The Kano State Government has rejected a ruling by the ECOWAS Court of Justice which declared aspects of its blasphemy laws as incompatible with international human rights standards.
The State Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Ibrahim Garba Waiya, who disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, maintained that the government will not bow to external pressures to scrap the law and will continue to enforce laws that align with the beliefs of its predominantly Muslim population.
Waiya stated that the blasphemy act enacted by the state and passed into law by the House of Assembly, has come to stay, insisting that such laws are vital to protecting its citizens’ religious and moral values.
He added that despite the ruling by the ECOWAS Court, the state has the constitutional right to uphold religious sanctity within its jurisdiction.
“We will not be deterred by external pressures. Our responsibility is to uphold the values of our society, which are grounded in religious and moral beliefs. While we respect international opinions, our laws are a reflection of our people’s will,” the Commissioner said.
“The Kano government’s defencee is rooted in Nigeria’s federal system, where states retain the right to enact laws reflecting local social, moral, and religious contexts.
“The people of Kano have entrusted us with the responsibility to maintain peace and protect their religious values. These laws are central to that mission, and they will remain firmly in place.”
Waiya who acknowledged the judgement of the ECOWAS Court, however, noted that the Kano State government is committed to the protection of religious sanctity and public order of its citizens as the blasphemy laws are legally grounded and socially necessary.
“We fully respect the court’s authority, but the laws that govern our state must reflect the unique moral and religious fabric of our people,” Waiya stated.
The response by the Kano government is coming after the ECOWAS Court of Justice ruled in suit filed by the incorporated trustees of Expression Now Human Rights Initiative, against the enactment of the blasphemy law by the state.
In the suit, the human rights group had argued that specific sections of the Kano’s Penal and Sharia Penal Codes violates the right to freedom of expression as protected by regional and international treaties.
The group also argued that the blasphemy laws have led to arbitrary arrests, prolonged detention, and death sentences while also fuelling vigilante violence and mob justice, with fears that they were meant to suppress dissent and target religious minorities.
While ruling on the suit on Friday, a three-member judicial panel of the ECOWAS Court comprising Justice Ricardo Gonçalves, Justice Sengu Koroma, and Justice Dupe Atoki, delivered the unanimous ruling declaring state’s blasphemy laws unconstitutional under international human rights standards, and ordered the Nigerian government to repeal or amend the provisions.
The court ruled that Section 210 of the Kano State Penal Code and Section 382(b) of the Kano State Sharia Penal Code Law (2000) are incompatible with Article 9(2) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
© Ripples Nigeria
