General
Protesting Hunger, Nigerians Warn, ‘Life Cannot Continue Like This’
Thousands turned out across Africa’s most populous country despite government attempts to prevent them. Demonstrations have left at least 13 people dead, Amnesty International says.
Nigerians struggling to afford food and earn a living have taken to the streets in nationwide protests that have already left at least 13 people killed, according to Amnesty International.
Witnesses said that four of those were bystanders — gas station attendants eating lunch at their workplace — killed by security forces.
Organizers have called for 10 days of protest in cities across Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, a response to rising inflation and hunger caused by policies that the government argues are necessary to revive what it has called a dead economy.
“Life cannot continue like this,” said Usman Abdulhamid, a protester in the northern city of Kano, where many have been unable to afford food, medicine or even bus fares to the hospital. “People cannot survive without eating.”
The long-planned demonstrations in the West African country drew inspiration from recent huge protests in Kenya, some observers said. Persistent demonstrations there forced President William Ruto to abandon planned tax hikes and fire his cabinet last month.
