A new opinion poll suggests that 87% of people in Nigeria support the legal ban on same-sex relations.
That number is lower than five years ago, when 96% of Nigerians opposed relationships between same-sex couples.
Gay rights activists, who commissioned the poll, said this showed attitudes towards gay people were changing, albeit slowly.
Nigeria is a deeply conservative country and religion plays a major role in society.
The government tightened anti-gay laws last year, banning same-sex marriages, gay groups and shows of same-sex public affection.
'Progress'
Campaigners say the laws are among the most draconian anywhere - and impose a sentence of up to 14 years in prison for same-sex couples.
About 1,000 people across Nigeria took part in the telephone poll which was commissioned by gay rights groups, including the Bisi Alimi Foundation.
Only about one in six people said they knew someone who was openly homosexual, reports the BBC's Will Ross from Nigeria's main city, Lagos.
However, the number almost doubled for people in their late teens and early twenties.
About 30% of respondents said gay, lesbian and bisexual people should have access to public services such as education and healthcare.
Gay activists, including the Bisi Alimi Foundation, see this as progress, our correspondent says.
They believe the survey shows that the tide is slowly turning towards acceptance. Nevertheless, Nigeria remains a dangerous place for people to come out, our correspondent adds.
BBC
Related stories: Video - Nigeria's anti-gay law denounced
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Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Kidnapped Nigeria school girls forced to join Boko Haram
Some of the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped in Nigeria have been forced to join Islamist militant group Boko Haram, the BBC has been told.
Witnesses say some are now being used to terrorise other captives, and are even carrying out killings themselves.
The testimony cannot be verified but Amnesty International says other girls kidnapped by Boko Haram have been forced to fight.
Boko Haram has killed some 5,500 civilians in Nigeria since 2014.
Two-hundred-and-nineteen schoolgirls from Chibok, are still missing, more than a year after they were kidnapped from their school in northern Nigeria. Many of those seized are Christians.
Three women who claim they were held in the same camps as some of the Chibok girls have told the BBC's Panorama programme that some of them have been brainwashed and are now carrying out punishments on behalf of the militants.
Seventeen-year-old Miriam (not her real name) fled Boko Haram after being held for six months. She was forced to marry a militant, and is now pregnant with his child.
Recounting her first days in the camp she said: "They told to us get ready, that they were going to marry us off."
She and four others refused.
"They came back with four men, they slit their throats in front of us. They then said that this will happen to any girl that refuses to get married,"
Faced with that choice, she agreed to marry, and was then repeatedly raped.
"There was so much pain," she said. "I was only there in body… I couldn't do anything about it."
While in captivity, Miriam described meeting some of the Chibok schoolgirls. She said they were kept in a separate house to the other captives.
"They told us: 'You women should learn from your husbands because they are giving their blood for the cause. We must also go to war for Allah.'"
She said the girls had been "brainwashed" and that she had witnessed some of them kill several men in her village.
"They were Christian men. They [the Boko Haram fighters] forced the Christians to lie down. Then the girls cut their throats."
It is not possible to independently verify Miriam's claims. But human rights group Amnesty International said their research also shows that some girls abducted by Boko Haram have been trained to fight.
"The abduction and brutalisation of young women and girls seems to be part of the modus operandi of Boko Haram," said Netsanet Belay, Africa director, research and advocacy at Amnesty International.
'They had guns'
The Chibok schoolgirls have not been seen since last May when Boko Haram released a video of around 130 of them gathered together reciting the Koran. They looked terrified.
Amnesty International estimates more than 2,000 girls have been taken since the start of 2014. But it was the attack on the school in Chibok that sparked international outrage.
Michelle Obama made a rousing speech a few weeks after their abduction, demanding the girls' return.
Millions of people showed their support for the #bringbackourgirls campaign. The hashtag was shared more than five million times.
Boko Haram has been trying to establish an Islamic State in the region, but it has recently been pushed back by a military force from Nigeria and its neighbours. Hundreds of women and girls have managed to escape during these raids.
Anna, aged 60, is one of them. She fled a camp in the Sambisa forest in December where she was held for five months. She now sits beneath a tree close to the cathedral in the Adamawa state capital of Yola. Her only possessions are the clothes she ran away in.
She said she saw some of the Chibok schoolgirls just before she fled the forest.
"They had guns," she said.
When pressed on how she could be sure that it is was the Chibok schoolgirls that she'd seen, Anna said: "They [Boko Haram] didn't hide them. They told us: 'These are your teachers from Chibok.'
"They shared the girls out as teachers to teach different groups of women and girls to recite the Koran," Anna recalled.
"Young girls who couldn't recite were being flogged by the Chibok girls."
Like Miriam, Anna also said she had seen some of the Chibok schoolgirls commit murder.
