The Nigerian Bar Association, Enugu Branch, and civil society organisation Spaces for Change have warned against the use of criminal proceedings to intimidate perceived opponents, calling for stronger safeguards to protect civic freedoms and judicial independence.
The warning was delivered during a two-day high-level training programme for judges, judicial officers and state prosecutors in Enugu, where participants examined the relationship between criminal justice, fundamental rights and the protection of civic space.
Representing the NBA Enugu Branch chairman, the branch’s vice-chairman, Perpetual Chime-Okpara, said the existence of a crisis must never become a justification for arbitrary restrictions on constitutional rights.
She stressed that freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association are protected rights, not privileges that government may withdraw at will.
The association urged judicial officers to remain impartial and prosecutors to resist using criminal proceedings against people because of their perceived political or civic positions.
Report records sharp rise in alleged judicially enabled repression
Spaces for Change Executive Director Victoria Ibezim-Ohaeri presented findings indicating a substantial increase in incidents the organisation categorised as “judicially enabled repression” across West Africa.
According to the figures presented at the event, the number of recorded incidents rose from nine between 2017 and 2022 to 70 between 2022 and 2024 — an increase of nearly 700 per cent.
The report identified several practices it said could be used to restrict civic participation, including criminal charges that are allegedly vague or politically motivated, prolonged detention before trial and legal proceedings that place significant pressure on activists and whistle-blowers.
It cited the cases of whistle-blower Nnamdi Emeh, whom the organisation said spent more than 18 months in detention despite being granted bail, and activist Emmanuel Acha, who was reportedly detained for more than 200 days in Ebonyi State.
The report also raised concerns about the use of court orders and criminal charges in disputes involving protests and organised labour.
The findings were presented by the organisation as evidence of a growing regional problem. They were not a judicial determination that every case cited involved unlawful conduct.
Call for anti-SLAPP legislation
The NBA branch and Spaces for Change called for judicial reforms, independent oversight and legislation against strategic lawsuits against public participation, commonly known as SLAPPs.
Such lawsuits are generally understood as legal actions used to burden, intimidate or silence individuals who speak on matters of public interest.
The organisations also advocated sustained engagement with judicial officers, greater investment in digital security for activists and the inclusion of civil society groups in counterterrorism policymaking.
Their position is that national security and public order measures should operate alongside constitutional protections rather than displace them.
Focus shifts to accountability in criminal proceedings
The intervention places renewed attention on the responsibility of prosecutors and judicial officers in cases involving activists, whistle-blowers and other civic actors.
For prosecutors, the concerns centre on the basis for bringing charges and the use of pre-trial detention. For judicial officers, the discussion focuses on impartial adjudication, scrutiny of state applications and the protection of rights during proceedings.
The organisations are calling for institutional safeguards that can prevent criminal justice processes from being used to silence legitimate criticism while allowing lawful prosecutions to proceed.
The warning comes amid wider debates about the protection of civic space and the role of the courts in democratic governance across Nigeria and West Africa.
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