UK Government Reiterates Rights of Nigerians to Peaceful Protests

The Government of the United Kingdom has reiterated the rights of Nigerians to freedom of Expression and peaceful protests.

The UK mission in Nigeria via a tweet on its official Twitter handle said; ‘ “On #Nigeria’s #DemocracyDay, we celebrate every Nigerian who has contributed to establishing #democracy in this country and emphasise the importance of upholding it’s values, including the right to free expression and to peaceful protest’.

The UK in a joint statement on Saturday in conjunction with Canada, EU, US, and the Republic of Ireland warned the Federal Government of Nigeria that banning avenues to freedom of expression was non existence in a democracy.

The statement was titled, ‘Joint Statement From The Diplomatic Missions Of Canada, The European Union (Delegation To Nigeria), The Republic Of Ireland, The United Kingdom And The United States Of America’.

In a related development, Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have shot teargas cannisters at unarmed protesters on Democracy Day, June 12 in the Gudu area of the Federal Capital Territory.

The protest which began around 8:30 a.m, was going well, with protesters, mostly young people, chanting “Buhari must go,” “Say no to injustice,” and other solidarity phrases.

Security operatives on the scene then shot cannisters of teargas and other projectiles that saw the unarmed protesters scurrying to safety.