The Irony of Peaceful Protests

We have seen it for generations; the public unites in protest of their rights, they ask for peace and respect and receive gunfire and violence in return. Police brutality has been an epidemic for decades, we have seen it arise within Beijing’s Tiananmen Square Protest, Black Lives Matter Movement, Ukraine’s Euromaidan Protest, and many more peaceful demonstrations of defiance. To some, it has seemed national governments and police forces care more about their image and political suppression rather than the needs and reforms of their own citizens. Like many peaceful demonstrations before, the protest in Lagos Nigeria started as a cordial outcry for the end of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, a police unit widely regarded for rape, kidnapping, harassment, and extortion. With nearly 40% of the Nigerian population under 30 years old, thousands of peaceful protesters gathered on October 20 and 21to demonstrate their defiance. The peaceful marches included candlelight vigils, prayer sessions, and other acts of unity. Although their defiance was in the name of police brutality, it soon became clear the movement was larger than just the police force. It was the Nigerian government that had done its citizens so wrong, the movement nearly captured protesters' frustrations, demanding the oil-rich country reform their corrupt government. The Nigerian Government had made it a habit to make promises they could not keep, this was the fourth time they were said to disband the controversial unit of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, the very reason for the peaceful protests. Nearly ten days into the protest, the demonstrations were hijacked causing violence, death, and injury. In response, the Lagos Governor, Sanwo-Olu enforced a curfew at 4:00 pm in order to limit the vandalism and looting; however, with tensions between the Governor and Military running high the curfew was changed to 9:00 pm without the knowledge of the Military. Consequently, trucks of soldiers arrived at the protest and with no warning began firing into the crowd of peaceful protesters. It is ironic how the very thing the Nigerian people were fighting for, was extinguished by it. Chaos and violence soon ensued; people were seen fleeing, running for their lives, others were carrying bodies, some lied bleeding, and others were dead. The countless dead bodies made it hard to escape the gunshots, and the darkness of the night only worsened it. It is clear police brutality is an epidemic, especially when police forces open fire on a peaceful demonstration. The actions of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad caused thousands of Nigerian citizens to either be identified as missing or possibly dead, many were wrongly taken into custody, and others were severely injured. What is worse, is the Nigerian Military was seen removing a number of bodies from the scene, the countless number of dead bodies literally transformed this peaceful act of defiance into a full-blown massacre. And as if to add insult to injury, the local authorities and especially Governor Sanwo-Olu downplayed their involvement in the bloody protests, even going so far as to say there was no bloodshed and it was just fake news. Although it was evidently clear of the government’s lies, eventually the Military and Governor backtracked their previous statements, instead of blaming each other for the incident. Either way, it is clear Nigeria struggles to combat the power of a corrupt and violent government and police force. The Nigerian citizens were not asking for much, they peacefully marched in hopes to reform the police academy and benefit their government in return.

Works Cited

Busari, Stephanie, et al. “How a Bloody Night of Bullets Quashed a Young Protest Movement.” CNN, Cable News Network, 19 Nov. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/11/18/africa/lagos-nigeria-lekki-toll-gate-feature-intl/index.html.

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About The Contributor

Staff Writer, Ava Lopez