- Delivering judgment, Justice Inyang Ekwo ordered the Federal Government to ensure adequate protection and safety of the lives of journalists
On Friday, a Federal High Court in Abuja mandated the Federal Government to probe and prosecute individuals responsible for the killings of journalists in Nigeria spanning from 1986 to 2023.
Notable victims during this period include Dele Giwa, the founder of Newswatch Magazine.
The Incorporated Trustees of Media Rights Agenda had filed a lawsuit against the Attorney-General of the Federation, seeking various reliefs, including a declaration that the killing of Nigerian journalists constitutes a violation of their fundamental rights to life.
The organisation also sought the enforcement of the fundamental rights of media practitioners to safety as guaranteed by the 1999 Constitution and African Charter on Human Rights.
MRA also held that some journalists are still being harassed by security agencies with the AGF allegedly doing nothing about it.
Delivering judgment, Justice Inyang Ekwo ordered the Federal Government to ensure adequate protection and safety of the lives of journalists as enshrined in Sections 33, and 39 of the Constitution and Articles 4 and 9 of the African Charter of Human and Peoples Rights.