Amnesty International Accuses Security Agencies Of Abuses, Violence

Human rights organisation, Amnesty International, has accused Nigerian security forces of carrying out widespread abuses such as extra-judicial killings, arbitrary arrests, mass detention in sub-human facilities, attacks on the media and journalists, violent crackdown on peaceful protesters, forced evictions, among other things.

In its 2017/2018 Human Rights Report released on Thursday, the agency said the Nigerian Military had “detained hundreds of women unlawfully, without charge” among other inhumane treatments.

According to Amnesty International, “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 report said.

Furthermore, the agency accused the Police and the State Security Service (SSS) of “torture, other ill-treatment and unlawful detention”, especially in a case involving one Nonso Diobu and eight other men who were arrested and detained by officials of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

Also listing another case involving a member of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Bright Chimezie, AI said even after the high court had ordered the SSS to release him, his name was included in another case and he was held in detention for another year.

It also made mention of the case involving the leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), Ibrahim El-Zakzaky and his wife who have remained in detention since his arrest in 2015, despite a court ordering their release and compensation.

The Police was also accused of breaching the fundamental human rights of Freedom of Expression and association, among other things.

“The security forces disrupted, in some cases violently and with excessive force, peaceful protests and assemblies,” the report said.

At the time of this report, none of the agencies had reacted to the accusations of Amnesty.