Conversion attempt
"People were tied and laid down and the girls took it from there… The Chibok girls slit their throats," said Anna.
Anna said she felt no malice towards the girls she had seen taking part in the violence, only pity.
"It's not their fault they were forced to do it." she added. "Anyone who sees the Chibok girls has to feel sorry for them."
Exposing women to extreme violence seemed to be a strategy used by Boko Haram to strip them of their identity and humanity, so they could be forced to accept the militants' ideology.
Faith (not her real name) aged 16, who is Christian, described how Boko Haram fighters tried to force her to convert to their version of Islam.
"Every day at dawn they would come and throw water over us and order us to wake up and start praying."
"Then one day they brought in a man wearing uniform. They made us all line up and then said to me: 'Because you are always crying, you will must kill this man.'
"I was given the knife and ordered to cut his neck. I said I couldn't do it.
"They cut his throat in front of me. That's when I passed out."
Faith said she had seen at least one Chibok schoolgirl who had been married off to a Boko Haram militant during her four months in captivity.
"She was just like any of the Boko Haram wives," she explained. "We are more scared of the wives than the husbands."
Long road to recovery
With hundreds of women and children recently rescued from Boko Haram strongholds in the Sambisa forest, the Nigerian government has set up a programme to help escapees.
Many fled captivity, only to discover that some or all of their family members had been killed by Boko Haram. Others have been cast out from their communities, who now consider them "Boko Haram wives".
Dr Fatima Akilu is in charge of Nigeria's counter-violence and extremism programme. She is currently looking after around 300 of the recently rescued women and children.
"We have not seen signs of radicalisation," she told us. "But if it did occur we would not be surprised."
And she added: "In situations where people have been held, there have been lots of stories where they have identified with their captors."
Dr Akilu said beatings, torture, rape, forced marriages and pregnancies were common in Boko Haram camps.
"We have a team of imams… that are trained to look out for radical ideas and ideology.
"Recovery is going to be slow, it's going to be long… It's going to be bumpy."
As the hunt for the Chibok schoolgirls continues, and questions are raised about what state they will be in if they ever return home, those who have managed to escape are beginning the mammoth task of coming to terms with their experiences.
"I can't get the images out of my head," said Anna, breaking down in tears. "I see people being slaughtered. I just pray that the nightmares don't return."
For others, the nightmare is continuing every day. Miriam is expecting her baby any day now.
"I hope that the baby is a girl," she said. "I would love her more than any boy. I'm scared of having a boy."
Miriam's future is bleak. She is terrified her "husband" will find her and kill her for running away. Her community has also rejected her.
"People consider me an outcast," she said.
"They remind me that I have Boko Haram inside me."
BBC
Witnesses say some are now being used to terrorise other captives, and are even carrying out killings themselves.
The testimony cannot be verified but Amnesty International says other girls kidnapped by Boko Haram have been forced to fight.
Boko Haram has killed some 5,500 civilians in Nigeria since 2014.
Two-hundred-and-nineteen schoolgirls from Chibok, are still missing, more than a year after they were kidnapped from their school in northern Nigeria. Many of those seized are Christians.
Three women who claim they were held in the same camps as some of the Chibok girls have told the BBC's Panorama programme that some of them have been brainwashed and are now carrying out punishments on behalf of the militants.
Seventeen-year-old Miriam (not her real name) fled Boko Haram after being held for six months. She was forced to marry a militant, and is now pregnant with his child.
Recounting her first days in the camp she said: "They told to us get ready, that they were going to marry us off."
She and four others refused.
"They came back with four men, they slit their throats in front of us. They then said that this will happen to any girl that refuses to get married,"
Faced with that choice, she agreed to marry, and was then repeatedly raped.
"There was so much pain," she said. "I was only there in body… I couldn't do anything about it."
While in captivity, Miriam described meeting some of the Chibok schoolgirls. She said they were kept in a separate house to the other captives.
"They told us: 'You women should learn from your husbands because they are giving their blood for the cause. We must also go to war for Allah.'"
She said the girls had been "brainwashed" and that she had witnessed some of them kill several men in her village.
"They were Christian men. They [the Boko Haram fighters] forced the Christians to lie down. Then the girls cut their throats."
It is not possible to independently verify Miriam's claims. But human rights group Amnesty International said their research also shows that some girls abducted by Boko Haram have been trained to fight.
"The abduction and brutalisation of young women and girls seems to be part of the modus operandi of Boko Haram," said Netsanet Belay, Africa director, research and advocacy at Amnesty International.
'They had guns'
The Chibok schoolgirls have not been seen since last May when Boko Haram released a video of around 130 of them gathered together reciting the Koran. They looked terrified.
