TheNewsGuru

Tag: Amnesty International

  • Amnesty International wants release of Chadian activist sentenced for Facebook post

    Global movement of more than 7 million people who take injustice personally, Amnesty International, has petitioned the government of Chad to release Tadjadine Mahamat Babouri, popularly known as Mahadine.

    TheNewsGuru reports Mahadine, an online activist and father of seven, was in September 2016 snatched from the street in broad daylight by a group of men believed to be intelligence officers for posting videos on Facebook.

    In the videos, Mahadine accused the Chadian government and people close to it of corruption and misusing public money. He also complained about the economic crisis gripping the oil-dependent nation which is suffering from falling oil prices worldwide.

    Making and posting the videos was a bold thing to do in Chad where speaking out like this carries serious consequences.

    Mahadine says he was beaten, electrocuted and chained up for weeks, and moved from one prison to another.

    His wife and children were told nothing of his whereabouts and had to track him down themselves.

    Mahadine now faces a life sentence, and faces charges including threatening national security.

    “He is gravely ill, having caught tuberculosis in prison. He needs urgent medical attention. He should not have to spend the rest of his life locked up for courageously expressing his opinion,” Amnesty International stated.

    “I call on you to release Tadjadine Mahamat Babouri, known as Mahadine, unconditionally and without delay. A father of seven, he was arrested, beaten up and jailed for peacefully critiquing the government on Facebook.

    “He now faces a life sentence, and is gravely ill, having caught tuberculosis in prison. Pending his release, please transfer him to Am Sinene prison so he can get the medical care he so urgently needs.

    “Mahadine should not lose his freedom simply for raising his voice and bravely exercising his right to freedom of expression,” the petition by Amnesty International read.

     

  • What Presidency makes of Transparency International recent ranking of Nigeria under Buhari

    Mallam Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant, Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari, has said the recent ranking by Transparency International of Nigeria as 14th corrupt country might have a political undertone, and not necessarily be based on facts.

    TheNewsGuru reports global anti-corruption watchdog, TI’s Corruption Perception Perception Index (CPI) scored Nigeria 28 out 100, a figure lower than the average in the Sub-Sharan region.

    But, Mallam Shehu believes the scoring of Nigeria was not based on the Nigeria reality, saying “We wonder where they got their facts from. At a time, they are alleging increase in the incidence of corruption under this government, the whole of Africa is applauding by choosing President Buhari as the continental champion to lead the fight against it”.

    “In the end, this whole episode may turn out to be just a political distraction, given the strong views some of TI’s patrons have expressed against the Buhari Administration. This notwithstanding, facts are facts, and those facts won’t cease to be facts even if you don’t care to pay attention to them,” the Presidential spokesman further stated.

    He went further to say that “Anybody who knows where Nigeria was coming from would not believe that corruption is worse under the Buhari administration. It was once unthinkable to touch or prosecute the ‘‘big men’’ for corruption in Nigeria but President Buhari has ended impunity for corruption”.

    “Political will is the first major component of fighting corruption in any country and Pres. Buhari has made a huge difference by demonstrating not only the political will but also the extraordinary courage to go after high profile looters, including former military chiefs and judges.

    “The government is still wondering the criteria or facts used by the anti-corruption watchdog to arrive at its very misleading and unfair conclusions in its assessment of the federal government’s efforts in this anti-corruption crusade.

    “Today, the Buhari administration has made accountability the bedrock of governance and corruption is no longer fashionable because it attracts consequences.

    “Blocking leakages for corruption through the rigid enforcement of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) had made life tougher for corrupt officials,” he regretted that these efforts were not acknowledged by the corruption watchdog.

    “Figures published by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the anti-corruption agency, reveal that N738.9bn was recovered in just two years of the Buhari administration.

    “This impressive and unprecedented record is worthy of mention and acknowledgement by anybody genuinely looking at the larger picture of the country’s progress in the war against corruption.

    “During the 7th session of the Conference of State Parties to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption in Vienna, Austria, the Chairman of the Agency Ibrahim Magu noted that the figure represents $2.9 billion dollars.

    “Besides these impressive recoveries of looted funds, the EFCC has recorded more than 140 successful prosecutions.

    “The Federal government has also signed international agreements to recover the proceeds of corruption and to block the laundering of stolen assets abroad by public officials,” Garba Shehu further added.

    The Presidency noted that while it welcomes constructive criticisms from the anti-corruption watchdog, he said “the organization has a responsibility to reflect the larger picture of the concrete and verifiable achievements of the Buhari administration since May 2015”.

    “Anybody who knows where Nigeria was coming from would not believe that corruption is worse under the Buhari administration,” he added.

    Meanwhile, the federal government is yet to react to incriminating report by Amnesty International that has accused the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration of so many wrongdoings.

     

  • Incriminating Amnesty International report accuses Buhari govt of unlawful killings

    Torture and other ill-treatment and unlawful detention by the police and the State Security Service (SSS) continued in Nigeria, Amnesty International revealed in its 2017/2018 report that also accused the President Muhammadu Buhari government of unlawful killings and torture.

    TheNewsGuru reports the London-based non-governmental organization focused on human rights launched its 2017/2018 edition annual report today shining light on 15 human rights issues in Nigeria.

    “In February, Nonso Diobu and eight other men were arrested and detained by Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) officers in Awkuzu, Anambra state. They were tortured and all, except Nonso Diobu, died in custody. Nonso Diobu was charged with robbery and released four months after arrest.

