Conversations and messages on mobile devices are no longer confidential. They have become tools in the hands of law enforcement agents in Nigeria for the purpose of apprehending journalists.
Investigation by the Committee To Protect Journalists, a non-profit organisation that promotes press freedom globally, shows that the growing trend of arrest, detention and prosecution of journalists across the country is being facilitated by information shared by telecommunications operators.
According to a report by Amnesty International titled, Indiscriminate Detention of Endangered Voices: Attack on Freedom of Expression in Nigeria, about 19 journalists, bloggers and media practitioners were attacked between January and September 2019.
They were reportedly subjected to physical and verbal assault, unlawfully detained, threatened and put under pressure to reveal their sources of information by security agencies.
These are some of the many tactics deployed by agents of the Federal Government to stifle dissenting voices and the freedom of expression in the country.
The Senate had also made several attempts to pass legislation that regulate online conversations on social media through a ‘Protection from Internet Falsehoods and Manipulations and Other related Matters Bill 2019’, which recommended three years imprisonment and a maximum fine of N10 million for offenders.
Investigation also showed that while some of the targeted media practitioners were arrested and physically abused in the course of their work, others were hunted down, using their friends and family members as baits.
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