Amnesty International Nigeria has intensified calls for greater media accountability amid deepening concerns over the country’s deteriorating human rights climate.
At a two-day workshop in Enugu, over 60 journalists from the South-East and Delta State were trained in “Human Rights-Centred Journalism” to strengthen ethical reporting and amplify marginalized voices amid growing state impunity.
Speaking at the training, Amnesty International Nigeria’s Communications Officer, Michael Christian, said the initiative was informed by the alarming increase in abuses and the persistent lack of empathy and gender sensitivity in reportage.
He noted that although many media reports remain factually accurate, they often fail to reflect the human cost of rights violations or preserve victims’ dignity.
Delivering a paper on Press Freedom and the Law, Associate Professor of Law at Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Chijioke Agbo, accused the political elite of “blatant disregard for democratic norms and citizens’ rights”, warning that continued attacks on civil liberties were undermining Nigeria’s democratic foundations.
He also called for the repeal of the Public Order Act of 1979 and criticised the Cybercrimes Act as a “weapon of state intimidation” deployed to silence dissent and muzzle the media. However, Agbo cautioned that source protection, while vital, remains a privilege under law, urging journalists to apply discretion in handling sensitive material.
In another session, law lecturer at the University of Calabar, Anne Agi, stressed the need for gender-sensitive reporting, particularly on gender-based violence (GBV). Her presentation, titled Journalism with a Gender Lens: Protecting Lives, Shaping Narratives, urged reporters to avoid sensationalism and dehumanising framing.
“Survivors are not case studies; they are people,” she said. “Reporting should restore dignity, not destroy it.”
Other facilitators — including Dr Kabiru Danladi, Hajiya Zainab Okino and John Omilabu — led discussions on media ethics, safety, and sustained rights-based advocacy.
Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Delta State Council, Churchill Oyowe, who participated in the training, described it as timely at a period of increased censorship and targeted attacks on journalists.
“This programme has reawakened our professional conscience. We are committed to practising journalism that defends human rights and promotes accountability,” he said.
