Drop hate speech bill - International media organisation advises Nigeria Senate

An international media organisation, International Press Centre (IPC), has advised the Nigerian Senate against going ahead with the passage of a bill now before it which prescribes death sentence for Nigerians found guilty of ‘hate speech.’

Sahara Reporters stated that this was contained in a statement signed by the chairman of the organisation, Lanre Arogundade.

The media group warned that if passed, the bill would crush the right of Nigerians to freedom of expression as guaranteed by the constitution of the country.

Arogundade further advised that national assembly to convene a meeting with stakeholders to determine what particularly could be regarded as hate speech.

The statement read in part: “A draconian law that hallmarks dictatorship cannot be the solution to hate speech in a democratic society. What the country needs today is engagement by multiple stakeholders to determine what actually constitutes hate speech and agree on effective measures for dealing with such.”

Arogundade added if the bill is passed into law, it would gravely pose a threat to freedom of expression as well of freedom of the press and safety of journalists in the country.

He said that though hate speech is discouraged, prescribing death penalty for it is not a welcome idea.

“Much as we do not welcome hate speech, we do not also welcome a law that would gag citizens and deny the public the right to know,” he said.

Previously three civil society groups, Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL) and the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) also described the hate speech bill as draconian.

The president of the CDHR, Malachy Ugwummadu, said: “I think there have been very desperate and sinister moves on the part of the Senate, hiding under the cloak of a nebulous term such as hate speech, to whittle down and undermine the fundamental rights of Nigerians. The first challenge about that bill is to know who defines hate speech. Is it the senators or the people?

“Also, there are still bodies of legislation on defamation, slander and libel which carry their own punishments and penalties, but not the death penalty. They, more often than not, attract payment of damages. The Senate must not tamper with this arrangement. We recommend that the bill on capital punishment be abolished.”