Washington D.C., Sep 20, 2022 / 17:00 pm
Human rights advocates are calling on U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to put Nigeria back on a list of the world’s worst violators of religious freedom in light of increasing attacks against Christians.
In 2020, the State Department designated Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern (CPC)” in the State Department’s International Religious Freedom Report. The country was placed on the list “for having engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom. “
Then, in November 2021, the State Department removed Nigeria from the list of CPCs despite what observers say was an increasing number of attacks against Christians.
In a Sept. 19 letter addressed to Blinken, 68 religious freedom NGOs and human rights experts called on the secretary of state to “designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) and appoint a Special Envoy to investigate the situation and make recommendations, in consultation with local representatives.”