A picture from the site of attack, (Image: Twitter)
A man identified as Usman Buda Mai Hanji was stoned to death by a mob for an alleged blasphemous comment on the founder of Islam. The attack took place at the State Abattoir located in Sokoto city of Nigeria.
Sokoto City has a history of killing people over blasphemy.
What Happened?
On June 25, Buda who was a butcher opened his shop in the morning, while an argument with another trader, he allegedly committed blasphemy. Soon an Islamic mob erupted and started attacking him, they pelted stones at him with religious slogans.
Some of Buda’s closest business partners in the market who made attempts to rescue him were also injured by the extremists, and now receiving medical treatment. Buda was a butcher by profession.
A video of the said incident was shared widely on the internet with chants of Alla-hu-Akhbar. In the video, a man in the middle of a square is being stoned, for committing blasphemy.
As quoted by the local media, the deceased was accused of degrading the personality of Prophet Muhammad, at the Sokoto main abattoir.
Reacting to the development, the Sokoto State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Ahmad Rufa’i, said, “A distress call was received at about 09:20 am that one Usman Buda of Gwandu Local Government Area, a butcher at Sokoto Abattoir, allegedly blasphemed the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW) as a result he was mobbed and attacked.
“On arrival, the mob escaped the scene and left the victim unconscious, where he was rescued and taken to Usmanu Danfodiyo Teaching Hospital Sokoto, for treatment and was later confirmed dead. Meanwhile, Investigation is on to arrest the perpetrators and bring them to book,” he added.
The local’s account says the victim was selling cow entrails at the Sokoto Fish and Vegetables market which was known as Kasuwan Dankure.
A neighbour of the suspect who simply identified himself as Malam Yusuf described his death as painful. He said, “Usman is my immediate neighbour. He is very religious, in fact, he belonged to the Izala sect. We prayed and attended Tafsir together at Primary board quarters. There is no way he could make such a statement against the Holy Prophet.”
The Sokoto state police Command which confirmed the murder said, a distress call was received at about 09: 20 am that one Usman Buda ‘M’ of Gwandu local government area, a Butcher at Sokoto Abattoir allegedly blasphemed the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW) as a result he was mobbed and attacked.
The History of Violence
This is not the first case of blasphemy in Sokoto, in May 2022, a college going was lynched by a mob of fellow students for allegedly insulting Islam’s founder in Nigeria. The victim, Deborah Samuel, was dragged out of a room and beaten up with stones and sticks before being set on fire.
It is pertinent to mention that, half the population of Nigeria is Muslim and lives mainly in Northern states. Almost 45 percent are Christians, who live in the South. Less than 10 per cent practice traditional religions.
As per a recent report prepared by United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, 12 states in northern Nigeria have adopted Shariah penal codes since 1999.
“[Sharia penal codes] operate parallel to secular and customary courts. In deference to the country’s constitution, which protects Nigerians’ right to freedom of religion and belief, the penal codes do not apply to non-Muslims and exclude provisions against apostasy, which is typically punishable by death. Yet many Shariah laws in northern Nigeria continue to criminalize blasphemy and result in harsh punishments for blasphemers. Additionally, the Nigerian criminal code includes a penalty of up to two years imprisonment for insulting a person’s religion,” the report says.
Sokoto falls in the northwestern region of Nigeria.
In Nigeria, many people have been thrown into jail for a long time after being convicted of blasphemy.
Activist Mubarak Bala is in jail since 2020 for allegedly insulting Mohammed in a Facebook post. He remains in prison despite a court order for his release.
In 2020, a 22-year-old Muslim man named Yahaya Sharif-Aminu was sentenced to death for blasphemy through private Whatsapp messages.
The same year, a 16-year-old boy, Umar Farouk, was sentenced to 10 years in prison after allegedly committing blasphemy in a verbal spat with a friend. However, he was later acquitted by a higher court. He expressed danger to his life after being freed from prison.
In 2016, a 74-year-old Christian trader, Bridget Agbahime, was lynched to death by a Muslim mob outside her shop in Kano after she was accused of blasphemy.
In 2020, a mob in Darazo district in northeastern Bauchi state charred to death a man accused of he same offence.
The Government’s denial
Meanwhile, the state governor, Ahmed Aliyu has called on the people of the state to remain calm and law-abiding at all times.
The governor made the revelation in a statement signed by his spokesperson, Abubakar Bawa, while warning against any act capable of “degrading the personality of Prophet Muhammad, especially in a state like Sokoto, which is predominantly a Muslim-dominated community.”
“I want to call on the people of Sokoto State to avoid taking laws into their own hands and instead report any alleged crime or blasphemy to the appropriate quarters for necessary action.
“Our religion does not encourage taking laws into one’s hand, so let us try to be good followers of our religion,” he appealed.
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