Discursive tropes of youth activism in the tweets of virtual #EndSARS protesters

Social activism is an integral part of democratic governance. Studies have probed the significance of digital affordances in protest studies. However, representation of social actors, via the lens of van Leeuwen's social actor theory, remains underreported. This study examines how van Leeuwen's social actor theory functions in representing social actors in the tweets on the protests. Drawing data from 100 tweets of #EndSARS protesters, 20 tweets were purposively sampled. The specific social actors identified in the selected tweets are the Nigerian government, the Nigerian youths, the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigerian Army. The identified social actors are included and excluded via the resources of van Leeuwen's social actor theory. While passivation, functionalisation, nomination, identification and categorisation are adopted to construct the Nigerian government as an oppressive and murderous agent, activation, nomination and agentive deletion are adopted to represent the Nigerian youths as a resolute social group. Functionalisation, passivation and identification are deployed to depict members of the Nigeria Police Force as criminals while nomination and passivisation project the Nigerian Army as a terrorist group. The study maintains that linguistic and socio-cultural factors interact in shaping power relations among social actors in the tweets on the #EndSARS protests.

This research work examines police brutality and violation of human rights in Nigeria – causes and its implications. The objectives of the study is to establish some cases of police brutality in Nigeria; to investigate the causes of police brutality and violation of human rights in Nigeria; to ascertain the implications of police brutality in Nigeria and to recommend ways to prevent police violence in Nigeria. To be able to achieve these objectives, four research questions were raised, such as, are there testimonies and evidences of human rights violation in Nigeria by the police? What are the causes of police brutality and violation of human rights in Nigeria? What are the implications of police brutality in Nigeria? How can police brutality and violation of human rights be prevented in Nigeria? The study made use of descriptive analytical method to analyze data gotten from secondary source such as academic journals, Newspaper publications, Television documentaries, Internet, relevant textbooks etc. Albert Bandura Social learning theory was adopted in this research, which explains that police, violates people’s right with impunity because they watch as other officers who violate people’s rights are not well sanctioned. The research reveals that police brutality in Nigeria has led to loss of lives, torture of detainees and extortion of suspects. Some of the recommendations are; The Nigerian police commission should strictly investigate and sanction erring officers, there should be a proper police reform, men of the Nigerian police should be subjected to a thorough mental examination before engaging them to service etc.

The police are essential for maintaining law and order, yet they face frequent allegations of human rights violations in Nigeria. This study investigates the Cross River State Police Command, focusing on how their actions contribute to human rights abuses. Key objectives include exploring conditions in police custody, assessing the legal rights of suspects, and examining issues of unlawful arrests and detention. Utilizing Tom Tyler's Procedural Justice Theory (1990), the research employs a descriptive survey design, gathering qualitative data through interviews. Participants, including police officers, legal practitioners, and individuals who have experienced human rights violations in Cross River State, were selected through purposive and cluster sampling from three police stations across different senatorial districts. Data were transcribed and analyzed thematically. Findings reveal pervasive human rights abuses by the police, such as corruption, extortion, brutality, and excessive force, which have eroded public trust and impaired effective intelligence gathering. The study recommends enforcing accountability for corrupt practices and serious abuses like extrajudicial killings and torture, urging stringent legal consequences to dismantle the culture of impunity within the Nigeria Police Force. Received: 20 September 2024 / Accepted: 8 November 2024 / Published: 20 November 2024

Extrajudicial killings attributed to personnel of the Nigerian Police in the conduct of their constitutional duties and responsibilities have become prevalent in recent times. They have been accused of human rights violations, torture, brutality, and unlawful killings of varying proportions. This palpable, yet injurious trend has become a strain on effective policing and security in Nigeria. This paper examines the role of the Nigeria Police Force in extrajudicial killings in the course of discharging their duties since the return to civilian rule in 1999 and how Police reforms can help increase police accountability. The paper was anchored on the organizational theory of police behavior and adopts a qualitative approach by reviewing the literature on extrajudicial killings by the Nigerian police as available in peer-reviewed journal articles, government reports, media reports, newspapers, and international agencies reports. The findings show that the Nigerian Police have been largely complicit in extrajudicial killings. It also shows that organizational deficits such as corruption, lack of investigative infrastructure, lack of human rights training, poor working conditions, poor internal control, and the often-abused Order 237 are major factors that enhance the perpetuation of the incidence of extrajudicial killings by the Police. The study concluded that without a sincere approach toward reforming the Police, extrajudicial killings might become a dominant narrative. Therefore, the paper recommends that a comprehensive security reform of the Nigerian Police should be carried out in conjunction with the private sector and Civil Society Organizations in Nigeria.

