On the morning of 1 August, a Nigerian journalist, Yakubu Mohammed, was attacked in Abuja while covering the #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protest in Moshood Abiola Stadium, Abuja. Mr Mohammed, a PREMIUM TIMES reporter, was beaten, harassed and wounded in the head while hitting him with the butt of a gun before they let him go, despite his clear identification as a journalist with a press jacket. His offence was performing his duty at the protest ground.
The Reporters Without Borders 2024 World Press Freedom Index noted the alarming trends for violence against the press during protests, election periods and the increasing political control of the media in several African countries, especially Nigeria. Like Yakubu, at least 30 other journalists have faced similar attacks while covering the #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protests against the rising cost of living and insensitivity of the government, according to Press Attack Tracker (PAT). This is apart from journalists who escaped death or serious injuries but who left the protest ground at Moshood Abiola Stadium with pockmarked vehicles when security forces shot at them and peaceful protesters on Saturday.
The Press Attack Tracker is a civic technology tool of the Centre for Journalism and Innovation Development . It tracks, verifies and documents incidents of press freedom violations in Nigeria. PREMIUM TIMES collated some of the incidents of press freedom violations between 31 July (Thursday) and the third day on Saturday, as repo.