Nigeria Issues Travel Warning Amidst “Far-Right Thuggery” in the UK
The West African country’s foreign ministry has urged Nigerians living in or traveling to the U.K. to “avoid political processions and protests, rallies or marches,” due to demonstrations that it says have been “unruly.”
Far-right activists hold an 'Enough is Enough' protest on August 02, 2024 in Sunderland, England, with violent actions reportedly targeting muslims and immigrants.
The Nigerian government has issued a warning alert to citizens living in or planning to travel to the U.K. The country’s foreign affairs ministry shared the warning following a weekend of unrest and disorder across several major cities in the U.K., after rioters attacked asylum seekers and destroyed properties, including businesses owned by immigrants and people of color.
In the statement signed by the ministry’s spokesperson, Amb. Eche Abu-Ode, Nigerians in or traveling to the U.K. are being advised to “avoid political processions and protests, rallies or marches,” amongst several other measures.
“Demonstrations by far right and other extra-parliamentary groups in parts of the U.K. in recent weeks have been large, and in some instances unruly,” the ministry said.Nigeria is one of several countries, including fellow former British colonies Australia and Malaysia, that has issued warnings to their citizens living in or traveling to the U.K. The rioting was sparked by misinformation surrounding the stabbing deaths of three young girls in Stockport, northwest England, last week.
According to reports, far right rioters were spurred by false news that the suspected stabber was an immigrant. The British police have said the suspect is British-born. Leaning into racist, anti-muslim and anti-immigrant rhetorics, the rioters attacked the shelters where immigrants are housed, openly attacked people of color as seen in viral clips across social media, and even injured officers in confrontations with the police.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the violent unrest, calling it “far right thuggery.” These riots are coming on the back of an election where the Conservative Party lost the parliament majority in a landslide election, after the former government made evicting asylum seekers a primary aim of its agenda. The Starmer-led government ended the plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, a decision also helped fuel the violent agitations over the weekend.
Quoting a viral video post on X relating to the riots, Kenya’s Principal for Foreign Affairs, Korir Sing’Oeiwrote, “A deeply worrying situation in the U.K. Kenyans are urged to exercise caution.” It’s not exactly an official travel advisory statement, but it works similar to Nigeria’s, in the sense that African countries don’t usually issue travel advisories during protests in western countries, especially when it’s their former colonizers.
Interestingly, both Nigeria and Kenya have been grounds for protests in recent months. Over the weekend, police in several states attacked protesters demonstrating against bad governance and the harsh economic conditions in Nigeria, with Amnesty International reporting that at least 13 people were killed by police and dozens were arrested. The ongoing Nigerian protests were inspired by the demonstrations in Kenya, which started as a pushback against a new finance bill and evolved into demands for better leadership.