Why the Kano Hisbah Arrested Amani Ishaq Over Her TikTok Dances
Kano State’s Islamic morality enforcers have arrested Amani Ishaq, a popular TikTok creator, and two other women over dance videos the authorities say offend Islamic teaching and public morals, the latest in a string of cases in which the state’s Hisbah Board has pursued social media personalities in northern Nigeria.
Dr. Mujahid Aminuddeen, the board’s deputy commander, confirmed the arrests in a statement on Saturday. He identified the other two women as Hauwa Khamis and Sa’adatu Muhammad, and said all three were taken before Magistrate Court No. 5 on Court Road in Kano. The statement did not spell out the charges, say whether bail had been granted, or give a date for the next hearing.
Trending Now!!:
The board singled out Ms. Ishaq, accusing her of posting dance clips on TikTok that it considers contrary to proper upbringing and the teachings of Islam. Hisbah officials described the videos as offensive to public morality and inconsistent with the values the board enforces in the state.
They said the footage was still under review and that investigators would decide on the next course of action once that work was done. The board gave no details of the content attributed to Ms. Khamis or Ms. Muhammad, and no public response from any of the three women had been reported. The allegations against them remain unproven.
The Hisbah Board was created in 2001 to enforce Sharia provisions in Kano, one of 12 northern Nigerian states where Islamic law operates alongside the common law. Kano is among the states, along with Zamfara, where the Hisbah rests on state law, with a statutory board, state-wide powers and public funding that pays thousands of staff.
Human Rights Watch has long questioned the group’s methods, noting in a 2004 report that most members have little formal education and no training in law enforcement, arrest procedure or evidence gathering.
Under a common understanding of its powers, the Hisbah is expected to arrest offenders but not to enter private homes or spy on people on suspicion alone. Its record includes the disruption of a wedding party in 2003 over music and the 2018 arrest of several women accused of planning a same-sex wedding.
Social media has become a growing focus. Murja Ibrahim Kunya, one of the best-known TikTok personalities in the region, was arrested after the board announced a manhunt for six creators it accused of ignoring orders to tone down their content, and was accused of vulgar language in videos watched by millions. A Kano High Court later ruled that the Hisbah had no power to arrest, investigate or prosecute her, saying the board’s role was to preach.
Last October, a Kano court ordered the Hisbah to arrange the marriage, within 60 days, of two TikTok personalities, Idris Mai Wushirya and Basira Yar Guda, after they posted videos of themselves kissing. A court spokesman said the pair were so in love that they were showing their romance on TikTok.
The pace of cases has quickened in recent months. In August, the board arrested Namadina Tudunwada, a TikTok creator, over a video comparing the cost of marriage with the cost of fornication, which it said encouraged young people toward immorality.
In September, it detained Ukasha Yahaya, a 27-year-old known online as UK International, over videos showing him dancing, hugging and carrying women, as well as swimming and bathing scenes. Mr. Yahaya, a native of Zamfara State who lives in Abuja, apologized and promised not to repeat the videos, and the board said he would be charged in court once investigations ended.
Mr. Aminuddeen has repeatedly warned content creators against publishing material that could be read as promoting immorality.
Kano’s authorities have also moved to regulate online content more broadly. The Hisbah Board and the Kano State Censorship Board, which oversees the Hausa-language film industry known as Kannywood, have set up a joint committee to build a system for policing social media.
The censorship board’s executive director has argued that TikTok has enabled indecent behavior by influencers, many of them outside the film industry, and that it damages the moral upbringing of children.
Ms. Ishaq‘s case is continuing, and the board has not said what action it will take.
