Probe right abuses in South-East, Amnesty International urges FG

Amnesty International has urged the Federal Government to conduct prompt, independent, impartial, transparent and effective investigations into allegations of human rights violations and other abuses in the South-East.

The organisation made the call in Awka on Thursday while presenting a report titled Human Rights and Accountability in the South-East Zone.

It called for investigations into alleged extrajudicial killings and other violations committed by both state and non-state actors, including security forces, the state-backed Ebube Agu militia, “unknown gunmen,” and members of the Indigenous People of Biafra and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network.

Presenting the report on behalf of the organisation, Maurice Chukwu said that between January 2021 and December 2024, the South-East experienced widespread violence, unlawful killings, attacks, torture and other forms of ill-treatment, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and detention, internal displacement, and suppression of the right to freedom of movement.

Chukwu urged the Federal Government to prosecute anyone reasonably suspected of responsibility through fair trials without recourse to the death penalty and to make the findings of all investigations public.

According to him, an estimated 1,840 people were victims of extrajudicial killings in the South-East between January 2021 and June 2023, based on available research data.

He said the report documented killings allegedly perpetrated by armed herders over grazing disputes in parts of the South-East, particularly in Enugu and Ebonyi states.

According to him, it also presented documented evidence of the activities of armed groups that have turned several communities into what it described as “ungoverned spaces” by forcing out traditional rulers, displacing residents and taking control of communities, including Agwa and Izombe in Oguta Local Government Area of Imo State and Lilu in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State.

He said, “The report further highlighted abuses allegedly committed by cult groups operating with little resistance amid a thriving drug trade in several communities in Anambra State, including Obosi, Awka, Onitsha, Ogidi and Umuoji.

“Armed groups have repeatedly attacked security personnel since 2020, resulting in the unlawful killing of security operatives and civilians. Thousands of people across the South-East have been victims of killings, torture, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, displacement and other serious human rights violations.

“The report alleged that Nigerian authorities have continued to crack down on suspected IPOB supporters, documenting cases of unlawful killings, extrajudicial executions, excessive use of force, torture, arbitrary arrests, prolonged detention, enforced disappearances and unfair trials.

“It further alleged that security agencies have arbitrarily arrested suspected IPOB members, forcibly disappeared some of them and detained others in secret facilities.

“Amnesty International called on the Nigerian authorities to ensure access to justice and effective remedies for victims and their families, including restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction and guarantees of non-repetition.

“The organisation also urged the government to implement safeguards against human rights violations by security forces, including unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests, incommunicado detention, torture, enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions and unlawful airstrikes.

“It further called on the government to assure the families of all persons arrested by security agencies or Ebube Agu operatives in the South-East that immediate steps would be taken to inform them of the fate and whereabouts of their relatives.”

Amnesty International also recommended that enforced disappearance be criminalised under Nigerian domestic law in line with the country’s obligations under the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

The organisation further urged the government to promptly, thoroughly, independently, impartially, transparently and effectively investigate all allegations of torture and other forms of ill-treatment and ensure that anyone reasonably suspected of responsibility is brought to justice through fair trials without recourse to the death penalty.

It also recommended that authorities provide timely and adequate alternative accommodation, cash transfers and humanitarian assistance to individuals rendered homeless by the destruction of their homes and forced evictions, ensuring that such support is tailored to the specific needs of affected communities.

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“Ensure that no student is denied access to education as a result of the sit-at-home order. If students and teachers are unable to access schools, develop and implement innovative ways for them to continue learning remotely,” the report stated.

Amnesty International also called on all parties to the conflict, including security forces, the Ebube Agu militia, IPOB/ESN, so-called “unknown gunmen,” and other armed groups, to immediately cease all human rights violations and abuses, including extrajudicial executions, unlawful killings, torture, enforced disappearances and the burning of homes across the South-East.

The organisation said it conducted three research missions across Imo, Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Enugu states. During the missions, its researchers interviewed residents of the five states at secure locations in Enugu.

It added that researchers met with representatives of civil society organisations, lawyers and religious leaders in the region and conducted both in-person and telephone interviews with more than 100 survivors and relatives of victims of human rights violations.

However, Amnesty International said its requests to meet with the governors of the five South-East states received no response except from the Anambra State Government, which acknowledged receipt of the request but did not provide an opportunity for a meeting.

According to the organisation, the violence in the South-East is multifaceted and involves different actors who often manipulate competing narratives to advance their respective interests.

It described the security situation in the region as a hybrid of political and criminal violence, noting that the so-called “unknown gunmen” frequently carry out random attacks across the South-East rather than coordinated assaults specifically targeted at the Nigerian state and its institutions.

“The ‘unknown gunmen’ are, in many cases, known individuals within the communities where they operate,” the report stated.

Amnesty International further stated that there is no clear distinction between the activities of the “unknown gunmen” and IPOB/ESN, maintaining that both have been implicated in serious human rights violations and abuses.

“The report identified several forest camps allegedly used by armed groups across the region.

“In Imo State, the camps are reportedly located in forests around Okigwe, Mbaitoli, Arondizuogu, Thiteukwa, Ihitenansa, Okwudo, Agwa, Izombe, Umuorji Mgbidi, Ihube, Atta, Aku Umulolo and the Njaba River axis along the Awo-Omamma and Ezioha border.

“In Anambra State, the camps were identified in forests around Lilu, Ukpor, Ezinifite, Nnewi, Unubi, Akwaihedi, Umunze, Isseke, Mbosi, Ihiala, Azia, Okija, Uga, Idemili, Nnebo, Ihembosi, Ukpor and Mother Valley in Orsumoghu.

“In Enugu State, the report identified camps in the Nkwere Inyi Forest in Oji River Local Government Area, while in Ebonyi State, camps were reportedly located in forests around Mgbalukwu and Inyimagu in Izzi Local Government Area,” it added.

The report stated that the police appear unable to effectively address insecurity or carry out arrests in several parts of the South-East, particularly in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State, following sustained attacks on security personnel.

It noted that communities such as Agwa, Izombe and neighbouring settlements in Oguta Local Government Area of Imo State have effectively become “ungoverned spaces” due to the activities of armed groups that have taken control of those areas.

The report also highlighted the activities of cult groups in towns including Obosi, Awka, Onitsha, Ogidi and Umuoji in Anambra State, where they allegedly operate with little resistance amid an active drug trade, resulting in hundreds of deaths linked to cult-related violence.

Amnesty International further stated that the enforcement of the sit-at-home order declared by IPOB has resulted in widespread human rights abuses across the South-East, including violations of the rights to life, freedom of movement and education.