United States lawmakers have asked President Joe Biden to re-designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) for violations of religious freedom.
On Tuesday, lawmakers brought up a resolution urging the state department to put Nigeria on the annual CPC list.
In a statement, Chris Smith, the New Jersey representative, said Christians bear the brunt of the persecution in the country.
He said the Biden administration’s decision to exclude Nigeria from the list was an “unjustified decision”, adding that the re-inclusion was a “necessary fight to protect victims of religious persecution”.
Read Also: US Law Enforcement Searches Biden’s Delaware Beach Home, Says Lawyer
“Last year alone, 5,014 Christians were killed in Nigeria — accounting for nearly 90% of Christian deaths worldwide as well [as] 90% of Christian kidnappings across the globe,” Smith said.
“The Biden administration must act immediately and redesignate Nigeria as a country of particular concern to mitigate this alarming and growing threat to religious liberty.”
French Hill, the Arkansas representative, described Biden’s removal of Nigeria from the list as a “political move”.
“In 2020, Nigeria was a country of particular concern (CPC). Despite little having changed in Nigeria’s treatment of religious freedom since then, the Biden Administration continues to leave Nigeria off the CPC list for political gain,” Hill said.
“This resolution sends an important message to the Biden administration and the government of Nigeria that the US Congress sees what is happening there and will continue to speak out against the ongoing violence and the government’s inadequate response.”
It would be recalled that Nigeria was first designated as a CPC in December 2020 by the US department of state due to frequent religious conflicts and attacks by the Boko Haram sect.
But the country was taken off the list in November 2021, a move that angered many human rights organisations.