    “At least 10 IPOB members were killed and 12 others wounded by soldiers in Umuahia, Abia state on 14 September. The military claimed that they were killed when they tried to resist the arrest of leader Nnamdi Kanu at his home. Witnesses say that, in addition to those killed, at least 10 IPOB members were shot and taken away by soldiers,” the report read.

    UNLAWFUL KILLINGS

    At least 10 IPOB members were killed and 12 others wounded by soldiers in Umuahia, Abia state on 14 September. The military claimed that they were killed when they tried to resist the arrest of leader Nnamdi Kanu at his home. Witnesses say that, in addition to those killed, at least 10 IPOB members were shot and taken away by soldiers. The government subsequently banned the IPOB.

    On 9 March, a court in Abuja sentenced two police officers to death for their part in the extrajudicial execution of six traders in Apo, Abuja, in 2005. Three other police officers including the leader of the police team were acquitted. In 2005, a Judicial Commission of Inquiry had indicted six police officers for the murders and recommended their trial as well as compensation for the victims’ families. One of them allegedly escaped from custody in 2015.

    In September, the High Court in Port Harcourt convicted five SARS policemen for the extrajudicial executions of Michael Akor and Michael Igwe in 2009. The court also awarded 50 million naira (USD143,000) in compensation to the victims’ families.

    In December, after huge pressure on social media, the Inspector General of Police agreed to reform SARS.

    TORTURE AND OTHER ILL-TREATMENT

    Torture and other ill-treatment and unlawful detention by the police and the State Security Service (SSS) continued. In February, Nonso Diobu and eight other men were arrested and detained by Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) officers in Awkuzu, Anambra state.

    They were tortured and all, except Nonso Diobu, died in custody. Nonso Diobu was charged with robbery and released four months after arrest.

    In May, a high court ordered the SSS to release Bright Chimezie, a member of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). Instead, the SSS included his name in another case.

    Bright Chimezie had not been brought to court by the end of the year; the SSS had held him in incommunicado detention for more than one year.

    Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), and his wife remained in incommunicado detention without trial since their arrest in December 2015 despite a court ordering their release and compensation.

    In September, the Nigerian police launched Force Order 20 which sought to reduce the excessive use of pre-trial detention by providing free legal advice to suspects at police stations. In December, the Anti-Torture Bill – intended to prohibit and criminalize the use of torture – was signed into law.

    ARBITRARY ARRESTS AND DETENTIONS

    The military arbitrarily arrested and held thousands of young men, women and children in detention centres around the country. Detainees were denied access to lawyers and family members. The army released 593 detainees in April and 760 in October.

    By April, the military detention facility at Giwa barracks, Maiduguri, held more than 4,900 people in extremely overcrowded cells. Disease, dehydration and starvation were rife and at least 340 detainees died. At least 200 children, as young as four, were detained in an overcrowded and unhygienic children’s cell. Some children were born in detention.

    The military detained hundreds of women unlawfully, without charge, some because they were believed to be related to Boko Haram members. Among them were women and girls who said they had been victims of Boko Haram. Women reported inhuman detention conditions, including a lack of health care for women giving birth in cells.

    On 24 September, the Minister of Justice announced that the mass trial of Boko Haram suspects held in different detention centres had commenced. The first phase of trials was handled by four judges in secret, between 9 and 12 October. Fifty defendants were sentenced to various terms of imprisonment.

    An interim report of the Director of Public Prosecutions showed that 468 suspects were discharged and the trial for the remainder was adjourned to January 2018.

    COMMUNAL VIOLENCE

    Inter-communal violence linked to lingering clashes between herdsmen and farming communities resulted in more than 549 deaths and the displacement of thousands in 12 states.

    In February, 21 villagers were killed in an attack by suspected herdsmen in three communities in the Atakad district of Kaura, Kaduna state. Witnesses said the herdsmen killed, looted, and burned the villagers’ houses.

    In June, a communal clash in the Mambilla Plateau of Taraba state left scores of people dead, mostly herdsmen and their families.

    In September, at least 20 people were killed when suspected herdsmen invaded Ancha village in the Miango district of Jos, Plateau state, after a misunderstanding between villagers and herdsmen residing in the community.

    In October, 27 people were killed by suspected herdsmen in a classroom where they were sheltering after three days of attacks in the Nkyie-Doghwro community of Bassa, Plateau state.

    In December, herdsmen attacked at least five villages in Demsa LGA in Adamawa state to avenge the massacre of up to 57 people, mostly children, in November in nearby Kikan community. Residents described being attacked by a fighter jet and a military helicopter as they attempted to flee. At least 86 people were killed by the herdsmen and air force bombing.

    ARMED CONFLICT: BOKO HARAM

    Boko Haram carried out at least 65 attacks causing 411 civilian deaths, and abducted at least 73 people. Sixteen women, including 10 policewomen, were abducted in June when Boko Haram ambushed an army-escorted convoy on the Maiduguri-Damboa road.

    In July, Boko Haram ambushed a team of oil prospectors in a village in Magumeri. Three oil workers were abducted and at least 40 other people were killed, including soldiers and members of the Civilian Joint Task Force.

    On 6 May, 82 Chibok schoolgirls, abducted in 2014, were released by Boko Haram fighters in an exchange deal; 113 girls remained in captivity. In November, six farmers in Dimge village in Mafa were abducted and beheaded.

