Inibehe Effiong
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Inibehe Effiong (born 21 December 1988), is a Nigerian
human rights lawyer International human rights law (IHRL) is the body of international law designed to promote human rights on social, regional, and domestic levels. As a form of international law, international human rights law is primarily made up of treaties, ag ...
,
activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...
,
social commentator Social commentary is the act of using rhetorical means to provide commentary on social, cultural, political, or economic issues in a society. This is often done with the idea of implementing or promoting change by informing the general populace ab ...
, and litigation lawyer. He is the legal adviser of the African Action Congress.


Early life

Effiong was born in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria in 1988. He attended the Presbyterian Senior Science School and proceeded to the
University of Uyo The University of Uyo is located in Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. The university was formerly known as the University of Cross River State. On 1 October 1991, the Federal government of Nigeria established it as a Federal Univer ...
, where he obtained a Bachelor of Law degree and was
call to bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...
in 2015.


Activism

In August 2020, Effiong filed a charge against the
National Broadcasting Commission The National Broadcasting Commission is the broadcast regulator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The commission was set up on August 24, 1992, by Decree 38 of 1992 later amended as an act of the National Assembly by Act 55 of 1999 and now known ...
for arbitrarily amending the Nigeria Broadcasting Code and increasing the fine for hate speech from NGN 500,000 to NGN 5,000,000. From 5 June 2021, to 13 January 2022, the Federal Government of Nigeria banned Twitter, which restricted its operation in the country. Inibehe filed a suit at the federal high court against the Federal Government of Nigeria, former Minister of Information and Culture,
Lai Mohammed Layiwola "Lai" Mohammed (born 6 December 1951) is a Nigerian lawyer and politician who served as the minister of Information and Culture of Nigeria from November 2015 to May 2023. He is also the former National publicity secretary of the All ...
, and the then Attorney-General and Minister of Justice,
Abubakar Malami Abubakar Malami (born 17 April 1967), is a Nigerian lawyer and politician who served as minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation from 2015 to 2023. Background Abubakar Malami, a Fulani Muslim, was born on 17 April 1967 in ...
, to obtain an order restraining the government from banning Twitter. In March 2023, Effiong criticised Nigeria's State Security Services for adopting the name Department of State Security Services and considered it illegal.


Detention

On 27 July 2022, the Chief Judge of
Akwa Ibom State Akwa Ibom is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South, South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It borders Cross River State to the east, Rivers State and Abia State to the west and north-west, and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. The state ...
, Ekaette Obot, ordered Effiong to be remanded in prison for contempt. While in a correctional facility, he claimed to have been subjected to torture by the prison official, but the claim was refuted by the Nigerian Correctional Service. The imprisonment of Inibehe generated national controversies as human rights organizations,  including Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project and
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...
,
Nigeria Labour Congress The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is an umbrella organization for trade unions in Nigeria. History The Nigerian Labour Congress was founded in December 1978, as a merger of four different organisations: the Nigeria Trade Union Congress (NTUC) ...
called for Inibehe's release. At least 26 civil society organisations calling for Inibehe's release submitted a petition to the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is a department of the United Nations Secretariat that works to promote and protect human rights that are guaranteed under international law and stipulated in the Univers ...
in Geneva. The Nigerian Bar Association threatened to file a petition with the National Judicial Council, and many notable Nigerian lawyers, including Senior Advocates of Nigeria such as
Femi Falana Femi Falana, (born 20 May 1958) is a Nigerian lawyer and human right activist. He is the father of a Nigerian rapper Folarin Falana popularly known as Falz. Falana is a welll-known activist for human rights, always trying to show empathy to ...
and Kayode Ajulo, condemned Effiong's detention. Kayode Ajulo described Effiong’s imprisonment as "an abuse of judicial authority." Human rights lawyer and writer, Professor Chidi Odinkalu, described Effiong as “a courageous, vigorous, and brilliant advocate who is destined to become a phenomenon in Nigeria’s legal profession.”


Award and Recognition

Effiong received several awards and recognitions base on human rights, social justice and democracy in the Nation, such as, 2022 Gani Fawehinmi Outstanding Impact Award.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Effiong, Inibehe 1988 births Living people Nigerian human rights activists 21st-century Nigerian lawyers