With an emphasis on the recurring trends of abuse and the legal frameworks put in place to deal with such misconduct, this study examined the frequency of human rights abuses by the Nigerian Police Force. Despite having constitutional and statutory protections like the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (2015), and the Police Act (2020), as well as being a signatory to important international human rights instruments like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, widespread violations still plague law enforcement operations in Nigeria. Using documented reports from reliable organisations like Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the study identifies and investigates frequent abuses, including extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, torture, unlawful arrests, and excessive use of force. It also looks at the structural causes of these abuses, including judicial incompetence, institutional weakness, corruption, militarised policing culture, and inadequate police welfare. Despite the existence of strong legislative restrictions, the study discovers that a lack of political will and a culture of impunity frequently compromise execution. Through the use of a qualitative methodology and secondary data analysis, the study emphasises how urgently training, accountability systems, law enforcement, and institutional control need to be changed. It concluded with important suggestions for advancing a police force that upholds human rights and fortifying Nigeria's legal and democratic systems. The report adds to the current conversation on protecting human rights and changing Nigerian policing.

With an emphasis on the recurring trends of abuse and the legal frameworks put in place to deal with such misconduct, this study examined the frequency of human rights abuses by the Nigerian Police Force. Despite having constitutional and statutory protections like the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (2015), and the Police Act (2020), as well as being a signatory to important international human rights instruments like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, widespread violations still plague law enforcement operations in Nigeria. Using documented reports from reliable organisations like Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the study identifies and investigates frequent abuses, including extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, torture, unlawful arrests, and excessive use of force. It also looks at the structural causes of these abuses, including judicial incompetence, institutional weakness, corruption, militarised policing culture, and inadequate police welfare. Despite the existence of strong legislative restrictions, the study discovers that a lack of political will and a culture of impunity frequently compromise execution. Through the use of a qualitative methodology and secondary data analysis, the study emphasises how urgently training, accountability systems, law enforcement, and institutional control need to be changed. It concluded with important suggestions for advancing a police force that upholds human rights and fortifying Nigeria's legal and democratic systems. The report adds to the current conversation on protecting human rights and changing Nigerian policing.

Fairclough’s (2009) four stage framework for dialectical-relational CDA is useful in interpreting findings from educational policy research. This chapter explores blending a varied range of tools from Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to provide a multifaceted interpretation of an issue in UK education policy under New Labour (1997–2006). Drawing on a study which examined the social justice implications of change in discourses around exclusion from school during a ten year period, the chapter illustrates the blending of an eclectic range of methods in the analysis of policy texts. The difficulties and advantages of integrating findings from approaches as varied as: Fairclough’s dialectical-relational CDA (implemented both through corpus analysis of keywords and collocations, and qualitative analysis), van Leeuwen’s work on the representation of social actors and Fauconnier and Turner’s blending theory, will be discussed. The chapter also explores the use of overarching concepts, such as the representations of social events and social actors, policy legitimation, and texts as ‘genres of governance’, to draw together disparate analyses into a coherent interpretation.

This study takes a critical discourse analysis approach to investigate the linguistic representation of male and female social actors and construction of gender identities in the Interchange Third Edition. The analytical models used are van Leeuwen's (1996) framework and Halliday's transitivity model (Halliday & Matthiessen, 2004). The findings of this study indicated a differential representation of social actors in that females were portrayed as more prominent, successful, active, independent, expressive and assertive in comparison with males. Generally, it seems that attempts have been made to bring women from margin to the foreground. Moreover, females are associated with high status activities. This challenges traditional values that exclude and demean the value of women in society implying that women are as crucial as men to the community's function.

EndSARS activism and youth participatory performances began in Nigeria in 2020 as a protest and wake-up call to end the incessant police brutality and extra-judicial killings of citizens, especially Nigerian youths. Provocation and discriminating treatment by the Nigerian police were rife at this time, and the actual cause dates back to the successive military era in Nigeria, which eventually ended in 1999. The #EndSARS period, just like the military junta in Nigeria, was characterized by the police’s unlawful arrest of innocent citizens and human rights violations. During this trying period, the Nigerian youths adopted a participatory performance style at various public spaces, using socio-political activism to gain federal government and global attention, which seemed to have addressed pertinent issues that caused the social and political unrest in the country. To this end, this paper examines the nature of the Nigerian youths’ participatory performance, their public activism in relation to social imaginaries and artistic connectivity all over Nigeria. which eventually forced the Nigerian federal government and the world to pay attention to their plight. The adopted theory for this paper is Willmar Sauter’s 2008 concept of theatrical events, and other relevant literature such as journal articles, books, newspapers, magazines, websites, and pictures were consulted.

This article examines the concept of extrajudicial killings and the legal protection available for victims of such heinous acts as gross human rights violations in Indonesia. The study adopts a normative approach, utilizing a comprehensive review of library, secondary, and tertiary legal materials to gather relevant data. The findings reveal that extrajudicial killings manifest in various forms, including genocide, crimes against humanity, enforced disappearance, torture, political assassination, and the excessive use of force, all of which meet the criteria for murder as defined by Law No. 26 of 2000. However, the existing legal protection for victims of extrajudicial killings falls short in fully guaranteeing their rights. The practical implementation of compensation, restitution, and rehabilitation measures encounters significant obstacles. Despite some efforts to address this issue, eradicating extrajudicial killings in Indonesia remains an ongoing challenge. The government must undertake further actions to effectively combat this grave violation of human rights

This paper mostly dwells on certain examples of violation of human rights extremely committed by the law enforcement agency i.e., the police emphasizing the human rights situation in Bangladesh. The utmost negative role of Police has been highlighted here considering the state of human rights regarding the violations especially caused by Extra-Judicial Killings. Furthermore, the Human Rights situation demanded its due concepts with the present justice system. In this study, the police administration has been taken under close scrutiny. In addition to this, an attempt has been made to unveil the relationship between Human Rights and Police Administration. Most importantly, there is a further attempt to uphold the facts of human rights violations, especially in extra-judicial killings mentioning and studying sensational cases too. Finally, in this paper, the researcher has endeavored to bring out the actual situation of violations analyzing the extra-judicial facts in different perspectives in connection with the activities of the law enforcing agencies i.e., the police where this agencies are always on action having the responsibilities to protect and ensure the human rights of the citizens in a democratic and developing country like Bangladesh.