    INTERNALLY DISPLACED PEOPLE

    There remained at least 1.7 million internally displaced people (IDPs) in the northeastern states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa; 39% lived in camps or similar settings and 61% in host communities.

    The UN said that 5.2 million people in the northeast remained in urgent need of food assistance; 450,000 children under five were in urgent need of nutrition. In July, Doctors without Borders reported that 240 children had died from malnutrition in Borno state.

    On 17 January, the Nigerian Air Force bombed an IDP camp in Rann, headquarters of Kala Balge local government, in Borno state, killing at least 167 civilians, including many children. The military said the bombing was an accident as Rann was not identified as a humanitarian camp.

    LACK OF ACCOUNTABILITY

    In June, the Special Board of Inquiry to investigate allegations of gross violations of human rights, established by the Chief of Army Staff, found that Giwa barracks was extremely overcrowded, with poor sanitation and insufficient ventilation, factors which resulted in detainees’ deaths. It cleared senior military officers, alleged to have committed crimes under international law, of wrongdoing.

    In August, acting President Yemi Osinbajo set up a presidential investigation panel to probe allegations of human rights violations carried out by the military. Between 11 September and 8 November, the panel sat in the capital, Abuja, and in the cities of Maiduguri, Enugu, Port Harcourt, Lagos and Kaduna.

    In its December preliminary report, the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC announced that it would continue to assess the admissibility of the eight potential crimes it had previously identified as having been allegedly committed in Nigeria.

    RIGHT TO HOUSING AND FORCED EVICTIONS

    Authorities in Lagos, Imo and Rivers states continued to forcibly evict thousands of residents, without adequate notice, compensation, or the provision of alternative accommodation and resettlement.

    In Lagos state, at least 5,000 people were forcibly evicted from Otodo-Gbame and Ilubirin waterfront communities between March and April, in violation of previous Lagos State High Court orders. The orders restrained state authorities from demolishing the homes of affected communities consisting of at least 300,000 residents, and ordered them to consult with residents.

    In March, the Lagos state government pulled out of the consultations saying the communities’ demand for resettlement was unreasonable. During the forced eviction of Otodo-Gbame community on 9 April, at least two people were shot, one fatally, as the police fired at unarmed residents. There were no investigations into the shootings. On 13 June, Lagos state authorities forcibly evicted hundreds of people from Ijora-Badia community.

    On 15 June, Rivers state authorities forcibly evicted hundreds of people from Ayagologo waterfront community in Port Harcourt. On 15 November, police in Lagos arrested and detained 158 residents, including six women one of whom was pregnant, who were protesting against forced evictions in the state.

    On 2 February, a High Court in Abuja declared threats of forced evictions without the service of statutory notices illegal. It urged state authorities to take measures to confer security of tenure on affected residents. The judgment prevented the Abuja authorities from forcibly evicting hundreds of thousands of residents in Mpape community. On 21 June, a Lagos State High Court found that forced evictions and their threat were unconstitutional and amounted to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

    WOMEN’S RIGHTS

    Nigeria’s federal Parliament and Adamawa and Gombe states continued to debate the Gender and Equal Opportunities Bill. In October, ECOWAS Court held that Nigeria violated the right to dignity of three women by wrongly accusing them of being sex workers, and unlawfully arresting and verbally abusing them.

    IDP women and girls reported gender-based violence including rape and sexual exploitation, often in exchange for food and other necessities, by military officers and members of the Civilian Joint Task Force in the northeast. Households headed by women reported discrimination in access to food assistance and livelihood opportunities in some locations.

    A group of women who were previously confined to Bama IDP camp campaigned for the release of their husbands from military detention, and for justice for rape and other abuses they suffered while in the camp between 2015 and 2016. The Chief of Army Staff was reported to have ordered an investigation in June into misconduct by soldiers in the camp.

    HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS

    Human rights defenders continued to face intimidation for their work. Parliament debated a bill to regulate and restrict the work of NGOs. If passed, it would establish an NGO Regulatory Commission to keep a register of all NGOs, co-ordinate their activities, and monitor their budgets and funding. A public hearing on the bill took place in December.

    On 19 July, police arrested and detained Maurice Fangnon for six days for calling for investigations into alleged killings and assaults of residents in Otodo-Gbame community. He was rearrested on 12 December with Bamidele Friday; they were released on bail on 22 December.

    Raymond Gold faced criminal charges carrying a maximum three-year prison sentence for demanding that an oil company conduct an Environmental Impact Assessment on activities which harmed the environment. On 6 June, police officers harassed, beat and injured Justus Ijeoma at Onitsha Area Command. In October, he received a written apology from the Area Command.

    FREEDOMS OF ASSEMBLY AND ASSOCIATION

    The security forces disrupted, in some cases violently and with excessive force, peaceful protests and assemblies. The police continued to deny IMN, which was banned by the Kaduna state government in 2016, the right to peaceful protest. On 25 January, the Abuja police arrested nine IMN members in connection with a peaceful protest demanding the release of Ibrahim El-Zakzaky.

    On 25 July, police in Kano city prevented a group of women from protesting against the persistent rape of women and children in the state. On 8 August, police violently dispersed peaceful protesters who demanded the return of President Buhari who was in the UK for medical treatment.

    FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

    Journalists were harassed, intimidated and arrested. On 19 January, police raided the offices of Premium Times and arrested publisher Dapo Olorunyomi and correspondent Evelyn Okakwu for several hours, after the Chief of Army Staff accused the newspaper of offensive publications.

    On 19 April, Kaduna state police arrested and detained Midat Joseph, a journalist with Leadership newspaper, for a WhatsApp comment. He was taken to court the next day on charges of criminal conspiracy, inciting disturbance and injurious falsehood.

    On 31 July, the court dismissed the case on grounds of lack of diligent prosecution. On 19 September, the Katsina state police arrested three bloggers, Jamil Mabai, Bashir Dauda and Umar Faruq, for criticizing the Governor. Bashir Dauda and Umar Faruq were released after one week and Jamil Mabai was detained for 22 days.

    On 27 October, Audu Maikori, who was arrested for publishing false information online, was awarded 40 million naira (USD112,700) in compensation for unlawful arrest and detention.

    CORPORATE ACCOUNTABILITY

    In June, the widows of four men from the Ogoni region in the Niger Delta who were executed following an unfair trial in 1995, filed a lawsuit in the Netherlands against Shell, demanding compensation and a public apology. They accused Shell of complicity in the unlawful arrest and detention of their husbands during a brutal crackdown by the then military authorities on the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People. International organizations called for Shell to be investigated for involvement in these crimes.

    Environmental pollution linked to the oil industry continued to undermine the economic, social and cultural rights of the Niger Delta communities. The government took limited steps to address pollution in the Ogoni region of the Niger Delta, as recommended by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2011.

    However, local communities expressed frustration at the slow progress of the initiative and because operations on the ground had not begun. Shell failed to comply with some of UNEP’s key recommendations.

    In September, operations to clean up the pollution caused by two large oil spills in 2008 began in the Bodo community in the Ogoni region.

    RIGHTS OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENDER AND INTERSEX PEOPLE

    Arrest, public shaming, extortion of and discrimination against individuals based on their sexual orientation were reported in several parts of the country. In April, the Nigerian police arraigned 53 men in a magistrate court in Zaria, Kaduna state, for conspiracy and unlawful assembly and for belonging to an unlawful society. They were accused of attending a gay wedding and granted bail.

    In August, about 42 men and boys between 12 and 28 years old were arrested at a hotel in Lagos while attending an HIV intervention programme organized by an NGO. They were charged with “engaging in gay activities”. The police paraded the victims to the media.

    DEATH PENALTY

    Death sentences continued to be imposed; no executions were recorded. In July, at the National Economic Council, state governors agreed to either sign execution warrants or commute death sentences as a way of addressing overcrowding in prisons. Death row prisoners reported that execution gallows were being prepared for executions in Benin and Lagos prisons.

    In August, the Ogun state government announced that it would no longer maintain an informal commitment to refrain from authorizing executions. In September, the Senate passed a bill prescribing the death penalty for kidnapping.

     

  • Amnesty International report shines light on 15 human rights issues in Nigeria

    London-based non-governmental organization focused on human rights, Amnesty International, has launched its 2017/2018 edition annual report detailing state of human rights in 159 countries, including Nigeria.

    TheNewsGuru reports the 409-page report, which lists human rights abuses from the civil war in Syria to Police brutality in Kenya, covers all major human rights issues in Nigeria.

    “The armed group Boko Haram continued to carry out attacks, resulting in hundreds of deaths. Reports continued of extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, and torture and other ill-treatment, which, in some cases, led to deaths in custody.

    “Conditions in military detention conditions were harsh. Communal violence occurred across the country. Thousands of people were forcibly evicted from their homes,” the report noted.

    The report listed the fifteen human rights challenges facing Nigeria to include armed conflict; arbitrary arrests and detentions; internally displaced people (IDPs); lack of accountability; unlawful killings; torture and other ill-treatment, and communal violence.

    Other challenges the report listed are right to housing and forced evictions; women’s rights; human rights defenders; freedom of assembly and association; freedom of expression; corporate accountability; rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people, and death penalty.

    Boko Haram Conflict

    – The group carried out 65 attacks causing 411 civilian deaths in 2017

    – In May 82 Chibok girls abducted in 2014 were released.

    – Sixteen women, including ’10 police women abducted in June.

    – In July 3 oil prospectors were abducted and 40 others killed.

    Internally Displaced Persons

    – There are at least 1.7 million Internally Displaced Persons in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe.

    – Thirty nine per cent live in camps, while 61% live in host communities.

    – 5.4 million people in north east remain in urgent need of food assistance.

    Arbitrary Arrests

    – The military arbitrarily arrested and held thousands of young men, women and children in Giwa Barracks.

    – By April the military held more than 4,900 in the extremely overcrowded facility.

    – Disease, dehydration and starvation killed at least 340 detainees.

    Torture and ill-treatment

    – Ibraheem El Zakzaky, leader of Islamic Movement in Nigeria and his wife held by govt. without trial since December 2015.

    – Court order for the release and compensation of El Zakzaky was ignored by the government.

    Unlawful killings

    – At least 12 IPOB members were killed by soldiers in Umuahia in Abia state on September 14.

    – There was outrage over activities of #SARS, and after huge pressure police agreed to reform the squad.

    Communal violence

    – Lingering violence between herders and farmers claimed more than 549 and displaced thousands in 12 states.

    – In June dozens of mostly herdsmen and their families were killed in Mambilla Plateau in Taraba state.

