The senate has reintroduced a bill seeking to establish a
commission for the prohibition hate speech in the country.
The proposed legislation passed first reading in the upper
legislative chamber after Nelson Ayewoh, clerk of the senate, read
the short title of the bill on Tuesday.
The bill entitled, ‘National Commission for the Prohibition of
Hate Speeches Bill 2019’ is sponsored by Sabi Abdullahi, deputy
majority whip of the senate.
The development is coming a week after the senate introduced a
bill to regulate social media.
The former senate spokesman first sponsored the hate speech bill
in the last assembly, but the bill did not make it through to third
reading.
It is unclear if the new bill is a revision of the old one.
The bill presented to the previous senate prescribed death by
hanging for any person found guilty of any form of hate speech that
results in the death of another person.
It said a crime is committed when: “A person publishes,
presents, produces, plays, provides, distributes and/or directs the
performance of any material, written and/or visual, which is
threatening, abusive or insulting or involves the use of
threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, commits an
offence if such person intends thereby to stir up ethnic hatred, or
having regard to all the circumstances, ethnic hatred is likely to
be stirred up against any person or persons from such an ethnic
group in Nigeria.
“A person subjects another to harassment on the basis of
ethnicity for the purposes of this section where, on ethnic
grounds, he unjustifiably engages in a conduct which has the
purpose or effect of (a) violating that other person’s dignity or
(b) creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or
offensive environment for the person subjected to the
harassment.
“Conduct shall be regarded as having the effect specified in
subsection (1) (a) or (b) of this section if, having regard to all
the circumstances, including in particular the perception of that
other person, it should reasonably be considered as having that
effect.”
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