ABUJA — All eyes will be on Nigeria’s Supreme Court on September 25 as it hears the high-profile appeal of Yahaya Sharif-Aminu, a Sufi Muslim musician sentenced to death in 2020 by a Sharia court in Kano State over alleged blasphemy.
Sharif-Aminu was convicted after sharing song lyrics on WhatsApp that some deemed offensive. Following his arrest, an angry mob burned down his family home, sparking national and international outrage.
Human rights groups have condemned the conviction, describing Nigeria’s blasphemy laws as unjust and incompatible with constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression and religion.
In 2021, the Kano State High Court overturned his initial conviction due to the absence of legal representation during the trial. However, it ordered a retrial, keeping the death penalty on the table. An appellate court upheld that decision in 2022, forcing the case to Nigeria’s apex court.
International advocacy group ADF International is backing Sharif-Aminu’s defense, arguing that the case offers the Supreme Court a historic chance to strike down blasphemy laws in northern Nigeria. The group maintains that his conviction violates both Nigeria’s constitution and international human rights treaties.
The case has drawn global attention. The European Parliament has passed resolutions demanding his release, while the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has declared his imprisonment unlawful.
Nigeria is one of only seven countries in the world where blasphemy is punishable by death. A ruling in Sharif-Aminu’s favor could set a legal precedent with far-reaching implications for religious freedom and the future of blasphemy laws in the country.
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