    Right to Housing and Forced Evictions

    – Authorities in Lagos, Imo and River states continued forcibly evict thousands of residents.

    – In Lagos state at least 5,000 people were forcibly evicted from Otodo Gbame and Ilubirin in March and April.

    Freedom of Assembly

    – The security forces disrupted, in some cases violently and with excessive force, peaceful protests and assemblies.

    – The police continued to deny IMN, which was banned by the Kaduna state government in 2016, the right to peaceful protest.

    Freedom of Expression

    – Journalists were harassed, intimidated and arrested.

    – On 19 January, police raided the offices of Premium Times and arrested publisher Dapo Olorunyomi and correspondent Evelyn Okakwu for several hours.

    Niger Delta

    – Environmental pollution linked to the oil industry continued to undermine the economic, social and cultural rights of the Niger Delta communities

    – The government took limited steps to address pollution in the Ogoniland of the Niger Delta. But it was slow so far.

    Women’s Rights

    – IDP women reported gender based violence including rape and sexual exploitation, often in exchange for food by the military & members of Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF).

    – A group of women who were previously confined to Bama IDP camp campaigned for the release of their husbands.

    Human Rights Defenders

    – Human rights defenders continued to face intimidation for their work.

    – Parliament debated a bill to regulate and restrict activities of NGO’s.

    – If passed the bill will establish an agency that will keep a register of all NGO’s

    Death Penalty

    – Death sentences continued to be imposed;

    – No executions were recorded.

    Amnesty found that, in the face of oppression, many were inspired to join movements that delivered human rights victories.

    “As we enter the year in which the Universal Declaration of Human Rights turns 70, it is abundantly clear that none of us can take our human rights for granted,” Salil Shetty, Amnesty International Secretary General stated in the foreword of the report.

     

  • Trump’s travel ban ushered year of ‘hatred’ across globe – Amnesty

    Trump’s travel ban ushered year of ‘hatred’ across globe – Amnesty

    U.S. President Donald Trump’s travel ban in January 2017 targeting several Muslim-majority countries kicked off a vicious circle of “hatred,” Amnesty International said on Thursday.

    “The transparently hateful move by the U.S. government in January to ban entry to people from several Muslim-majority countries set the scene for a year in which leaders took the politics of hate to its most dangerous conclusion,” Salil Shetty, Secretary-General of Amnesty International said.

    Amnesty International released its annual report on the threshold of the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a fundamental international document on human rights, which was proclaimed three years after the UN was established in 1945.

    The report, titled the State of the World’s Human Rights, provides an outlook of the state of human rights in 159 countries across the world.

    The year 2017 “experienced the bitter fruits of a rising politics of demonisation,” as it witnessed in the crackdown against the Rohingya minority in Myanmar, the humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen, exacerbated by Saudi Arabia’ blockade, numerous civilians deaths from the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria and Iraq, the ongoing refugee crisis and other injustices across the globe, the report said.

    “The appalling injustices meted out to the Rohingya may have been especially visible in 2017, but the trend of leaders and politicians demonizing whole groups of people based on their identity reverberated across the globe.

    “The past year showed us once again what happens when the politics of demonisation become mainstream, with grim consequences for human rights,” the report read.

    According to Senior Director for Research at Amnesty International Anna Neistat, the regression in human rights protection appeared to be not an issue of separate states, but a trend that threatens the system of human rights protection as a whole.

    “In recent years, and in particular in 2017, we have witnessed, unfortunately, a very significant regression in the protection of human rights.

    “It is no longer just that separate states, separate governments or non-governmental forces violate the rights of individuals or groups of individuals; it is a question of undermining the human rights protection system itself,” Neistat said while presenting the report to journalists.

    At the same time, the report noted that the year revealed strong willingness of people to fight for their rights, bringing them to the streets in Poland, Zimbabwe, India, the U.S. and other countries.

    As Trump assumed his office in January 2017, the fulfillment of his election campaign promises “that were discriminatory or otherwise contradicted international human rights principles” was not late in coming, Amnesty’s report said.

    Trump’s executive order, barring nationals from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Syria, and subsequently Chad, North Korea and certain Venezuelan officials, from entering the U.S., led to numerous protests and legal challenges, as it is discriminatory in nature, Amnesty said.

    Among other U.S. administration moves jeopardising human rights, the report noted plans to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, as well as wrapping up several programmes for immigrants.

    According to Margaret Huang, the executive director of Amnesty International USA, the U.S. administration policies neglecting human rights may set a dangerous precedent for other states.

    “Defenders of human rights around the world can look to the people of the United States to stand with them, even where the U.S. government has failed.

    “As President Trump takes actions that violate human rights at home and abroad, activists from across the country remind us that the fight for universal human rights has always been waged and won by people in their communities,” Huang said, as quoted in Amnesty’s press release.

    Amnesty said the situation with human rights in Myanmar dramatically deteriorated over the conflict in the Rohingya-populated Rakhine region.

    Ethnic Rohingyas were forced to flee to Bangladesh to escape an offensive by Myanmar troops that was triggered by an August 2017 terrorist attack on police stations by a militant group.

    “Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled crimes against humanity in Rakhine State to neighbouring Bangladesh; those who remained continued to live under a system amounting to apartheid.

    “The army committed extensive violations of international humanitarian law. Authorities continued to restrict humanitarian access across the country.