Amnesty International estimates more than 2,000 girls have been taken since the start of 2014. But it was the attack on the school in Chibok that sparked international outrage.
Michelle Obama made a rousing speech a few weeks after their abduction, demanding the girls' return.
Millions of people showed their support for the #bringbackourgirls campaign. The hashtag was shared more than five million times.
Boko Haram has been trying to establish an Islamic State in the region, but it has recently been pushed back by a military force from Nigeria and its neighbours. Hundreds of women and girls have managed to escape during these raids.
Anna, aged 60, is one of them. She fled a camp in the Sambisa forest in December where she was held for five months. She now sits beneath a tree close to the cathedral in the Adamawa state capital of Yola. Her only possessions are the clothes she ran away in.
She said she saw some of the Chibok schoolgirls just before she fled the forest.
"They had guns," she said.
When pressed on how she could be sure that it is was the Chibok schoolgirls that she'd seen, Anna said: "They [Boko Haram] didn't hide them. They told us: 'These are your teachers from Chibok.'
"They shared the girls out as teachers to teach different groups of women and girls to recite the Koran," Anna recalled.
"Young girls who couldn't recite were being flogged by the Chibok girls."
Like Miriam, Anna also said she had seen some of the Chibok schoolgirls commit murder.
Conversion attempt
"People were tied and laid down and the girls took it from there… The Chibok girls slit their throats," said Anna.
Anna said she felt no malice towards the girls she had seen taking part in the violence, only pity.
"It's not their fault they were forced to do it." she added. "Anyone who sees the Chibok girls has to feel sorry for them."
Exposing women to extreme violence seemed to be a strategy used by Boko Haram to strip them of their identity and humanity, so they could be forced to accept the militants' ideology.
Faith (not her real name) aged 16, who is Christian, described how Boko Haram fighters tried to force her to convert to their version of Islam.
"Every day at dawn they would come and throw water over us and order us to wake up and start praying."
"Then one day they brought in a man wearing uniform. They made us all line up and then said to me: 'Because you are always crying, you will must kill this man.'
"I was given the knife and ordered to cut his neck. I said I couldn't do it.
"They cut his throat in front of me. That's when I passed out."
Faith said she had seen at least one Chibok schoolgirl who had been married off to a Boko Haram militant during her four months in captivity.
"She was just like any of the Boko Haram wives," she explained. "We are more scared of the wives than the husbands."
Long road to recovery
With hundreds of women and children recently rescued from Boko Haram strongholds in the Sambisa forest, the Nigerian government has set up a programme to help escapees.
Many fled captivity, only to discover that some or all of their family members had been killed by Boko Haram. Others have been cast out from their communities, who now consider them "Boko Haram wives".
Dr Fatima Akilu is in charge of Nigeria's counter-violence and extremism programme. She is currently looking after around 300 of the recently rescued women and children.
"We have not seen signs of radicalisation," she told us. "But if it did occur we would not be surprised."
And she added: "In situations where people have been held, there have been lots of stories where they have identified with their captors."
Dr Akilu said beatings, torture, rape, forced marriages and pregnancies were common in Boko Haram camps.
"We have a team of imams… that are trained to look out for radical ideas and ideology.
"Recovery is going to be slow, it's going to be long… It's going to be bumpy."
As the hunt for the Chibok schoolgirls continues, and questions are raised about what state they will be in if they ever return home, those who have managed to escape are beginning the mammoth task of coming to terms with their experiences.
"I can't get the images out of my head," said Anna, breaking down in tears. "I see people being slaughtered. I just pray that the nightmares don't return."
For others, the nightmare is continuing every day. Miriam is expecting her baby any day now.
"I hope that the baby is a girl," she said. "I would love her more than any boy. I'm scared of having a boy."
Miriam's future is bleak. She is terrified her "husband" will find her and kill her for running away. Her community has also rejected her.
"People consider me an outcast," she said.
"They remind me that I have Boko Haram inside me."
BBC
Human rights group urges Nigeria to repeal its anti-gay law
Nigeria's draconian law against gays has encouraged mob attacks, police torture, evictions and public whippings, according to a report Monday that urges the country's new president to repeal the legislation.
The Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act is "the constitutionalization of hate and hate crimes against LGBTI individuals," writes Bisi Alimi in the report published by the PEN American Center and the New York-based Leitner Center for International Law and Justice.
It calls for President Muhammadu Buhari to end the legalized discrimination of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans-gender and intersex minorities, charging it denies them freedom of expression, association, assembly and other rights guaranteed by Nigeria's constitution and international covenants signed by Nigeria.
The act became law here 18 months ago and calls for punishment of up to 14 years in jail for gay marriage and up to 10 years for organizing or belonging to a gay group.
The law makes it a crime to not report a homosexual to police, threatening the families and friends of gays.
