The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom has censured the Nigerian government for failing to respond to violent attacks on faith-based organisations or worshippers.

USCIRF excoriated the Nigerian government in its 2024 Annual Report with New Recommendations for U.S. Policy released on Wednesday.

“In 2023, religious freedom conditions in Nigeria remained extremely poor. Violence across Nigeria impacted freedom of religion or belief as the government failed to prevent attacks against faith-based organisations or worshipers, with some accusing it of fomenting such attacks,” said the latest USCIRF report. “Nigerian government officials were often slow to react to information about possible attacks or to respond after attacks occurred.”

USCIRF noted that in some cases, those impacted by violence directly criticised a lack of government accountability and called for further steps to protect religious freedom. Both the police and army drew criticism for not stemming the activities of violent insurgent groups such as Boko Haram, Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP), and Fulani gangs that often worked in collaboration with them. 

Those states where violence was most prevalent include Borno, Kano, Kaduna, Plateau, Adamawa, and Benue. Additionally, multiple attacks during the year targeted religious leaders. 

“For example, in January 2023,” said the report, “bandits killed Father Isaac Achi of the Minna Diocese, while others shot and injured assistant parish priest Father Collins Omeh at the Saints Peter and Paul Church in the Paikoro region. In May 2023, insurgents in Benue State killed pastor Dominic Dajo of St. Peter Catholic Church and his wife.”

In Nasarawa, Fulani herders killed a pastor, Daniel Danbeki, of the Evangelical Church Winning All, along with his wife and 41 others. In Yobe, Boko Haram insurgents killed at least 37 people in February 2023 and killed another 40 people in October. In May, the Nigerian army rescued two women Boko Haram had kidnapped in 2014 from a Chibok secondary school. In November, Boko Haram killed 15 farmers in the Muslim-majority Borno State and at least 10 Christians in Taraba. 

In 2023, USCIRF said the Nigerian government detained individuals accused of blasphemy and often failed to hold accountable perpetrators of violence related to blasphemy allegations. The Nigerian penal code includes a penalty of up to two years’ imprisonment for acts “persons consider as a public insult on their religion, with the intention that they should consider the act such an insult.”

Twelve states in northern Nigeria have implemented Shari’a legal frameworks since 1999. In May, a Sokoto magistrate released two suspects arrested for the May 2022 mob murder of Christian Deborah Samuel for alleged blasphemy, eliminating any accountability for her death. In June, a mob in Sokoto stoned to death Usman Buda after he made a remark misunderstood as a slur against the Prophet Muhammad. 

“At least five prisoners remain in state custody on blasphemy charges, including humanist Mubarak Bala and Sufi Muslim Yahaya Sharif–Aminu. At a November 27 hearing in a Bauchi State high court, a judge rejected Christian Rhoda Jatau’s appeal that the court dismiss the blasphemy charges against her; however, on December 10, a Bauchi court judge released her on bail,” the USCIRF report noted.

The report, therefore, recommended tha the U.S. government designate Nigeria as a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, as defined by the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). It also advised the U.S. State Department to redesignate Boko Haram and ISWAP as “entities of particular concern,” or EPCs, for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, as defined by IRFA. 

USCIRF further recommended that the U.S. government appoint a special envoy for Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin to maximize U.S. diplomatic efforts to address religious freedom violations and atrocity risk in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin and “diplomatically, financially, and administratively support Nigerian civil society organizations to coordinate a national dialogue on implementing United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHCR) Resolution 16/18 and to promote religious freedom while safeguarding freedom of expression.” 

The USCIRF report advised the U.S. Congress to “revitalize the bipartisan caucus on Nigeria to place due focus on religious freedom and other related human rights challenges in addition to security and crimes against humanity and atrocity risk in Nigeria and request that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigate the effectiveness of U.S. assistance to Nigeria in achieving religious freedom objectives in the country.

In 2023, the 25th anniversary year of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (IRFA), President Joe Biden’s administration maintained its support for many initiatives related to international religious freedom (IRF). 

In December, the U.S. Department of State designated 12 countries as “countries of particular concern” under IRFA for engaging in or tolerating particularly severe violations of religious freedom. 

USCIRF expressed disappointment that India and Nigeria were not designated as CPCs despite the violations in both countries meeting the legal standard.