Nigeria… of sorrow, tears and blood

2020 will therefore go down as the year in which a hail of bullets were used to violently suppress the voices of young citizens who insisted on campaigning for a just, fair and inclusive country.

ACROSS the globe, year 2020 came with a number of challenges, particularly the devastating health and economic toll exerted on world economies by the Covid-19 pandemic. Although the outbreak of the dreaded virus necessitated the imposition of restrictions, which basically put the fundamental human rights of citizens in abeyance, many countries ensured measures were taken to compensate citizens for the inconveniences suffered as a result of measures to tackle the pandemic.
It is on record how countries went out of their way to provide stimulus packages in cash, food items, and free services to make the periods of restrictions bearable for their citizens.
In Nigeria, the reverse was the case as citizens overwhelmingly complained about being subjected to inhumane and dehumanising treatment as a result of serious human rights violations.
It has been argued that the Covid crisis merely brought out the worst in the Nigerian government. The administration of President Buhari has been under serious scrutiny by the international community over its atrocious record on human rights.
In the first place, the enforcement of the lockdown measures in March led to the death of scores of citizens in the hands of law enforcement officers. Similarly, all through 2020, human rights campaigners continued to flay the Buhari government’s attacks on dissent and its failure to allow for a safe space for voices of dissent demanding accountability and transparency in governance.

High-handed acts against dissent
THE year 2020 will go down as one in which the high handedness of the Nigerian authorities in responding to protests, dissent and the demands for reforms in governance put Nigeria on the verge of being sanctioned by the international community.
As such, the lack of accountability whenever rights of citizens are violated was placed in bold relief during the pandemic. This would be seen in the number of citizens who lost their lives to the excessive use of force by the police and its sister agencies in the armed services.
According to cases recorded by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), as at April 16, just over two weeks into the Covid-19 lock down imposed by the authorities, security forces had killed 18 Nigerians while enforcing the restrictions, while the Covid-19 itself claimed 12 lives.
Human rights crusaders said these figures imply that the lack of value for the lives of citizens proved more fatal for the right to life, than even the dreaded virus that the government was trying to stop from spreading. Even more galling is the fact that the perpetrators of those killings have continued to walk free, without being held to account for their actions.
Consequently, the critical point about the lack of accountability, which will lead to perpetrators of rights violations to be brought to justice, was clearly amplified during the last visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, Agnes Callamard, in September 2019. Callamard had called on the need to prioritise as a matter of urgency accountability and access to justice for all victims.
A preliminary report of the Special Rapporteur had noted that: “A number of high-profile cases of killings by police have resulted in the arrest and prosecution of the officers responsible. Some cases relating to the conflict between Fulani herdsmen and indigenous farming communities have led to investigations in Benue State. However, such examples of accountability remain the exception. In almost all of the cases that were brought to my attention during the visit none of the perpetrators had been brought to justice.
It is unfortunate that most of the findings made in this regard by the then Special Rapporteur in 2006 remain accurate. The loss of trust and confidence in public institutions prompt Nigerians to take matters of protection into their own hands, which is leading to a proliferation of (vigilante) self-protecting armed militia and cases of ‘jungle justice’,” she observed at the time.

Culture of impunity deepens… #EndSARS et al
THERE are clear indications that in 2020, the Nigerian government failed to take action to deter human rights abuses. Events within the year equally point to the continuation of the culture of impunity, especially with the absence of any effort to curb the serious human rights abuses. No other situation placed the reality in bold relief than the #EndSARS protests.
After some posturing, which was presented as readiness of the government to accede to the initial demands of the protesters, the government began a brutal crackdown on the #EndSARS movement.
The Buhari administration in the face of further agitations for an end to corruption, governance reforms and prudence in public finance management, unleashed the security forces to use brute force to suppress the protests. Thugs, and street urchins were also used attack peaceful protesters.
The situation came to a head on October 20, when a detachment of armed soldiers stormed the Lekki Toll Plaza, where young Nigerians were observing a sit-in in continuation of the protests. The soldiers opened fire on unarmed and defenseless citizens signing the national anthem with the Nigerian flag as their only shield.
Although the Buhari administration has been frantically trying to deny the shooting took place, rights groups have continued to counter this denial with clear evidence of how the government decided on killing its own citizens making demands for a better country.
2020 will therefore go down as the year in which a hail of bullets were used to violently suppress the voices of young citizens who insisted on campaigning for a just, fair and inclusive country.
Nonetheless, the rights violations that have been the hallmark of 2020 have attracted the condemnation of the international community.
On December 11, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced it had gathered enough evidence to commence a full probe into violence by Boko Haram terrorists, as well as security forces.
Similarly, in November, the UK Parliament had an extensive debate on the option of imposing sanctions on Nigerian officials responsible for the rights abuses perpetrated during the #EndSARS protests.
Added to this is the fact that the Biden-Harris administration, which is currently transitioning to take power in Washington, has shown more than passing interest in Nigeria. The Presidency of Donald Trump has been more interested in the right to religious freedom.
In the end, 2020 may well be the year of serious rights violations by Nigerian authorities; 2021 could well be the year those responsible are held to account by global powers.