Amnesty International condemns Counter Subversion Bill

Amnesty International has condemned the introduction of the Counter Subversion Bill 2024 in the House of Representatives, calling for its immediate withdrawal.

The Country Director of AI, Isa Sanusi, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday.

The bill, sponsored by the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, has been criticised for its vague and broad language, which could be used to silence political opponents and punish those who express dissenting views.

The bill, prescribes, among others, that “anyone found guilty of destroying national symbols, refusing to recite the national anthem and pledge, defacing a place of worship with intent to incite violence, or undermining the Federal Government shall face a fine of N5 million, a 10-year prison sentence, or both.”

“The misplaced and ill-timed Counter Subversion Bill 2024 violates international human rights standards,” Sanusi said.

“It will be open to vague and broad interpretations and can be used to impose incredibly harsh punishments simply for criticizing the Nigerian authorities,” he added.

Sanusi noted that similar laws in other countries have been used to target political opponents and punish peaceful expression of views differing from those of the government.

“The law had always – and everywhere turned out to be a tool of repression,” he said.

The bill’s unclear wording, broad application, and lack of explicit human rights safeguards make it prone to interpretation and abuse by officials.

He emphasised that the bill promotes a culture of repression, rather than addressing pressing issues like corruption, poverty, and insecurity.

“Corruption — which is increasingly rampant and keeps Nigerians poorer is the ‘subversion’ that the House of Reps. should worry about and pay closer and more concrete attention to.

“Giving the government more broad powers to punish the people who hold dissenting opinions will only further undermine human rights,” he said.

Amnesty International urged the House of Representatives to focus on addressing deep poverty, inflation, and insecurity, rather than introducing legislation that could further restrict human rights.

“Legislations must be compliant with domestic and international human rights standards”, Sanusi concluded.