Amnesty to FG: Suspension of Twitter unlawful — reverse it immediately

Amnesty International (AI) has described the suspension of Twitter by the federal government as “unlawful”.

The non-governmental organisation condemned the development and called for an immediate reversal.

Lai Mohammed, minister of information, had announced the “indefinite” suspension on Friday.

The minister said the move was necessitated by the “persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence”.

In reaction, AI said the suspension is not compatible with Nigeria’s international obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

“Amnesty International condemns the Nigerian government’s suspension of Twitter in Nigeria — a social media widely used by Nigerians to exercise their human rights, including their rights to freedom of expression and access to information,” AI said in a statement posted on Twitter.

“We call on the #Nigerian authorities to immediately reverse the unlawful suspension and other plans to gag the media, repress the civic space, and undermine Nigerians’ human rights. #TwitterBan.

“This action is clearly inconsistent and incompatible with Nigeria’s international obligations including under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”

Twitter’s suspension by the federal government comes days after a post by President Muhammadu Buhari on the 1967 civil war was deleted by the microblogging platform.