29 boys aged 14 to 17 may be sentenced to death after participating in protests in Nigeria, the Association Press reported. Four of the boys collapsed in court from exhaustion. The teenagers have been detained by the police since August, and their defenders say that “they have been without food for 90 days.” Ultimately, the court decided to impose bail. The case will return to the docket in January.
In Nigeria, a total of 76 protesters were charged with, among other things, treason and inciting a coup after they took part in August protests against the deteriorating economic situation. Demonstrations took place in Abuja, Lagos and other cities. President Bola Tinubu has promised to introduce changes to “keep the country afloat.”
As reported by the Association Press agency, among the people who appeared in court are 29 minors who face the death penalty. The death penalty was introduced in Nigeria in the 1970s, but no executions have been carried out in the country since 2016.
Four boys fainted in court due to exhaustion. A group of defenders human rights reported that the minors have been detained by the Nigerian police since August, and their lawyer said that “they have been without food for 90 days.”
According to the document obtained by the AP agency, the minors were between 14 and 17 years old.
“A country that has a duty to educate its children decides to punish them.”
The court finally decided to impose bail in the amount of 10 million naira (approximately PLN 85,000) on each of the defendants. The case will return to court in January.
– A country that has an obligation to educate its children decides to punish them. They have been in detention for 90 days without food, said Marshal Abubakar, the boys' defense attorney.
Akintayo Balogun, an Abuja-based lawyer, told CNN that the Children's Rights Act does not allow a child to be subjected to criminal proceedings and sentenced to death, “therefore, the trial of juvenile cases in a federal high court is inappropriate from the outset.”
Yemi Adamolekun, director of Enough is Enough, which monitors governments in Nigeria, said that the authorities have no right to prosecute children. – Nigeria's top judge should be ashamed of herself. She is a woman and a mother, said Adamolekun.
Protests in Nigeria against the high cost of living, August 9, 2024Reuters
Economic crisis in Nigeria
Nigerians are grappling with a severe cost of living crisis and widespread insecurity that has damaged the agricultural sector, while armed gangs are kidnapping residents and school children for ransom in the north.
Frustration over the cost of living crisis has led to several mass protests in recent months. In August, at least 20 people were shot dead and hundreds more arrested during a protest demanding better opportunities and jobs for young people.
CNN pointed out that despite being one of the largest oil producers in Africa, Nigeria remains one of the poorest countries in the world. Chronic corruption means that the lifestyles of government officials rarely reflect those of the general public. Health care workers often go on strike to protest low wages.
Nigeria's population of more than 210 million people, the largest on the continent, is also one of the world's hungriest, and its government has struggled to create jobs. Foot inflation has remained at high levels for almost 30 years and the local currency, the naira, is historically weak against the dollar.
On Thursday, Nigeria was classified as a “hotspot of very high concern” in a report by the United Nations food agency.
Main photo source: Reuters