Prominent lawyer and activist Aloy Ejimakor has called on the Nigerian federal government to immediately lift the 2017 proscription of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as a terrorist organisation, describing the designation as politically motivated and ethnically discriminatory rather than a genuine national security measure.
In a strongly worded opinion piece, Ejimakor argued that the terrorist tag was designed to suppress legitimate political dissent by the Igbo people and criminalise an entire ethnic group’s right to political expression.
He cited several international and judicial authorities that have questioned the proscription:On October 1, 2020, multiple UN Special Rapporteurs wrote to the Nigerian government urging it to reconsider the designation.
They warned that the proscription was being used to quell legitimate political opinion and expressed concern over a growing climate of intolerance toward the Igbo and Christian minorities.
In Opinion No. 25/2022, the UN Human Rights Council declared the detention of IPOB leader Mazi Nnamdi Kanu as arbitrary and demanded his unconditional release, stating that criminalising membership in IPOB violates international standards on freedom of association and expression.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), in March 2018, issued provisional measures calling on Nigeria to rescind its decision to brand IPOB and its members as terrorists.
A Nigerian court in Enugu (Suit No. E/20/2023) on October 26, 2023, ruled the 2017 proscription “illegal, unconstitutional, null and void,” awarded N8 billion in damages to Nnamdi Kanu, and ordered a public apology.
The court held that the ban violated Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution by discriminating on the basis of ethnicity.
Ejimakor also noted that neither the United States nor the United Kingdom has designated IPOB as a terrorist organisation, despite reported lobbying by Nigeria.
He quoted UK authorities as applying a “rigorous, evidence-based approach” and concluding that IPOB does not meet the legal criteria for proscription.
The US Council on Foreign Relations similarly cautioned against such a designation.The lawyer maintained that the terror label has enabled extrajudicial killings, mass arrests, and a climate of fear, while framing peaceful political agitation as terrorism.
“De-proscription is not clemency; it is justice,” Ejimakor stated. “It restores constitutional equality, complies with binding international opinions, and ends the weaponisation of anti-terror laws against one ethnic group.”
He urged the federal government to repeal the proscription, release individuals detained solely for IPOB affiliation, and engage in genuine dialogue.
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NOP NIGERIA to reach thousands of our daily users
