A Borno State High Court has sentenced Christian mother Liyatu Samuel Dawa to 14 years’ imprisonment after she shared her faith with an adult Muslim woman who later converted to Christianity of her own free will.
Honourable Justice A. B. Kumdila imposed the maximum penalty on Count 1 under Section 210 of the Penal Code Laws of Borno State. That provision deals with depriving a parent or guardian of the lawful custody of a child. The court offered no option of a fine.
Dawa, from the Gwoza area of Borno State, advised the adult woman about Christianity. In court the woman testified clearly that she acted entirely of her own free will and that no one forced, induced or cheated her. Despite this evidence the court convicted Dawa.
Before sentencing Dawa pleaded for leniency. She told the court: “I am a mother. I did not intend to cheat the victim. I only advised her. That is all.” The judge rejected the plea.
Her husband, Evangelist Amos Suleman, was previously detained for months in connection with the case before securing bail. He now lives in hiding after receiving death threats from local extremists in Gwoza. He has said he is unable to visit his wife in custody in Maiduguri and has appealed for help from international human rights organisations and religious freedom advocates.
Human rights lawyers and advocates have strongly criticised the judgment. They argue that it conflicts with Section 38 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which guarantees freedom of thought, conscience and religion, including the right to change one’s religion. Legal analysts question how a provision written for child custody offences can apply to a consensual religious conversation between two adults. Gavvs Katiya, Chairman of the Gwoza Refugees Resettlement Initiative, said the ruling “weaponized her Christian conviction” and imposed a punishment far beyond anything justified by Nigerian law.
The case has drawn attention in Borno, a state long affected by the Boko Haram insurgency. Gwoza has experienced heavy displacement, and its Christian population has fallen sharply since 2009. The ruling has prompted calls for the Christian Association of Nigeria and other bodies to support an appeal.
By John James
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