Nigeria hails its removal from US list of violators of religious freedom

By Ibrahim Garba Shuaibu

KANO, Nigeria (AA) - Nigeria commended the US on Thursday for removing it from its list of countries that violate religious freedom and acknowledging its efforts in operating a liberal, free and multi-religious state.

In a statement, Information Minister Alhaji Lai Mohammed reiterated his remarks when Nigeria was put on the list last year that the country does not engage in violations of religious freedom or have a policy of religious persecution.

He said Nigeria jealously protects religious freedom as enshrined in its constitution and takes seriously any infringements in that regard.

Lai Mohammed said the US did the right thing by removing Nigeria from the list, calling the decision fair and just.

”We will continue to ensure that every Nigerian has the freedom to practice his or her own chosen religion or belief without hindrance,” the minister said

The authorities also commended the country’s religious leaders who have been working to ensure religious harmony.

The US last year placed Nigeria and six other countries on its special watch list of states it said had engaged in or tolerated severe violations of religious freedom.

Meanwhile, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) said it found it inexplicable that the US State Department did not re-designate Nigeria as a “country of particular concern, instead treating it as a country with no severe violations of religious freedom.

“The USCIRF is disappointed that the State Department did not adopt our recommendations in designating the countries that are the worst violators of religious freedom,” said USCIRF Chair Nadine Maenza in a statement.