The Suppression of Symbolic Expression and Political Activism Under Democratic Rule in Nigeria

This article makes a critical analysis of the suppression of political activism and criticism in Nigeria between May 29, 1999 and May 29, 2007, the first eight-year period of civil democracy that followed the end of years of military autocracy. The paper systematically catalogs the institutional measures – mostly arbitrary actions and extra-legal measures – utilized by the state to suppress political activism and criticism in the civic arena. It describes the consequences of the government’s utilization of those institutional measures. The article makes a critical analysis of the pragmatic factors that help us to understand why the government sought to suppress political activism and criticism – both protected forms of symbolic expression. Key Words: Human Rights, Freedom of Expression, Political Expression, Political Repression, Political Activism JCMRJournal of Communication and Media Research, Vol. 4, No. 1, April 2012, 15 – 30.