There have been allegations of human rights abuses and torture by security operatives during military operations in the country and President Goodluck Jonathan, believes that a lot of those stories are exaggerated.
The President made this observation at an International Conference on Civil-Military Cooperation for Effective Internal Security Operations held at the National Defence College, Abuja.
The President admitted that there must a cordial relationship between the civilians and security operatives as the war against insurgency rages, hence the need to follow international best practices.
However, he advocated full support for the military owing to the view that “these human rights issues are blown out of proportion.”
President Jonathan recalled his meeting with an ambassador who expressed his country’s interest in helping the fight against terrorism but stated that they were discouraged by reports of human rights abuses by Nigerian soldiers.
Expressing his reservations about the view, he said that the problem would not be solved when countries stay away and base their decisions on such reports.
“If your country means well for us, send some of your troops to come and join my own troops for some time. Let us really know where these problems are coming from. If we don’t discipline our soldiers hold me responsible,” he said.
President Jonathan admitted that there were indeed issues which his administration was dealing with but noted that “the soldiers themselves need to be protected.
“They are also humans, they also have rights.”
National Security Adviser, Mohammed Sambo Dasuki, said that the theme (for the conference) was carefully selected in collaboration with the European Union, adding that it is timely, considering the allegation of poor human rights records against the military.
He said; “We have been making concerted efforts to correct the current impression that our security forces are involved in widespread acts of human rights abuse which is also condoned by Government.
“We recently hosted an international conference on the observance of human rights which was attended by the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Mrs Fatou Bensouda, and other international human rights luminaries.
“That event reinforced our commitment to attaining zero tolerance for human rights abuses from our security forces.”
Chairman of the occasion and former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, commended the President for his efforts so far, describing the gathering as a history making event and thanked the EU for their support.
“Let me thank Mr President for his untiring support for the security agencies in the face of the daunting security challenges facing our nation,” he said, thanking also “the security agencies and stakeholders for their efforts towards enhancing mutual cooperation.”
The Head of Political Session of the European Union, Allan Monday, commended the soft approach Nigeria has applied in the fight against insurgency and emphasized the need to improve on it, which is the focus of his organisation.
“The point of war is not just to win but to make a better peace,” he said.