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Non-Release of Investigation Reports Mars Nigeria Human Right Record
- By Williams Ekanem
- Published March 15th, 2010
- Washington File
- Unrated
THE 2009 Country Reports of Human Rights on Nigeria is replete with instances where there were no public release of the investigations by year’s end.
The report was made public late last week in Washington D.C by the Department of State.
Report on Nigeria shows that in many cases of human rights infringements, actions were not taken againts the perpetrators and where committees were set up to investigate wrong doings, there were no follow-through as reports of most committees are still outstanding.
The report on Nigeria read in part for instance, “authorities did not hold police accountable for the use of excessive or deadly force or for the deaths of persons in custody. Police generally operated with impunity in the apprehension, illegal detention, and sometimes execution of criminal suspects. The reports of state or federal panels of inquiry investigating suspicious deaths were not published.”
“According to the December AI report, police officers from the Ketu Anti-Robbery Squad arrested persons attending a December 2008 community party and released only those who could pay a fine. One of the detainees unable to pay died after being beaten with an iron bar and rifle butt.”
“In April, after receiving a second petition from the Osun State Civil Societies Coalition against Corruption and Rights Violations, a team of police investigators visited Oshogbo to examine three extrajudicial killings that occurred in 2008 and seven, which occurred in prior years. The investigators had not released a report on their findings by year’s end, despite multiple petitions.”
The report went to state among others that, “despite police pledges to fully disclose details of the prosecution into the October 2008 shooting death of Gabriel Mordi at a checkpoint in Agbor, Delta state, police officers responsible for the killing were quietly redeployed to other locations during the year.”
“Police and military personnel used excessive and sometimes deadly force to quell civil unrest, property vandalism, and interethnic violence.”
For example, it pointed out that on October 19, in Biu, Borno state, two of 100 motorcycle riders protesting the enforcement of required crash helmets were killed during a confrontation with police; several riders also were injured. A mob retaliated by burning Biu government offices.
On the positive side however, the report stated that “there were no reports of political prisoners or detainees; however, persons arrested in previous years for alleged treason remained in detention at year’s end.”
However, the report added that during the year journalists were killed. For example, on September 20, unknown assailants in Lagos shot and killed Bayo Ohu, a journalist with The Guardian when he opened his front door. The assailants took only his laptop and cell phone, generating speculation that his killing was linked to his work as a journalist. No arrests had been made in the case by year’s end. There were no developments in the following 2008 killings of journalists: the August killing by unknown assailants of Paul Abayomi Ogundeji and the Octoberkilling by six unknown assailants of Eiphraim Audu.
The report was made public late last week in Washington D.C by the Department of State.
Report on Nigeria shows that in many cases of human rights infringements, actions were not taken againts the perpetrators and where committees were set up to investigate wrong doings, there were no follow-through as reports of most committees are still outstanding.
The report on Nigeria read in part for instance, “authorities did not hold police accountable for the use of excessive or deadly force or for the deaths of persons in custody. Police generally operated with impunity in the apprehension, illegal detention, and sometimes execution of criminal suspects. The reports of state or federal panels of inquiry investigating suspicious deaths were not published.”
“According to the December AI report, police officers from the Ketu Anti-Robbery Squad arrested persons attending a December 2008 community party and released only those who could pay a fine. One of the detainees unable to pay died after being beaten with an iron bar and rifle butt.”
“In April, after receiving a second petition from the Osun State Civil Societies Coalition against Corruption and Rights Violations, a team of police investigators visited Oshogbo to examine three extrajudicial killings that occurred in 2008 and seven, which occurred in prior years. The investigators had not released a report on their findings by year’s end, despite multiple petitions.”
The report went to state among others that, “despite police pledges to fully disclose details of the prosecution into the October 2008 shooting death of Gabriel Mordi at a checkpoint in Agbor, Delta state, police officers responsible for the killing were quietly redeployed to other locations during the year.”
“Police and military personnel used excessive and sometimes deadly force to quell civil unrest, property vandalism, and interethnic violence.”
For example, it pointed out that on October 19, in Biu, Borno state, two of 100 motorcycle riders protesting the enforcement of required crash helmets were killed during a confrontation with police; several riders also were injured. A mob retaliated by burning Biu government offices.
On the positive side however, the report stated that “there were no reports of political prisoners or detainees; however, persons arrested in previous years for alleged treason remained in detention at year’s end.”
However, the report added that during the year journalists were killed. For example, on September 20, unknown assailants in Lagos shot and killed Bayo Ohu, a journalist with The Guardian when he opened his front door. The assailants took only his laptop and cell phone, generating speculation that his killing was linked to his work as a journalist. No arrests had been made in the case by year’s end. There were no developments in the following 2008 killings of journalists: the August killing by unknown assailants of Paul Abayomi Ogundeji and the Octoberkilling by six unknown assailants of Eiphraim Audu.
