The Human Rights Committee of the
United Nations (UN) has accused Nigeria under the leadership of President
Muhammadu Buhari of not doing enough to stem the high level of corruption,
killings, human rights violations among others by various agencies of
government.
This was contained in a report
released at the conclusion of its review of the implementation of the
provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in
Nigeria.
The UN also queried the Federal
delegation led by the Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations
Office at Geneva, Amb. Audu Ayinla Kadiri, on the killings of members of the
Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN)
popularly, acknowledged and known as Shiites.
The Committee Experts, Chaired by
Ahmed Amin Fathalla, stressed that the purpose of the meeting was to find
common ground so that the committee may formulate recommendations aiming to
help the Government to move forward.
The full report is found below…
On liberty and security of
persons, Experts sought clarifications on arrests carried out in the absence of
a warrant and the related regulations and safeguards. Lengthy pre-trial
detentions remained a problem, and information on this matter was needed.
Experts requested assurances that all religious minorities enjoyed freedom of
religion, in all states, as the Committee had received reports about Christians
in northern states who faced discrimination. How did the Government respond to
hate speech and incitements to violence? It was good that Nigeria had an
ex-ante process for judicial review. There were reports that mobile phone
surveillance was extensive in Abuja. What measures were in place to prevent
abuse in this regard? There had been reports of violence occurring in relation
to the elections and observers had expressed concerns about the turnout rate,
which might be related to internal displacement issues. Could the delegation
comment on these issues? Experts asked for information on women’s
representation in the north and the election-related bill that had been vetoed
by the President.
On hate speech, Experts asked
about its legal definition and safeguards preventing overly broad
interpretation. Could the delegation comment on concerns that libel accusations
had been used to harass journalists who were critical of the Government? Could
it also clarify whether current regulations related to peaceful assemblies
required prior authorization by authorities? Were there any plans to adopt
comprehensive minority rights protection measures, including on linguistic
rights?
Replies by the Delegation
AUDU AYINLA KADIRI, Permanent
Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that
answers to some of the follow-up questions had already been provided during the
response to the first round of replies. Furthermore, some of the other
questions were really unexpected. He urged the Committee to exercise due
diligence regarding the veracity of the information that it had received. Some
questions posed by Experts should not even have been brought to the delegation.
On arrests, the delegation said a
person, after being arrested, was taken to the police station, where he had the
opportunity to give an account of what had happened. To kill a fly, one needed
not to use a hammer, and this principle guided the use of force in the country.
Terrorists had been tried in public trials that were broadcast live on
television. Each of them had legal representation and went through the judicial
rituals even if they had admitted to their crimes. All public officials were
required to declare their assets to ensure no one was living above their means.
The Chief Justice was not able to comply with this requirement and retired
voluntarily. The National Judicial Council was the body that rendered final
decisions on potential applicants’ fitness to be appointed as judges.
Politicians did not influence this process.
On the military’s alleged
detention of a large number of women, Mr. Kadiri said that to the best of the
delegation’s knowledge, this was not true. On the alleged arrests and
persecution of bloggers, he said he was not aware of this.
The delegation said that no
journalists had been detained. The harassment of journalists only existed in
the realm of imagination. There was a free press in Nigeria. Certainly, the
Government had electronic media outlets, but there were also several media outlets
that were privately owned. In the capital, there was even a private radio
focusing on human rights called Human Rights Radio & TV.
Mr. Kadiri said that, as a
Nigerian, and having hosted a trade union leader at his residence just a few
days ago, he was very surprised to hear allegations that trade unionists were
being arrested and killed in his country. The Committee had to exercise due
diligence with regard to the information that was given to it about the
situation in Nigeria.
On detention conditions, the
delegation said that prisoners had free access to education, and quite a number
of them had graduated from the National Open University of Nigeria, which had
extended its academic activities to prisons. There were Ph.D. candidates in
Nigerian prisons. In an effort to decongest the prisons, the Government had
constructed a brand new detention facility. In all the prisons, especially
those in urban areas, new cell blocks were being constructed. The prisons
mentioned by the Committee were exceptional cases, located in rural areas, and
were now almost empty. Information on the number of inmates held in Nigerian
prisons would be provided at a later time. Prisoners in Nigeria were also
trained in certain trades such as carpentry and tailoring to ensure they
enjoyed good living conditions after their release.
The issue of housing was
overblown, said Mr. Kadiri. Nigeria was developing, and urbanization required
that slums be demolished. In some of these areas, people had been living in
conditions that were not conducive to their health. They had been given
notification and provided with alternatives. The Government had taken care of
the displaced persons, alternative accommodation had been provided to them,
their children had been enrolled in schools, and livelihoods had been restored,
the delegation assured.
Turning to the issue of freedom
of religion, the delegation stated that the law mentioned by the Committee was
about open preaching. It did not target Christians, but rather everyone who
sought to preach outside of places of worship. The law regulated the use of
public space, and sought to prevent the propagation of ideas conducive to
radicalization. On surveillance, in Nigeria, there was no targeting of people
apart from the normal activities by law enforcement agencies to detect and
prevent criminal activities. Human rights activists were treated like ordinary
Nigerians who were all subject to the law of the land.
Mr. Kadiri, replying to questions
on elections, emphasized that the Electoral National Commission was
independent. The President had already left to go to his village to vote and
was angry when the Commission decided to postpone the elections. Internally
displaced persons voted in large numbers in camps; it was not true that they
had not been allowed to vote. By and large, the election and its outcome were
considered fair and reflective of the will of the people, despite isolated
incidents, he added.
The delegation said that, in
preparing for the last elections, the Government had strategized to increase
the representation of women. This work had started in 2017. Prominent leaders
of civil society organizations and leading political parties had been
consulted. Programmes had been rolled out to address violence that deterred
women from participating in political life. Presently, efforts were being made
to appoint more women in critical decision-making positions. Furthermore, the
turnout of female voters, especially in the northwest, had been impressive.
There had also been female candidates that had put their names forward to
become president and vice-president, something which had never happened before.
On the right to assembly, the
only thing that was required was notifying the police, and this was done to
ensure the police could provide protesters with protection. There had already
been action taken prior to the crime bill to address corruption and related
offences. The Government had taken measures to forestall illicit financial
transaction, and Nigeria had been certified as fulfilling the requirements of
the United Nations anti-corruption convention. It was also a member of the
Egmont Group. Going forward, Nigeria hoped that international cooperation would
improve on these issues. On maternal health, efforts were deployed to build
community health centres and provide free medical care to pregnant women.
Mr. Kadiri said there was no
structural discrimination against ethnic minorities in Nigeria. Nigeria was a
federation of states, not ethnic groups. States did not use ethnic or tribal
origins in their social engineering. The existence of three levels of
government was enshrined in the constitution. It was not even a matter to be
discussed here; nobody would run a modern state based on ethnic groups.
Committee Experts said the
remarks about due diligence were out of place, as Experts had had to do a lot
of work and research in the absence of a report, and given that the State party
had only replied to some of the Committee’s questions.
Concluding Remarks
AUDU AYINLA KADIRI, Permanent
Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said that the
dialogue had been interesting and illuminating and the delegation had done its
best to answer the Experts’ questions. “All is well that ends well,” he said,
stressing that the delegation and the Committee shared a common purpose. The
delegation looked forward to cooperating further with the Committee.
AHMED AMIN FATHALLA, Committee
Chairperson, thanked the delegation. He recalled that parties to international
legal instruments had to abide by their obligations. There was no need to make
references to other States, as the focus was on the report at hand. It had been
a fruitful debate, he stated.”
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