Poland Confirms Release Of Six Polish Students, Lecturer Detained In Nigeria Over #EndBadGovernance Protests
The ministry said they are in good health and will be returning to Poland this week.
The Polish Foreign Ministry on Wednesday confirmed the release of six Polish students and their lecturer from Warsaw University, who were arrested and detained in Nigeria for alleged involvement in #EndBadGovernance protests.
The ministry said they are in good health and will be returning to Poland this week.
The Polish Foreign Ministry spokesman, Pawel Wronski, who confirmed that the group had their passports, laptops, and other belongings returned, said they were staying on their university campus in Kano state while awaiting their return trip to Poland, according to CBS News.
SaharaReporters had reported that the Department of State Services (DSS) arrested the six Polish students and their lecturer in Kano State in connection with their alleged participation in the August 1-10 nationwide #EndBadGovernance protests across Nigeria.
The students who were in Nigeria to participate in a programme involving learning the Hausa language, were detained at a hotel in Kano for allegedly displaying Russian flags during the protests.
https://saharareporters.com/2024/08/06/breaking-nigerian-authorities-arrest-6-polish-nationals-one-nigerien-over-alleged
But Polish officials, who maintain a strained relationship with Russia, view this as a misunderstanding, as having historical grievances against Russian rule, maintains strong support for Ukraine and is critical of Russian aggression.
Wronski said, “Our students found themselves in an unfortunate situation due to timing and location,” advising travellers to exercise caution when visiting distant areas.
The Polish Foreign Ministry spokesperson noted that the ministry provides travel warnings and advice on its website, including a caution about Kano, describing its political situation as “quite complicated.”
The Kano State Police Public Relations Officer, Abdullahi Haru, who confirmed the arrests of the Polish nationals to SaharaReporters during the protests driven by frustration over a severe cost-of-living crisis and poor governance, had said that the state police command also detained 76 individuals, including a tailor from Niger Republic accused of manufacturing ‘Russian flags’ used by protesters in the state.
SaharaReporters had also reported that some protesters in Kano and some other Northern states allegedly displayed Russian flags and chanted a call for a military takeover of power in Nigeria during the protests.