The recent pro-Biafra protest across Nigeria has become an important topic in the news media where it has been constructed in different ways. Existing studies on media construction of protest have examined framing, speech acts and rhetorical strategies. However, adequate attention has not been given to the discursive representation of the 2015 and 2016 pro-Biafra protest. This study therefore examined the discourse strategies and the ideological inclinations of news reports on the 2015 and 2016 Biafra protest. Van Leeuwen’s representation of social actors and Halliday’s systemic functional linguistics (SFL) serve as the theoretical underpinning of the study. Data were purposively drawn from four widely read and circulated Nigerian newspapers, The Punch, The Sun, The Vanguard and The Nation which allocate sufficient space to the coverage of the protests. The period covered was between 2015 and 2016, a period where the protest was most intense in the country. Three representational strategies which include ‘protesters as freedom fighters’, ‘protesters as economic saboteurs’ and ‘protesters as law-abiding citizens’ were discovered in the study. Ten strategies in van Leeuwen’s representation of social actors – passivisation, nomination, association, disassociation, exclusion, aggregation, functionalisation, differentiation, indetermination, collectivisation – were indexed in the representational strategies. These representations were also explicated by four processes which include material, verbal, relational and behavioural. The pro-Biafra protesters were equally represented as violent and unruly whereas the protesters construe themselves as law-abiding citizens and freedom fighters as against being treated as terrorists.

Few days after Nigeria attained the sexagenarian status on October 1, 2020, the country has once again become a subject of unusual discourse both home and abroad. This is due to the protests by disgruntled youths against the activities of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad; a unit of the Nigeria Police Force, which has been accused of brutality, human rights violation, sexual abuse, torture, and extrajudicial killings among others. This study adopts a qualitative approach which draws data from reports of reputable international organisations, juried scholarly articles, working papers, and newspaper articles. The study concludes that the police adopts brutality, abuse, and violations as its tactics due to its inadequate equipment for investigation which makes officers deploy torture as a means of extracting the truth. This is further complicated by an ingrained culture of corruption, inadequate funding, political interference, inadequate personnel, and a pro-elite orientation. As a result, it is recommended that a sincere and comprehensive reform of the police be carried out to improve the welfare of the police; encourage the use of extensive technology, and improve police-community relations.

ABSTRACT: Amnesty International reported that the Myanmar Military in early 2021 carried out executions on the spot without trial or Extrajudicial Killing of more than 1000 Myanmar civilians, after the coup of Aung Sang Su Kyi which turned out to be a crime often committed by government officials in other countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia, and Bangladesh. The purpose of this study is to know and understand Extrajudicial Killing as a violation of human rights and a form of state accountability for perpetrators of Extrajudicial Killing. The research methods that the author uses are normative juridical research methods as well as, legal approach, case approach and conceptual approach. The results that the authors conclude show that Extrajudicial Killing is a violation of human rights as stipulated in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the 1966 International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the 2016 Minnesota Protocol, the 1998 Rome Statute and the 2013 ASEAN Declaration of Human Rights. Extrajudicial Killing is a violation of the right to life which is a human right protected by the UDHR and ICCPR 1966. Based on this, the perpetrators of extrajudicial killings must be held accountable as stipulated in the Articles of States Responsibility on International Wrongful Acts 2001.

Section 377A was a decades-old law introduced in Singapore in 1938, which had made sexual intimacy between gay men, even when consensual, punishable by a maximum sentence of two years in prison. In Aug 2022, in what many considered as a historic moment in Singapore, the Prime Minister announced its repeal. Following the announcement, several related news articles were published by the news outlets The Straits Times and The Independent Singapore. This study, therefore, sets out to undertake a critical discourse analysis of these news articles, focusing on the representation of two groups of social actors, namely the Singapore government and gay people. Guided by a framework that constitutes the theoretical approach of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), Fairclough, Van Dijk and Wodak’s perspectives on power relations as discursive, as well as Van Leeuwen's theories on discourse construction and representations of social actors, the analysis of the textual data reveals distinct patterns in how the Singapore government and gay people are represented. In an area where there is little comparative critical discourse research on how more powerful groups and less powerful groups are represented in news coverage following significant legal and sociopolitical changes in a society, this article aims to deepen readers’ understanding of such discursive patterns and foster media literacy, thereby attaining the practical result of pointing readers in the direction of change – a desired outcome that CDA seeks through its research.