    “Restrictions on freedom of expression remained.

    “There was increased religious intolerance and anti-Muslim sentiment. Impunity persisted for past and ongoing human rights violations,” Amnesty said.

    According to the report, the situation with civilians who were displaced as a result of conflict, violence and natural disasters continued to be alarming in the country, as people lack humanitarian assistance and protection.

    The report noted that human rights activists, lawyers and journalists who spoke about the developments with Rohingya, religious intolerance and military violations “faced surveillance, intimidation and attacks.”

    The section about Syria in Amnesty’s International report stated that all the parties to the Syrian conflict committed war crimes and other human rights abuses.

    The report specified that the actions of the Syrian government forces and its allies, including Iran and Russia, the U.S.-led coalition, as well as of armed groups, namely the IS, resulted in numerous civilian deaths, displacements and destruction of infrastructure.

    “Parties to the armed conflict committed war crimes and other grave violations of international humanitarian law and human rights abuses with impunity.

    “Government and allied forces, including Russia, carried out indiscriminate attacks and direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects

    “The U.S.-led coalition continued its campaign of air strikes against IS. The air strikes, some of which violated international humanitarian law, killed and injured civilians,” Amnesty said.

    The annual review also covered the issue of alleged chemical weapon use by the Syrian government forces in Khan Sheikhoun.

    The report specified that sieges in civilian areas resulted in making humanitarian access impossible.

    Thus, citing the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the report noted that almost 400,000 residents of eastern Ghouta were deprived of medical assistance, basic goods and humanitarian support.

    Syrian authorities have been repeatedly accused of using chemical weapons against civilians in the conflict that began in 2011.

    Damascus has denied the allegations insisting that its military chemical capacity has been destroyed.

    Syria has been in a state of civil war for over six years, with government forces fighting against both Syrian opposition groups and terrorist organizations.

    Russia is involved in solving the Syrian conflict by engaging in the fight against terrorist organizations, serving as a guarantor of the Syrian ceasefire and providing civilians with humanitarian aid.

    Speaking about the EU refugee crisis, Shetty said in that the leaders of the wealthy states “treated refugees and migrants as problems to be deflected, not as human beings with rights who deserve our compassion.”

    The report, at the same time, noted positive developments, saying that a total of 171,332 refugees and migrants arrived in Europe by sea, in 2017, compared to 362,753 a year before, attributing the results to EU states’ cooperation with Libya and Turkey.

    However, Amnesty stressed that Europe still failed to comply with relocation schemes adopted in 2015, with some states refusing to accept asylum seekers in line with the approved quota.

    “Abuses and pushbacks continued at the EU external borders, from Bulgaria, Greece, Spain, and Poland. Poland’s government proposed legislation to legalize pushbacks, a regular practice at a crossing between Poland and Belarus,” Amnesty said.

    Amnesty said forced returns continued to remain a worrying issue, particularly for refugees from Afghanistan.

    Amnesty’s report noted that Ukrainian authorities continue to place social activists, journalists and government critics under pressure.

    “Civil society activists and members of NGOs, particularly those working on corruption, were regularly harassed and subjected to violence.

    “These incidents were often not effectively investigated, and members of the authorities, including security services in some instances, were widely suspected to have instigated them,” Amnesty said.

    The report mentioned that the government continued its practice of hushing up journalists who criticize the authorities through “trumped-up” criminal prosecution.

    As an example the report provided the situation around the Ukrainian internet news portal Strana.ua and its editor-in-chief Ihor Huzhva.

    In June, searches were carried out in the building of Strana.ua, while Guzhva was arrested over allegations of blackmailing a politician.

    The media outlet is known for its critical coverage of the Ukrainian government policy, particularly, in the Donbas region.

    The report also mentioned cases when international journalists were expelled from the country, and noted that investigations into the murders of journalists Oles Buzina in 2015 and Pavel Sheremet in 2016 still had no results.

     

  • Amnesty International warns against extradition of Cameroon separatist leaders arrested in Nigeria

    Ten leaders of the independence movement in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon could be at risk of torture and an unfair trial if extradited from Nigeria, where they have been arrested and detained in secret for one week, Amnesty International said on Friday.

    On January 5, armed men in plain clothes stormed a hotel in the capital Abuja where the activists, all members of the pro-independence Southern Cameroon National Council (SCNC), were meeting, and arrested them without presenting a warrant or providing an explanation.

    They are being held incommunicado, without any access to a lawyer, in contravention of Nigerian law which demands they must be seen by a judge within 48 hours.

    Human rights lawyers in Nigeria have said that an extradition request has been made by the Cameroonian government, but no details of the request have been made public.

    “By holding these activists in secret, without charge, the Nigerian authorities are failing to respect both national and international law. If they are extradited to Cameroon, they risk an unfair trial before a military court and the deeply disturbing possibility of torture,” said Osai Ojigho, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria.

    “Efforts to tackle the Anglophone crisis should always respect the law, and avoid restrictions on freedom of expression. Authorities in Nigeria should immediately disclose the activists’ whereabouts, allow them access to a lawyer, and unless they have sufficient evidence to charge them with a recognisable crime, release them immediately,” said Mr. Ojigho.

    The SCNC members have said that they were meeting in Nigeria to discuss the influx of thousands of asylum seekers following protests in October, in which over 20 civilians were killed by security forces.