Nigerian groups documented 105 human rights violations against gays in the first 12 months after the bill's passage in January 2014, including assaults, mob attacks and blackmail.
In one case, a police officer pretending to be gay joined a group being counseled about AIDS, arrested 38 men there, tortured them into naming dozens of other allegedly gay men, sparking a witch hunt in the northeastern city of Bauchi.
Many gay people fled Bauchi. Other gays who can afford it have left Nigeria.
Eventually, a Shariah court sentenced five men to public whippings where bystanders demanded the death sentence.
Nobody has been tried under the anti-gay law, but it "has given people the right to exercise jungle justice," said Nigerian writer and professor Unoma Azuah, adding that gays "can't go anywhere to seek justice."
AP
Related story: Video - Nigeria's anti-gay law denounced
The Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act is "the constitutionalization of hate and hate crimes against LGBTI individuals," writes Bisi Alimi in the report published by the PEN American Center and the New York-based Leitner Center for International Law and Justice.
It calls for President Muhammadu Buhari to end the legalized discrimination of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans-gender and intersex minorities, charging it denies them freedom of expression, association, assembly and other rights guaranteed by Nigeria's constitution and international covenants signed by Nigeria.
The act became law here 18 months ago and calls for punishment of up to 14 years in jail for gay marriage and up to 10 years for organizing or belonging to a gay group.
The law makes it a crime to not report a homosexual to police, threatening the families and friends of gays.
Nigerian groups documented 105 human rights violations against gays in the first 12 months after the bill's passage in January 2014, including assaults, mob attacks and blackmail.
In one case, a police officer pretending to be gay joined a group being counseled about AIDS, arrested 38 men there, tortured them into naming dozens of other allegedly gay men, sparking a witch hunt in the northeastern city of Bauchi.
Many gay people fled Bauchi. Other gays who can afford it have left Nigeria.
Eventually, a Shariah court sentenced five men to public whippings where bystanders demanded the death sentence.
Nobody has been tried under the anti-gay law, but it "has given people the right to exercise jungle justice," said Nigerian writer and professor Unoma Azuah, adding that gays "can't go anywhere to seek justice."
AP
Related story: Video - Nigeria's anti-gay law denounced
Monday, June 29, 2015
Video - Nigeria parliament fight for vacant leadership positions
Nigeria's lower parliament was thrown into a rowdy session Thursday, after members' disagreements over the selection of principle officers of the House of Representatives.Members of the ruling All Progressives Congress, which is the dominant party in the House exchanged sharp words and some even threw punches, when they could not agree on who should occupy some top leadership positions in the lower parliament.
President Muhammadu Buhari dissolves state oil company board
Inaugurated on May 29, Buhari came to power on an anti-corruption ticket and a pledge to make the sector that provides 80 percent of government revenues more transparent.
"The president has said he will clean up the oil sector. That is the beginning of the clean up," said the president's spokesman Femi Adesina.
Buhari, who has yet to announce his cabinet, is likely to keep the oil portfolio for himself rather than trust others with the lifeblood of Africa's biggest economy and an industry that has long been mired in corruption scandals.
A presidency source who declined to be named said the management team of the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) was also likely to go in the coming weeks.
"It is significant," Bismarck Rewane, economist and CEO of Lagos consultancy Financial Derivatives. "The whole structure of the NNPC is completely and utterly dysfunctional."
In 2013, then central bank governor Lamido Sanusi said tens of billions of dollars in oil revenues had failed to make it into state coffers while watchdogs say the government may be losing billions more through opaque contracts in which crude oil is swapped for refined imports such as diesel.
The lower house of parliament decided on Wednesday to investigate whether the government had been short-changed by the state oil company scheme to swap crude for the refined products.
Fuel Subsidy next?
"You can't possibly have the same board in place while the place is being investigated and with the intention to change the way things are being done there," said Adesina.
"It's the country's cash cow. It has a bright future. It's just that transparency and accountability have to be introduced into how it operates and this is the beginning of that process."
The NNPC will report to the presidency until a new board is appointed, said Ohi Alegbe, a spokesman for the oil company.
Nigeria's anti-corruption agency has investigated various oil scandals in the past, including a fuel subsidy fraud costing the government $6.8 billion between 2009-2011.
But due to a lack of political will, only a handful were prosecuted.
The president has been advised to end a fuel subsidy programme by a 19-member transition committee formed from his All Progressives Congress (APC), senior party sources have told Reuters.
"The damage NNPC has done to the system, both culturally and economically is significant so it has to be followed up by the removal of subsidies, and restructuring," said Rewane.
Other recommendations include privatising Nigeria's four refineries, which often run below capacity and mean the country imports nearly all the fuel it needs to keep the economy going.
Africa Report
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