EndSARS: A period of unrest in Nigeria from the lenses of three photographers.

      Mathew Oyedele

Shortly after the Nigerian independence celebration in October 2020, Nigerian youth took to the streets in different cities across the country to protest against police brutality under the slogan, 'EndSARS'. SARS (Special Anti Robbery Squad) is a unit of the Nigerian police that is widely known for unlawful arrests, extortion, profiling, kidnapping, torture and killing of Nigerians.

I could not join the protest physically as I was still evaluating the effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on my practice as well as plan for the year when it all began but I joined online by tweeting aggressively. I saw videos and images of louts and thugs attacking the peaceful protesters; of police attacking them with teargas and  water cannons, of police harassing and arresting the protesters, of a politician who came out of his vehicle with a gun and shot in the air with two persons reportedly dead on the spot and many others. I was actively participating online until the 20th of October 2020 when the Nigerian army opened fire on peaceful endsars protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate. I battled with the anger, disappointment and shock for days. I could not concentrate on my work as I found it difficult to conceive or execute any idea on my canvas. I thought about the lives that were lost, the screams of the protesters, and the voices of those that were singing the national anthem at the Lekki Toll Gate shortly before they were silenced.

The Nigerian police and the government saw the protest as an attack against them and did not provide security for the protesters but the protesters provided every necessary thing for themselves. They provided their own security, medical personnel, ambulances for immediate treatments, food, sanitation, mobile phone charging station, help-lines, legal services, mental health assistance and other things necessary for the success of the protest. The organization of the protest was so glaring even as the protest had no leader.

I spoke to three photographers who were part of the protests physically as witnesses to the happenings during the protest about what they saw.

Ifaka Jesse

Ifaka Jesse is a graduate of the University of Benin with keen interest in photography who explores the human body as vehicles for storytelling and personal experiences. His series of photographs on domestic violence was published in 2017 by Timeless magazine and his "Project 600" which captures the freedom and expression of 600 persons in the face of the camera remains one of his keynote projects to date.

Ifaka Jesse, endsars protesters on Lagos-Benin Expressway, Ugbowo, Benin. 

Jesse could not sit at home while Nigerian youth were on the street speaking in one loud voice; demanding for a country that is devoid of harassment, extortion and police brutality. A country where institutions work for the benefit of the citizens and a country where the rule of law stands. He joined the protest because of his personal experiences with the Nigerian police.

"I joined the protest because I'm a youth and a creative who has to explain himself every time I encounter the Nigerian police on the highway. I have witnessed police brutality first hand and this protest is actually the best time to come out and make my voice heard. I decided to document the protest because aside from the fact that I want it known that I participated in the protest, I don't want the memories to fade and that's why I captured them for posterity."

Ifaka Jesse, endsars protesters on Lagos-Benin Expressway, Ugbowo, Benin. 

Jesse added that what he saw during the protest gave him the confidence that Nigeria will be better; "I had experiences that lifted my spirit for a better country. The energy, the spirit, the enthusiasm and the determination was unmatched. I saw youth contributing voluntarily because they were happy for a cause and that gave me all the hope I need that this country will be better."

Onyinye Onyenede

Onyinye Onyenede is a portrait, travel and documentary photographer whose passion for photography is influenced by her love for art. She captures the daily struggle, hustle and bustle of an average Lagosian under her "Good Morning Lagos" series. She sees beauty where others do not.

Onyinye Onyenede, endsars protesters at Festac Town, Lagos.

Onyinye was in Lagos when the protest began and just like many other youth, she joined the protest so as to contribute her quota to the struggle, "I joined the protest due to the need to lend my voice as a citizen of Nigeria. It was a historical event and a sensitive one, documenting it was for the sake of posterity."

Onyinye Onyenede, endsars protesters at Festac Town, Lagos.

She added that the protest made her see the coming together of Nigerians without religious and tribal sentiments, "For the first time in my life, I witnessed unity in diversity. Our ethnic or religious differences were put aside and we came together for the benefit of all. I realized how resourceful Nigerian youth are, in fact we are underestimated. I saw brilliant minds and so many talents that need conducive environment to flourish."

Joshua Airende Akhenebiri

Joshua is a documentary photographer and currently the team lead, BEinspired Media. He is the founding photographer of STREETSENSE Project, a street photography project which focuses on the beauty of the streets, thereby bringing to life sights which are daily ignored, unappreciated and least talked about. He is a graduate of the University of Benin and has exhibited his documentary photographs at TEDxOkumagbaAve 2018 event, an independently organized TEDtalk event.

Joshua was initially indifferent with the endsars protest. He believed there are fundamental and systemic issues that should be addressed and protested but he shuttled between Benin and Warri to document the scenes of the protest when he finally saw a reason to be a part of it. "Personally, I felt the Nigerian state is in what I'll describe in simple terms a shadow of itself. The truth is our leaders have basically failed us and the system has failed us. I didn't initially want to join the protest because I was angry with the whole thing. It was even beyond endsars for me because I felt we had fundamental issues to address. We have systemic problem but I saw the endsars protest as a start-off point for us to address pressing issues."

Joshua Akhenebiri, endsars protesters in Warri, Delta.

Joshua didn't only join the protest; he documented the scenes of the protest in both Benin and Warri as a way of preserving and recording history. "Whether we like it or not we are gatekeepers, we are scribes and for the sake of history which is presently inadequate in this country due to lack of proper documentation, I had to do my bit in the preservation of memories. For me, it is something that is historic; first time in history where Nigerian youth stood up for what is right. I have been into documentary photography for a while but this is different."

Joshua Akhenebiri, endsars protester in Ugbowo, Benin.

At the protest grounds, Joshua saw unity of purpose. He saw how religious and tribal sentiments were relegated to the back for a united voice and struggle. "One of the things I witnessed during the protest is the unity of purpose. First time I would see Nigerians unite beyond sport. Over the years we have had religious and ethnic sentiment to agitations and people would want to water it down, even though some quarters did but for once we could tell that this was something we needed to address. It was a well structured protest and a good one but we need to sit back and strategize and tell ourselves the truth, it's beyond SARS. We need policies that will be of immense help to the common man."