• Hausa Edition
  • Podcast
  • Conferences
  • LeVogue Magazine
  • Business News
  • Print Advert Rates
  • Online Advert Rates
  • Contact Us
Thursday, July 3, 2025
Leadership Newspapers
Read in Hausa
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Health
  • Entertainment
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Football
  • Others
    • LeVogue Magazine
    • Conferences
    • National Economy
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Health
  • Entertainment
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Football
  • Others
    • LeVogue Magazine
    • Conferences
    • National Economy
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
Leadership Newspapers
No Result
View All Result

US Honours Nigerian Lawyer Kola Alapinni, 7 Others For Championing Religious Freedom

by Leadership News
1 year ago
in News
US
Share on WhatsAppShare on FacebookShare on XTelegram

Kola Alapinni, a Nigerian human rights lawyer, has been awarded the prestigious U.S. Secretary of State’s International Religious Freedom Award for his unwavering defence of religious freedom in the face of immense risks.

Advertisement

Alapinni’s courageous work includes representing two prominent blasphemy cases in Kano, Northern Nigeria. He provided pro bono legal defense for Omar Farouq Bashir, sentenced to 10 years for blasphemy, and Yahaya Sharif-Aminu, sentenced to death for the same charge. Both sentences were overturned by the Court of Appeals, but Sharif-Aminu’s case remains in limbo.

“The first case involved Omar Farouq Bashir, a minor who was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment by a Kano Shari’a court in 2020 and subsequently released on appeal following Alapinni’s intervention. The second case concerns Muslim singer Yahaya Shariff Aminu who was sentenced to death by the same Kano court and whose appeal is pending with the Nigerian Supreme Court,” according to a statement published on the U.S. Department of State website on Thursday.

 

“In 1999 amid public pressures following the return of civilian rule in Nigeria, 12 northern states introduced a version of Shari’a law that prescribes the death penalty or lengthy prison sentences for blasphemy.

RELATED

Lagos To Enforce Mandatory Health Insurance By 2026

Lagos To Enforce Mandatory Health Insurance By 2026

6 hours ago
Miracle Videos: CAN Under Fire Over Comment Against Prophet Fufeyin

Miracle Videos: CAN Under Fire Over Comment Against Prophet Fufeyin

6 hours ago

 

“When Omar Farouq Bashir and Yahaya Sharif-Aminu were arrested and charged with blasphemy in 2020, lawyers were reluctant to defend them in court because of the threat that violent mobs would attack or kill them and/or burn their homes. Kano has a history of mobs violently reacting to issues that relate to blasphemy.”

 

“Alapinni and his team went to Kano and provided pro bono legal representation to Farouq and Sharif, despite considerable risk to themselves. The death sentence was overturned but Yahaya’s case was remitted to the Sharia Court for a retrial. Following a further appeal, the legal team is now at the Supreme Court of Nigeria seeking to free Yahaya and to challenge the Sharia Penal Code laws in Northern Nigeria,” the report said.

These cases highlight the dangers of blasphemy laws in Nigeria, where 12 northern states have implemented Sharia law with harsh penalties for blasphemy. Alapinni’s courage in taking these cases, despite threats of violence, demonstrates his unwavering commitment to religious freedom and justice.

The U.S. Secretary of State, Molly Phee, commended Alapinni for his “valiant efforts” and stressed the importance of protecting religious freedom around the world.

“Thank you, Kolawole, for your valiant efforts in these cases and for advancing freedom of religion or belief in Nigeria. Freedom of religion or belief is a human right, and we remain committed to its preservation and advancement,” she wrote on her official X account.

 

Other recipients of the Secretary of State’s International Religious Freedom Award include Farid Ahmed, MNZM from New Zealand; Mirza Dinnayi from Iraq, Peter Jacob from Pakistan, Martha Patricia Molina Montenegro from Nicaragua, Lhadon Tethong from (People’s Republic of China – Tibet), Tali Nates from South Africa, and Group of Nine Orthodox Clergy from Lithuania.

The Orthodox clerics are Fathers Georgy Ananiev, Vitalis Dauparas, Aliaksandr Kukhta, Vitalijus Mockus, Georgy Roi, Vladimiras Seliavko, Gintaras Sungaila and Deacons Viktoras Miniotas and John Ovchinnikov.


We’ve got the edge. Get real-time reports, breaking scoops, and exclusive angles delivered straight to your phone. Don’t settle for stale news. Join LEADERSHIP NEWS on WhatsApp for 24/7 updates →

Join Our WhatsApp Channel

BREAKING NEWS: Nigerians can now earn US Dollars from the comfort of their homes with Ultra-Premium domains, acquire them for as low as $1700 and profit as much as $25,000. Click here to learn how you can earn US Dollars consistently.


Tags: Lawyer KolaNigerianUS
SendShareTweetShare
Previous Post

JUST-IN: Supreme Court Affirms Gombe Gov Inuwa’s Victory

Next Post

JUST-IN: Supreme Court Affirms Uba Sani, Idris As Kaduna, Kebbi Govs

Leadership News

Leadership News

You May Like

Lagos To Enforce Mandatory Health Insurance By 2026
News

Lagos To Enforce Mandatory Health Insurance By 2026

2025/07/02
Miracle Videos: CAN Under Fire Over Comment Against Prophet Fufeyin
News

Miracle Videos: CAN Under Fire Over Comment Against Prophet Fufeyin

2025/07/02
Transport Unions Seek Restoration Of Speed Breakers On Ilorin-Jebba Expressway 
News

Transport Unions Seek Restoration Of Speed Breakers On Ilorin-Jebba Expressway 

2025/07/02
NPC Boss Dan’Agundi Cancels Birthday Celebration To Mourn Dantata
News

NPC Boss Dan’Agundi Cancels Birthday Celebration To Mourn Dantata

2025/07/02
Reps Divided Over Bill Seeking To Legalise Cultivation, Use Of Marijuana
News

Reps Unveil Compendium Of 86 Constitution Alteration Bills 

2025/07/02
Firm Launches Drive To Strengthen Enterprise Risk Management Practices Across Africa
Business

Firm Launches Drive To Strengthen Enterprise Risk Management Practices Across Africa

2025/07/02
Leadership Conference advertisement

LATEST

Lagos To Enforce Mandatory Health Insurance By 2026

Miracle Videos: CAN Under Fire Over Comment Against Prophet Fufeyin

Transport Unions Seek Restoration Of Speed Breakers On Ilorin-Jebba Expressway 

NPC Boss Dan’Agundi Cancels Birthday Celebration To Mourn Dantata

Reps Unveil Compendium Of 86 Constitution Alteration Bills 

Firm Launches Drive To Strengthen Enterprise Risk Management Practices Across Africa

Buhari Ill, Now Recovering In UK — Aide

Court Sentences 2 Beninese, Others To 5-yr Jail Term For Trafficking Cocaine

Kano Gov’t Bans Scrap Materials From North-East

Police Rescue Ghanaian, Arrest 3 Suspected Kidnappers 

© 2025 Leadership Media Group - All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Health
  • Entertainment
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Football
  • Others
    • LeVogue Magazine
    • Conferences
    • National Economy
  • Contact Us

© 2025 Leadership Media Group - All Rights Reserved.