Joanna Yusuf
The U.S. government has named Nigeria to a “Special Watch List” of countries that have committed or permitted “serious violations of religious freedom,” at a time when many Nigerians and the international community have criticized the Nigerian government for its repeated violations of court orders and the country’s diminishing political and media space.
The inclusion of Nigeria in the religion violations list was announced by the U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.
“On December 18, 2019, the Department of State re-designated Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 for having engaged in or tolerated “systematic, ongoing, [and] egregious violations of religious freedom.”
“The Department renewed the placement of Comoros, Russia, and Uzbekistan on a Special Watch List (SWL) for governments that have engaged in or tolerated “severe violations of religious freedom,” and added Cuba, Nicaragua, Nigeria, and Sudan to this list,” Mr Pompeo said.
