Armed Nigeria police officers have violently dispersed members of the Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky-led Islamic Movement of Nigeria who staged a peaceful protest in Abuja to demand the release of the leader and his wife Zeenat Ibrahim, with many protesters arrested during the encounter.
She undergoes a secret trial with the husband in Kaduna state. The Kaduna state government is charging the duo with eight counts bordering on alleged culpable homicide, unlawful assembly and disruption of public peace among others.
The peaceful protest which kicked off from Wuse Market was disrupted at the popular Berger Roundabout when they were confronted by policemen, who shot several canisters of teargas forcing the protesters to scamper to safety in different directions.
The situation led to unrest in the area as passersby ran to avoid being caught up in the melee. Motorists were also forced to take alternative routes in the process.
Speaking on the development, the Secretary of the Academic Forum of the Movement, Abdullahi Musa, confirmed the attack on their members, and also said that the movement would not stop to demand the release of their leader who has been illegally incarcerated since December 2015. He described the attempt by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led regime to criminalise peaceful protest as undemocratic and draconian.
He said, ‘They only show their bravery on innocent and unarmed citizens that are exercising their constitutional rights. And it’s high time this shameless and incompetent government and its accomplices understood that no amount of killings or jailing would stop us from protesting. The only thing that will stop us is when they obey the December 2016 Federal high Court order and free our leader and his wife unconditionally.’
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK