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usman-tahir

Nigeria’s Instagram agony aunt advises women on love, violence, justice

By Kieran Guilbert DAKAR (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – From unrequited love and cheating husbands to domestic violence and marital rape, a Nigerian agony aunt is using Instagram to encourage women to share their stories anonymously, ask for advice and even seek justice in court. Ziya'atulhaqq Usman Tahir receives thousands of comments and likes each day on the photo-sharing app from women in Nigeria's mostly Muslim north, where publicly discussing relationship troubles or family issues outside the home is discouraged. “It is hard for women to speak about their problems in public, but it is time that we start opening up – we have a voice and we shouldn't bottle it up,” the 27-year-old, known as Fatibolady on Instagram, said in an interview over Twitter.