A prominent Nigerian atheist who was just released after more than four years in prison for blasphemy is now living in a safe house as his legal team fears his life may be in danger.
Mubarak Bala, 40, was sentenced in a court in the northern city of Kano after he surprisingly pleaded guilty to 18 charges related to a controversial Facebook post shared in 2020.
“The concern for my safety is always there,” he told the BBC in an exclusive interview as he tucked into his first meal as a free man.
Nigeria is a deeply religious society and those who may be deemed to have offended religion – whether Islam or Christianity – face shunning and discrimination.
Blasphemy is a crime under Islamic law – sharia – which operates alongside secular law in 12 states in the north. It is also an offense under the Nigerian penal law.
Bala, who renounced Islam in 2014, said there were times during his imprisonment when he felt he “might not get out alive”. He feared he might have been targeted by guards or fellow inmates at the first prison he was in, in Kano, a predominantly Muslim city.
“Freedom is here, but there is also a major threat that I must now face,” he said. “All those years, those threats, maybe they're out there somewhere.”
He could have stayed inside much longer had it not been for an appeals court judge who reduced the original 24-year sentence last year, calling it “excessive”.
As he left the prison in the capital, Abuja, Bala looked tired but cheerful, wearing a white T-shirt, khaki shorts and flip-flops. He appeared with his beaming lawyer by his side.
“Everything is new to me. Everything is new,” he said as he reveled in his newfound freedom.
Bala, an outspoken religious critic, was arrested after a group of lawyers filed a police complaint about the social media post.
He then spent two years in prison awaiting trial before being sentenced in 2022.
At the time, Bala's guilty plea puzzled many, even his legal team, but he stood by his decision, saying it eased the pressure on those who supported him, including his lawyers, friends and family.
“I believe what I did saved not only my life but also the lives of the people of Kano,” he said.
“Especially those who were attached to my case because they are also a target.
His sentence was widely condemned by international human rights groups and sparked a debate about freedom of speech in Nigeria.
His detention also sent shockwaves through Nigeria's small atheist and humanist communities, and his release came as a relief to many, but concerns remain.
“It's a thank you and a no thank you,” said Leo Igwe, the founder of the Humanist Association of Nigeria.
“Thank you for coming out, thank you for being a free man. But no thank you, because it has a dent on it like it has committed a crime. For us at the Humanist Association, he has not committed a crime.”
As for Bala, he is keen to make up for lost time – including getting to know his young son, who was just six weeks old when he was locked up. But he said he had no regrets.
“My activism, my social media posts, I always knew the worst was going to happen. When I made the decision to come out, I knew I could be killed. I knew the dangers and I decided to do it anyway.''