of #EndBadGovernance activists as well as the reversal of all acts of victimization and repression of workers and students’ activists, journalists and bloggers by the government at all levels. The activists facing state persecution for defending democratic rights include Abiodun Bamigboye, Oyo State Coordinator of the Campaign for Democratic and Workers Rights, over supporting the struggle of casual workers for better pay and condition at Sumal Food Ibadan, 5 leaders of the Academic Staff Unions of Universities (ASUU) at the Lagos State University for demanding ethical running of the university and accountability; and three student activists at the University of Ibadan over a protest against outrageous school fees.

We also call for the day to be used to highlight cases of illegal and inhumane demolition of communities where the working masses are resident. In most cases, it has been an attempt to grab the lands of poor people and hand them over to the rich estate developers. As far as we are concerned housing is a human right, and a well-meaning government should be taking serious steps to ensure citizens have access to affordable and decent housing. Instead, the government has continued to render many Nigerians homeless. For us, these attacks must be resisted.

The occasion should also be used to demand respect of rights to a decent job and the right of workers to belong to unions. We call on the leadership of trade unions to initiate a consistent struggle to enforce these rights and to end the scourge of casualisation at workplaces in Nigeria.

For us in the Youth Rights Campaign (YRC), a united struggle of all working and poor masses is needed to defeat the tyranny of the Tinubu government. We also believe that this united struggle is needed to put an end to the years of misrule by the pro-capitalist ruling class that has created poverty and misery for the mass majority while they live in opulence. Therefore, we call on all Nigerians to come out en masse to join the protest on December 10 to demand that the government respect the rights and dignity of Nigerians and also end all anti-poor policies.

Francis Nwapa

National Secretary

YRC email: [email protected]