On Friday, Polish diplomats called for the release of seven Polish citizens detained in Nigeria, a situation Warsaw believes stemmed from a misunderstanding amid ongoing protests in the West African nation.
Earlier this week, six Polish students and a lecturer from Warsaw University, who were in Nigeria for a program studying the Hausa language, were detained in Kano State in northern Nigeria.
According to a spokesperson for Nigeria’s secret service, the group was arrested for carrying Russian flags during the protests—a claim Polish officials dispute.
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Deputy Foreign Minister Jakub Wisniewski has urged Nigeria to facilitate the return of the students and lecturer to their families. He provided an update on the diplomatic efforts being made after meeting with Nigeria’s chargé d’affaires in Warsaw.
“During the meeting, I conveyed that I was convinced that the students´ behavior could have resulted from their ignorance of local customs, culture and laws. I appealed for the possibility of their return to Poland, to their homes, where their families are waiting for them,” Wisniewski said.
Wisniewski said he did not believe the students had been carrying Russian flags.
Pro-Russian sentiment is uncommon in Central Europe, where Poland has a history of suffering under Russian rule. Today, Polish society is highly critical of Russian aggression in Ukraine and strongly supports Ukraine.
Deputy Foreign Minister Jakub Wisniewski reported that the seven Poles have been relocated to the capital, Abuja, and are safe. The Polish consul was scheduled to meet with them on Friday afternoon.
Wisniewski also pointed out that Nigeria is currently under a curfew with a ban on demonstrations, following widespread protests across the country in response to high inflation and food shortages.
Some protesters in northern Nigeria have been seen waving Russian flags, a trend that reflects growing pro-Russian sentiments in Africa, particularly in coup-affected countries where military regimes are distancing themselves from the West.
