DEMOCRACY DAY: POLICE FIRE TEARGAS AT SOWORE, OTHER PROTESTERS IN ABUJA (PHOTOS)
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By ‘Sefiu Ajape
There was commotion on Friday around Eagle Square in Abuja after police officers fired teargas at demonstrators, including activist Omoyele Sowore, during a protest against insecurity in Nigeria.
The protesters were marching from the Berger Bus Stop toward Eagle Square as part of a demonstration demanding an end to rising insecurity, the release of abducted school children, and improved governance when the incident occurred.
Police operatives stationed around Eagle Square were reported to have fired teargas canisters at close range as the protesters approached the area.
A video from the scene showed demonstrators running for safety, while Sowore was seen being assisted by fellow protesters as he struggled to breathe.
The video also showed him on the ground while receiving assistance.
‘Strange Gas’
Sowore accused the police of deploying “strange gas” “at close range” at the protest ground.
“Today, operatives of the Nigeria Police Force deployed a strange gas at the protest ground, at close range, which entered my lungs and left me struggling to breathe before I eventually collapsed,” he said on X.
According to him, this incident shows the increasingly dangerous tactics being used to suppress dissent and intimidate citizens exercising their constitutional rights.
“The objective of the Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu regime is to silence, destroy, and crush all opposition through fear and force. We shall never succumb to any of his worn-out tactics. We will keep going until we achieve liberation,” the activist, who is also the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress for the 2027 general elections, added.
The police have yet to issue an official statement on the incident.
‘Reckless Attack’
But Amnesty International condemned what it described as “the reckless attack on peaceful protesters” during a Democracy Day protest at Unity Fountain in Abuja in which Sowore collapsed and was subsequently “taken to a hospital”.
“The deliberate targeting of Sowore must be investigated. Such targeting of activists solely for exercising freedom of assembly is unlawful and shows utter disregard for the rule of law,” the group said on X on Friday.
It noted that the Nigerian authorities were “clearly using violence” to crack down on human rights, including the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.
“President Tinubu’s government has failed to demonstrate commitment to upholding the country’s constitution and its international human rights obligations that allow people to freely exercise their human rights, including the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” Amnesty International added.
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