Nigeria’s president orders the release of 29 children facing death penalty over protests

People run away from tear gas during a protest on the street in Kano, Nigeria, Aug. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Sani Maikatanga)

ABUJA, Nigeria -

Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu on Monday ordered the immediate release of 29 children facing the death penalty after being arraigned for allegedly participating in protests against the country’s worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation.

Under growing pressure from activists, Tinubu also directed an investigation of the law enforcement agents involved in the arrest and prosecution of the minors, Nigeria’s Information Minister Mohammed Idris told reporters in the capital, Abuja. They are not expected to be released until Tuesday through a court order.

The children, detained since August, were among more than 70 people arraigned on Friday on charges of treason, destruction of property and mutiny after the August protests that shook the country and culminated in security operatives killing some demonstrators and arresting hundreds.

Aged 14 to 17, four of the minors collapsed due to exhaustion when they were brought to the court last week. Most others looked malnourished and lost as they pressed against one other in the dock, the rest sitting on the floor.

There had been no news of their detention until their arraignment, which sparked outrage and renewed concerns about deteriorating human rights in Africa’s most populous country.

A local court imposed stringent conditions and granted the children a bail of 10 million naira (US$5,900) each, which none of them was able to meet.

It is still not clear if the children participated in the protests staged by Nigerians as they faced worsening hardship caused by the government’s economic policies that were aimed at reducing costs and stabilizing the ailing economy.

They were detained unlawfully and put through “horrifying experiences,” according to Amnesty International’s Nigeria office, one of several rights groups that demanded the children's release.

The children's arrest "highlights significant flaws in our criminal justice system, particularly the child justice system, indicating systemic issues that fail to protect minors’ rights,” said Funke Adeoye, founder of Hope Behind Bars Africa, a nonprofit that has been fighting for their release.