The letter said that the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has determined that the Nigerian government has “routinely failed to investigate these attacks and prosecute those responsible, demonstrating a problematic level of apathy on the part of state officials.”
“IRFA requires frank assessments in the face of such grave religious freedom violations. The Secretary of State should acknowledge that Nigeria has ‘engaged in or tolerated’ severe religious freedom violations, the statutory criteria warranting CPC designation,” the letter said.
“This is particularly important since the United States is a major partner of Nigeria, having given it over $1 billion in foreign aid in 2022 alone,” the letter said.
Among the letter’s signatories are prominent Catholics including Sam Brownback, former Kansas governor and former U.S. ambassador for international religious freedom; Leonard Leo, the former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom; Mary Ann Glendon, former U.S. ambassador to the Holy See; and George Weigel, an author and distinguished senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.
Another Catholic signatory is Nina Shea, senior fellow and director of the Center for Religious Freedom at the Hudson Institute, who told CNA Thursday that “Nigeria has become increasingly lawless where crime is rampant yet there is also an obvious pattern of attacks against Christian leaders, their churches, and entire Christian villages.”
“The government consistently and over many years has failed to take effective action to protect these innocent targets and lets Fulani extremists kill and pillage with impunity,” she said.
“For millions of Nigerian Christians, religious freedom is negated. Secretary of State [Antony] Blinken must follow the law and designate Nigeria on the CPC list of egregious religious violators,” she said.
Joseph Bukuras is a journalist at the Catholic News Agency. Joe has prior experience working in state and federal government, in non-profits, and Catholic education. He has contributed to an array of publications and his reporting has been cited by leading news sources, including the New York Times and the Washington Post. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the Catholic University of America. He is based out of the Boston area.