By Adebayo Gbeja
The Hope Behind Bars Africa (HBBA) has called for stronger criminal justice reforms and accountability to protect freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) and freedom of expression in Nigeria.
Executive Director of HBBA, Mrs Funke Adeoye, made the call at the North-Central FoRB and Justice Convening in Abuja on Wednesday.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that HBBA is a non-profit organisation that promotes criminal justice reforms, legal aid, and the rehabilitation of vulnerable inmates.
NAN also reports that the event with the theme “Protecting Freedom of Religion or Belief in Nigeria: From Dialogue to Action”, was organised by HBBA with support from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED).
The convening brought together faith leaders, human rights defenders, lawyers, journalists, researchers, civil society organisations, government institutions and international partners to examine challenges affecting religious freedom and justice.
Adeoye said FoRB was a fundamental right that allowed individuals to hold, change, express or practice their religion or belief without discrimination or undue restriction.
She also said that protecting the right could not be separated from justice, civic rights, community relations and the protection of individuals and communities.
According to her, freedom of religion or belief and freedom of expression are inseparable from our broader mandate on criminal justice reform and civic space protection.
Adeoye added that HBBA deliberately designed the convening to move beyond dialogue towards practical actions that could strengthen rights protection, accountability and justice.
“This event is also intended to amplify diverse perspectives on FoRB and draw greater public attention to the need for sustained dialogue, accountability and action in protecting fundamental rights,” she said.
She urged government institutions, faith communities, civil society organisations, legal practitioners and journalists to work together to strengthen justice, accountability and equal protection of fundamental rights.
Similarly, Ms Tsema Ede, a legal expert, urged authorities to prevent the arbitrary use of vague laws, including public disturbance and blasphemy-related provisions, to suppress minority expression or dissent.
Ede called for neutral mechanisms to address tensions between religious communities, stronger institutional measures against discrimination and balanced legislative interventions on religious freedom.
“There is an urgent need for a healthy and balanced legislative intervention in the area of religious freedom in Nigeria,” she said.
She urged policymakers, CSOs and justice-sector actors to move from rhetoric to systemic institutional reform, stressing that security and national unity required adherence to the rule of law and equal protection.
“True security and national unity cannot be bombed or legislated into existence; they are cultivated through strict adherence to the rule of law and equal protection,” Ede said.
Also speaking, The Executive Director, Rivers in the Desert Initiative (RID Nigeria), Mr Alex James, called for a deeper examination of the relationship between Sharia law, FoRB and freedom of expression.
James said there was a need to examine when matters traditionally governed by family or civil law became criminal matters, noting that such developments had implications for fundamental human rights.
“We are not supposed to penalise thoughts or expression. These are things that cause this contradiction within the law,” he said.
He added that Nigeria needed sustained efforts to address processes through which individuals could be indoctrinated into violent or harmful beliefs.
In the same vein, Executive Director, the Kukah Centre, Rev. Fr. Barkindo Atta, urged stakeholders to establish clear laws on hate speech and incitement as well as ensure their equal application, irrespective of religion, ethnicity, social status or political position.
“Hate speech and incitement should be governed by agreed laws. It should not matter who you are in the society; if you violate these laws, you should face the consequences so that we are not profiled,” he said.
In his remarks, Mr Stanley Ibe, an HBBA board member, also called for effective implementation of FoRB laws without favour or partiality.
NAN reports that participants include representatives of the Kukah Centre, NASFAT, YALI Abuja, Christian associations, Goodluck Jonathan Foundation, HumAngle, and Digicivic Initiative,
Others are the Rivers in the Desert Initiative, Code for Africa, PAR-RVP Initiative, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Global Rights, Paradigm Initiative Nigeria and TechHer, among other civil society organisations.(NAN)
Edited by Deborah Coker