Understanding Nigeria’s #ENDSARS Movement One Year Later
In October of 2020, protests sparked in Nigeria both in the streets and digitally to demand the disbandment of Nigeria’s Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS). The protest was provoked by a single event, a video of an unjustified killing by SARS circulated on social media, but is also the culmination of decades of police brutality in Nigeria. The movement rocked the nation and this month marks its one year anniversary, bringing into question whether or not the protests delivered any substantial reform to Nigeria’s policing.
In order to understand the protest movement, it is first important to understand the uprising of the SARS. The unit was formed in 1992 with the intent of fighting armed robbery and serious crimes. At their beginning, they were primarily tasked with monitoring communications and organizing arrests of criminals. The unit initially operated in Lagos, a region facing rising crime at the time. The unit has since expanded to all states within Nigeria, becoming ubiquitous throughout the nation. The responsibilities of the unit have also expanded over time, taking on a greater role than it had been designed for.
The umbrella organization which houses SARS is the broader Nigerian Police Force (NPF). However, SARS had operated almost independently from the NPF in its early years, carrying out their operations in plain clothing without any identifiable relation to the government force. Since its conception and increased media attention, SARS has become less distinguishable from the NPF. Although SARS has always been a part of the police force, they have operated more closely with each other as SARS operations expanded beyond the unit’s initial intents. As a result of this, the unit has also been more accountable to NPF as a whole.
With the expansion of the unit came the civil rights abuses that are the subject of this years #ENDSARS protests. SARS has been known to extort, torture, and use traditionally unlawful methods to produce information from civilians. Additionally, SARS has also carried out unlawful executions and targeted journalists. A report of SARS detention centers done by Amnesty International found instances of abuse to be rampant. Prisoners reported being beaten to produce confessions, denied access to medical care and counsel, and that Nigerian officials would deny that the injuries were actually sustained in the centers.
Although last October’s protest targeted SARS, protestors had also demanded reforms for the entirety of Nigerian Police. A series of proposed reforms to the Nigerian Police force have come and gone, none of them becoming concrete pieces of legislation or successful in satisfying any major demands for reform. Following the beginning of the #ENDSARS protests, the Nigerian government was forced to disband the unit on October 11th, 2020. Unfortunately, just days after this Nigeria was faced with one of its worst instances of police brutality when police shot and killed at least 12 protestors at the Lekki toll-gate in Lagos. This caused protests to dispel quickly from fear of police retaliation.
Following the incident, the government of Nigeria ordered all of its states to look into the abuses and create panels of inquiry. Some states did not comply with the request and none have made any of the findings available to the public. Furthermore, many panels have been discontinued and none have brought about justice for victims of SARS who sought it.
The movement has gotten lots of international sympathy. Both the United Nations and the European Union have condemned the brutality of the Nigerian Police and demanded immediate reform to the NPF. Celebrities and athletes alike have made similar statements towards the unit, and protestors often took to US and British embassies to seek support. While this has helped to spread awareness of the situation, and demonstrates the willingness by international actors to strike down on instances of domestic abuse, it has accomplished little more than garnering more attention.
The road to concrete reform will be incredibly difficult for Nigeria. The nation has seen other online movements begging for change or help from the government, such as #BringBackOurGirls after the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls by terrorist group Boko Haram. Nigeria currently lacks the mechanisms of change that allow citizens to influence their government, and this is one reason this movement failed. During this particular protest leaders were taken under arrest or had their bank accounts frozen, and the government was able to stifle any dissent.
Some protestors feel that police brutality will “likely reduce drastically.” However, in June 2021, the Nigerian government banned Twitter, whose CEO Jack Dorsey was a supporter of the #ENDSARS movement given Twitter’s use as a mobilization tool during its conception. Ultimately, no legislative or internal reform has happened with respect to Nigerian policing, and the practice of abuse by police continues to rage on. Now, as the movement has dwindled and efforts to make reparations on behalf of the government have halted, the notion of a reformed police force remains a goal not yet realized.
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