    In recent months, over 10 members of security forces have also been killed by more radical pro-independence groups. The SCNC has throughout claimed to pursue their aim of independence for the Anglophone regions through peaceful means.

    All those arrested were legally living in Nigeria, and some had been granted political asylum.

    Under Nigerian law, it would be illegal to extradite the activists for political crimes, or if they faced the risk of torture or an unfair trial.

    In Cameroon, those charged with crimes related to national security are prosecuted by military courts without respect for due process, and Amnesty International has documented a widespread pattern of torture by security forces and intelligence agencies.

    In July 2017 the organisation published a report documenting over 100 cases of torture of people accused without evidence of supporting Boko Haram.

  • Slave trade: Amnesty International accuses EU of abetting migrant rights violations in Libya

    Amnesty International on Tuesday accused European governments of abetting grave human rights violations in Libya through their support for authorities there that often work with people smugglers and torture refugees and migrants.

    Determined to cut African immigration across the Mediterranean, the governments, via the EU, have provided support to Libya, trained its coastguard and spent millions of euros through UN agencies to improve conditions in detention camps where Libya puts the migrants.

    The advocacy group said up to 20,000 people were now held in these centres and subject to “torture, forced labour, extortion, and unlawful killings.”

    “European governments have not just been fully aware of these abuses; by actively supporting the Libyan authorities in stopping sea crossings and containing people in Libya, they are complicit in these crimes,” John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International’s head for Europe, said.

    The European Union’s executive arm, the European Commission, was not immediately available for comment.

    Libya is the main gateway for migrants trying to cross to Europe by sea, though numbers have dropped sharply since July as Libyan factions and authorities have begun to block departures under pressure from Italy, the main landing point.

    No fewer than 600,000 have made the journey over the past four years.

    Amnesty said the Libyan coastguards – which the EU backs to intercept people heading for Europe, work hand-in-hand with people smugglers, including in torturing people to extort money.

    “By supporting Libyan authorities in trapping people in Libya … European governments have shown where their true priorities lie: namely the closure of the central Mediterranean route, with scant regard to the suffering caused,” said Dalhuisen.

    With Libya being largely a lawless states since the fall of veteran ruler Muammar Gaddafi, some EU officials and diplomats chafe at what they see as being forced to rely on sometimes shady characters in the matrix of alliances between militias.

    However, EU leaders meeting for their final gathering this year in Brussels on December 14 to 15 will recommit themselves to this strategy, which they see as bearing fruit in the form of fewer sea crossings.

    The presidency of Libya’s UN-backed government said in November it was a victim of illegal migration, not a source of it, and appealed to foreign powers to help stop flows from migrants’ countries of origin.

  • #EndSARS: Respond to fresh allegations of police abuse, Amnesty International tells FG

    The Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Osai Ojigho on Tuesday challenged the government to respond to fresh allegations of police abuse currently trending on social media under #EndSARS.

    In a press release signed by the Media Manager, Isa Sanusi, Ojigho said, “The scale of the reaction to this incident shows that the concerns of the Nigerian people are reaching boiling point.

    “All incidents of violence meted out by this notorious police unit (Special Anti Robbery Squad, SARS) must be independently investigated, and those found to be responsible must be prosecuted in fair trials.”

    “The #EndSARS hashtag is rightly gaining the attention of the police and Nigerian government and now officials must do more to end these horrendous abuses of power.

    “Amnesty International highlighted such abuses more than a year ago, but these shocking incidents still continue.

    “Restructuring SARS is not enough, the government must take concrete steps to protect Nigerians.”

    It may be recalled that Amnesty International, in a September 2016 report entitled: “You have signed your death warrant,” showed how the SARS police unit has been systematically torturing detainees as a means of extracting confessions and bribes.

    The organisation warned that Nigeria has obligations under international and regional human rights law to uphold the absolute prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment.

    “The Nigerian government should take all necessary steps to ensure that police officers do not commit human rights violations,” it submitted.

    It added, “In August 2015 the police authorities announced that, in a bid to address complaints of human rights violations by SARS officers, it would introduce reforms by splitting the command into two units: Operation and Investigation.

    “Positive developments as a result of the reforms are yet to be seen.”

  • #ENDSARS: Atiku, Amnesty International, others join support for scrapping of SARS

    #ENDSARS: Atiku, Amnesty International, others join support for scrapping of SARS

    Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar has joined a social media campaign #ENDSARS to scrap the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), a unit the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) over its alleged assault and brutality of young Nigerians.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that the social media, especially Twitter has recently been awash with intense calls for the scrapping of the unit.

    The former Vice President who joined the campaign on Sunday tweeted: The arbitrary harassment of young Nigerians by Police (who should be protecting them) has no place in a democratic society.

    The #EndSARS protest shows Nigerian youth are upset and the matter needs urgent attention.

    Also, Amnesty International also accused the police unit of allegedly using torture to forcefully extract information from suspects.

    However, as a way of pacifying the public, the Nigerian Police Force Public Complaint Rapid Response Unit, PCRRU, had on Saturday announced the opening of channels through which the public can report complaints about SARS.

    The move by the PCRRU may be connected to the public outcry that has trailed the activities of many SARS officials in recent times.

    Late in October 2017, a 2015 graduate of Kwara State Polytechnic, Ekwere Imoh, was shot by policemen attached to SARS, Oyo State Police Command. The policemen also shot a female friend of his, identified simply as Doris, who was with him. There were no concrete reasons for shooting the duo as they were neither criminals nor under arrest.

    Earlier in the same month, a lady, Kachi Anifela Zion, accused officers of SARS in Ilorin of sexual molestation. She said a male SARS official under the pretence of searching her, dipped his hand in her underwear.

    She further revealed that the SARS official threatened to beat her if she shouted, adding that the officer continued to fondle, rough handle and humiliate her for several minutes. The SARS official implicated in the matter was later arrested.

    See reactions from social media below:

  • 223 killed in Boko Haram attacks since April – Amnesty International

    A recent data compiled by Amnesty International has pegged the number of people so far killed in different attacks by deadly terrorist group, Boko Haram in North-east Nigeria since April 2017 at 223.

    Most of the attacks occurred in Borno with many of them suicide attacks carried out by women and girls forced into the act.

    In neighbouring Cameroon, at least 158 people were also killed by the terror group within the same period.

    The attacks have continued despite the efforts by the Nigerian military and its neighbouring partners to combat the terror group whose activities have caused about 100,000 deaths since 2009.

    In a statement on Tuesday, Amnesty said its dat‎a showed an increase in Boko Haram attacks when April to early September 2017 is compared to the corresponding period in 2016.

    Read the full statement by Amnesty International below:

    A major resurgence in Boko Haram attacks and suicide bombings in Cameroon and Nigeria has left at least 381 civilians dead in the five months since the start of April 2017, with casualties more than double the previous five months, Amnesty International said on Tuesday.

    According to data collected by the organisation, a sharp rise in civilian deaths in the far north region of Cameroon and the Nigerian states of Borno and Adamawa has been driven by the armed group’s increased use of suicide bombers – often using women and girls who are forced to carry explosives into crowded areas.

    “Boko Haram is once again committing war crimes on a huge scale, exemplified by the depravity of forcing young girls to carry explosives with the sole intention of killing as many people as they possibly can,” said Alioune Tine, Amnesty International’s Director for West and Central Africa.

    “This wave of shocking Boko Haram violence, propelled by a sharp rise in suicide bombings, highlights the urgent need for protection and assistance for millions of civilians in the Lake Chad region. Governments in Nigeria, Cameroon and beyond must take swift action to protect them from this campaign of terror.”

    Northeastern Nigeria: Mass killings and abductions

    Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria have killed at least 223 civilians since April, though the real figure may be higher still as some attacks may have gone unreported. Between May and August, seven times’ more civilians were killed than in the preceding four months, while 100 civilians were killed in August alone.

    The deadliest recent attack came on July 25, when the armed group shot dead 40 people and abducted three others in an ambush on an oil exploration team in the Magumeri area of Borno state.

    Boko Haram suicide bombers have killed at least 81 people in Nigeria since April, while 67 people have been abducted – mostly women and girls – since the start of the year.

    There have been two reports of raids on villages in August, in which Boko Haram fighters rounded up and shot civilians, burned down homes and stole from people’s houses, shops and markets.

    Far North region of Cameroon: weekly suicide attacks

    In Cameroon, Boko Haram have killed at least 158 civilians since April – four times more than in the preceding five months. The recent spike in casualties has been driven by increased suicide attacks, with 30 – more than one per week – carried out since the beginning of April.

    The deadliest attack took place in Waza on July 12, when 16 civilians were killed and at least 34 injured after a young girl was forced to carry and detonate a bomb in a crowded video game centre.

    The town of Kolofata, in the Mayo-Sava district, has been especially targeted with nine attacks since April. Mora, the second largest urban centre in the Far North region, has also been hit three times.

    The displacement of Boko Haram fighters from the Sambisa Forest in Nigeria to the Mandara Mountains in Cameroon, following operations conducted by the Nigerian military, may explain some of the increase in attacks in Cameroon.

    Civilians in need of humanitarian assistance

    Across the Lake Chad region, millions of civilians are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance as a result of Boko Haram violence.

    A total of 2.3 million people have been displaced across the region. This includes 1.6 million internally displaced people and refugees in Nigeria and 303,000 in Cameroon. Another 374,000 are displaced in Chad and Niger.

    More than seven million people across the region face serious food shortages, including five million in Nigeria and 1.5 million in Cameroon. There are 515,000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, more than 85 per cent of them in Nigeria.

    The recent increase in insecurity has made humanitarian operations difficult, or even impossible, in some inaccessible areas of northeast Nigeria.

    “Governments across the Lake Chad region must increase their efforts to protect the hundreds of thousands of civilians at grave risk of being targeted by Boko Haram violence, abductions and abuses,” said Alioune Tine.

    “Meanwhile, the international community should also rapidly scale up its commitment to provide life-saving humanitarian assistance to the millions in the region who need it.”

    BACKGROUND


    Amnesty International has been documenting human rights abuses and serious violations of international humanitarian law that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Boko Haram since 2010.

    Amnesty International has compiled and analysed media reports of Boko Haram attacks and casualties, which demonstrate a sharp increase in activity since April 2017 compared to previous months and comparable periods in 2016. The real numbers are likely to be higher, with some deaths unreported.

    In 2017 Boko Haram has also killed civilians during at least 10 attacks in the Diffa region of Niger.
    All parties to the conflict, including Boko Haram, are bound by the rules of international humanitarian law, which explicitly prohibits any direct attacks against civilians and civilian objects.