Nigeria – Shooting in Port Harcourt

12 October 2009, Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Security forces open fire on a group of protesters. Linus Johns is asleep in his house.

Linus had come to Port Harcourt to find work. He had said goodbye to his parents and had promised to send them money. But on 12 October 2009, three months after he arrived, he was shot in his home by security forces. Today, he can barely walk and he lost his job in the factory.

The security forces who shot Linus were accompanying a group of civil servants who wanted to inspect houses which were about to be demolished. They were stopped by a group of residents who protested against the demolition. Two armoured vehicles drove right into the crowd, the soldiers opened fire. At least one person was killed, twelve were seriously injured.

Outside, residents talk about the horrors of 12 October. They are still in shock. Linus is lying on his bed in the dark. ‘I’m trading my sickness’, he sings, ‘I’m trading my pain.’

Read more about the shooting of 12 October 2009.

To learn more about Linus and forced evictions in Port Harcourt please visit the website of CMAP.

CMAP is a collaboration with communities whose rights are routinely violated. CMAP shares skills and technologies to allow communities to use cinema to record their experiences, tell their stories and change their lives.