The national head of Amnesty International told AFP on Wednesday that the rights organization has accused Nigerian security forces of killing at least 21 protestors during a week of demonstrations against economic hardship.
Following hundreds of participants in demonstrations last week over high living expenses and governmental policies, police have tightened their crackdown on demonstrators. Since then, protests have dramatically decreased.
Reporters for AFP have witnessed security personnel using tear gas and firearms to disperse protestors among large crowds.
Police in Kano have not replied to AFP’s requests for comment, and security forces have rejected liability for deaths that occurred during the protests.
Raising an earlier toll of 13, Amnesty’s Nigeria director Isa Sanusi said the group had verified seven further killings in Kano and one in Azare, in northeastern Bauchi state.
In an interview with AFP, he said this represented a “conservative figure” and that Amnesty was investigating more deaths.
Sanusi said the 21 people were all protesters killed by security forces. He condemned the use of live ammunition and called for investigations into the conduct of security forces.
“Their duty is to restore order and make sure that protesters are protected,” he said.
The most populous nation in Africa is going through its greatest economic crisis in a generation as a result of changes implemented by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu last year.
The protest movement, known as #EndbadGovernanceinNigeria, gained traction with an online campaign that demanded, among other things, that the government address the challenge of rising living expenses and lower fuel prices.
While hundreds of protestors came to the streets earlier this week in northern states, the protests have waned in many regions of the nation.
