Article

Sharia law in Nigeria
Nigeria is Africa's most populous country with a population of 110 million, spread out over 250 ethnic groups in 36 states. The residents in the northern states are predominately Muslim, while those in the south are mainly Christian. Nigeria has received a lot of news coverage in recent years because of the strict Maliki interpretation of Sharia (Islamic) law by courts in some of the northern states. Introduction of the "Sharia Penal Codes" and "Sharia Codes of Criminal Procedure" first came into force in the state of Zamfara on 2000-FEB-27. The states of Sokoto, Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Borno, Kaduna followed suit between 2000-MAY and 2001-FEB. The states of Gombe, Kebbi, Niger and Yobe adopted Sharia law later in 2001. This triggered horrendous levels of inter-religious conflict and mass murder. Over 2,000 people are believed to have died in inter-religious rioting in the Kaduna state alone during 2000-FEB. A further 500 were killed in the state of Jos during 2001-SEP. In violation of the country's constitution, and of the UN Convention Against Torture which the federal government signed in 2001-JUN, some northern Nigerian courts have imposed beheadings, stoning and amputations for what are considered relatively minor crimes elsewhere in the world. Executions have been occasionally performed as punishment for behavior that is not even considered criminal in other jurisdictions.

During 2001 and 2002, there were a flurry of persecutions that resulted in sentences of death by stoning. Nigerian fundamentalist Islamic groups are pressuring the state governments to prove their commitment to Sharia law by carrying out the executions.

Olusegun Obasanjo, a Christian, is the president of Nigeria. He received significant support from Muslims in the north during the last election. He said that "sharia is not a new thing and it's not a thing to be afraid of." His main response to sharia law was to try to persuade northern courts to make their sentences more lenient.

Some commentators have suggested that the harsh sentences under Sharia law are being imposed as "an act of defiance by northern leaders against President ... Obasanjo, whom they accuse of neglect, and against the south as a whole, where Nigeria's economic power lies. [Some] southerners accuse the rulers of the mainly Muslim north of manipulating Islam to divide voters along religious lines — and to distract the people from their state governments' poor performance since military rule ended in Nigeria three years ago." 13

In 2002-MAR, the federal government ruled that sharia law in the north of the country was was illegal under Nigeria's constitution. Justice minister, Godwin Agabi, wrote that "a Muslim should not be subjected to a punishment more severe than would be imposed on other Nigerians for the same offence". He said that the country "cannot be indifferent" to international pressure over recent court sentences. 2

Dalhat S. Abubakar, chief registrar for the Katsina Shariah Court of Appeal, questioned whether Islamic law is being applied correctly in cases of sexual activity outside of marriage. Referring to stoning sentences, he said: "Under normal circumstances they are not supposed to do that. Adultery is not an offense against the state."

Sharia law is not supposed to apply to Christians and other non-Muslims. In theory, the Penal Code for Northern Nigeria remains in effect for non-Muslims. However, Zamfara state requires its female employees to meet Muslim standards of dress regardless of religion. Christians and women of other non-Muslim faiths cannot ride motorcycle taxis or share mass transportation with men. Smaller buses are provided for women, but they are few in number and run infrequently. 9