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| Amnesty Int’l Report: Nigerian Government Is Culpably Sadistic, Murderous And Lawless |
(Intersociety, Onitsha Nigeria: 7th March 2017)-Nigeria’s
Government chains of negative reaction to the recent Report of Amnesty
International are internationally culpable, sadistic, murderous, remorseless,
baseless and lawless. The referenced chains of negative reaction from the
present Government of Nigeria headed by ailing President Muhammadu Buhari
including threats, name calling, campaigns of calumny and false denials; are
also grossly inadmissible and unscientific, going by the modern principles of
social science research and findings.
In both natural and social
science research or investigation and their findings; for same to be credibly
and acceptably disputed by another or opposite or accused view; they must be
backed up with counter findings derived from detailed and facts laden counter
research or investigation and its findings.
Staying in the comfort of a
public office or media program and dishing out scornful and condemnable
statements or launching of illogical verbal attacks are grossly insufficient to
counter years or months-long forensic and eagle-eyed investigation grounded in
modern local and international laws and norms and backed with basket-load of
pictorial, video, paper and other material evidence credibly derived from or
linked to the crime scenes, crime perpetrators and crime victims.
In the said chains of negative
reaction by the Government of Nigeria, no counter facts and findings were
presented or made to credibly dispute those of Amnesty International. No single
evidence has been provided by same till date to back up its hilarious and
watery claims that the IMN and IPOB/Pro Biafra Campaigners were “violent groups
(i.e. armed opposition groups or armed insurgencies)”.
Most, if not all the Reports of
Amnesty International on Nigeria particularly the ones on mass murder of over
1000 and hundreds of unarmed and defenceless members of IMN and IPOB/Pro Biafra
Campaigns as well as its recent community report on Nigeria for
2016/7; are all irrefutable and laden with unassailable findings. The AI
Reports under reference are also legally admissible locally and
internationally.
The referenced AI Reports have
totally survived the illogical, empty and false denials as well as technical
escapism, criminalization and re-criminalization of the present
Government of Nigeria. Very importantly, the AI Reports
are solidly grounded in the famous Eights Key Modes or Features of Academic
Discourse/Research or Investigative Findings; which are (1) Debate, (2) Scholarship, (3) Argument, (4)
Criticism, (5) Analysis, (6) Evidence, (7) Objectivity and (8) Precision.
Since the issuance of various
reports by Amnesty International on various forms of regime atrocities or
widespread rights abuses by the present Administration of Muhammadu Buhari, there
have been chains of negative reactions founded on gross false denials, threats,
repeat-atrocities, acculturated impunity and campaigns of calumny against the
issuing groups (i.e. AI).
There have also been nocturnal
attempts by the Govt. to frustrate or stop the issuing groups from issuance of
their referenced Reports. These presidential and its security pressures have to
a large extent forced another internationally respected rights group-Human
Rights Watch research team on Nigeria to be ill-responsive to raging widespread
rights abuses in Nigeria. This is substantially on account of the fact that its
Nigerian Research Team is headed by a Nigerian of Southwest extraction.
For the avoidance of doubt, one
of the panicky, despicable and condemnable chains of Nigerian Government’s
negative reaction is contained in the link below: http://europe.newsweek.com/biafra-nigeria-amnesty-international-denies-allegations-killings-564298?rm=eu
In its latest reaction, issued by
the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, dated Saturday, 4th March
2017, the Federal Government of Nigeria, among other things, not only admitted
killing of hundreds of unarmed and
defenceless members of IMN and IPOB/Pro Biafra Self Determination Campaigns;
but also alluded that it killed them based on mere suspicion that “they
constitute threats to national stability, unity and security”.
It further equated IMN and Pro
Biafra Campaigners with dreaded Boko Haram insurgents and tagged street
protests/processions embarked upon by the former as “insurgency/armed
rebellion”. These have clearly confirmed our earlier position that the Buhari
Administration had issued and placed a presidential death code on the head
of every member or supporter of unarmed and defenceless IMN and IPOB/Pro Biafra
Campaign; and amnestied Boko Haram and Nomad Fulani Jihadists. The referenced
admissible and culpable statement of the Federal Government of Nigeria is very
strong in legal and social contexts and enough to hold it and its chief
perpetrators to account whether at local, regional or international levels.
On accusation levelled against
Amnesty International by the Buhari Government that “it is meddling into the
internal and security affairs of Nigeria”; it further exposes the Nigerian
Government as a modern government that has literally chosen the path of primitivism
and Stone Age. This Government of the Stone Age must be made to
understand that totalitarian sovereignty is dead and buried long ago; and that
the modern trend in sovereignty lies in the mandatory confines of citizens’
sovereignty or sovereignty as a responsibility.
That is to say that where
there are people, there is human rights; to the extent that the current
world population of Stateless persons of 10million are mandatorily governed by
human rights laws and norms. The defence of territorial sovereignty recklessly
used by murderous and lawless political territories to massacre their innocent
and unarmed nationals has long been out-fashioned and nailed in the coffin
under the UN System. A Political Territory loses its territorial sovereignty
rights the moment it is empirically found by the UN or a globally recognized
non State actor (i.e. Amnesty International) that such Political Territory is
engulfed by complex humanitarian emergencies or widespread rights violations or
human rights abuses of alarming proportions.
In all, human rights are
indivisible and indissoluble and transcend boundaries, races, colours, genders,
ages, religions, tribes, politics, military, as well as wicked and hash
political, territorial, economic and ethno-religious policies and sentiments.
The activities of Amnesty International are well founded and borderless and
they cut across the entire 193-Member States of UN and some 45 other non
independent and trusteeship territories of the world.
Mass killing of unarmed and
defenceless citizens based on sentiments, sheer ethno-religious hatred and mere
suspicion of “likelihood of constituting threats to national security,
stability and unity” has serious repercussions under the UN Socio-Legal system.
Even in war situations, it is abominable and reprehensible to kill non
combatants or attack non-military necessity
including refugee camps, holy places of worship and other civilian settlements; not to talk of
mass killing of unarmed and defenceless citizens on account of their
embarkation on socio-religious protests and processions.
Consequently, we gladly wish to
commend the authorities of Amnesty International, UK for their courage,
sagacity and empiricism; not minding orchestrated and coordinated campaigns of
calumny against it by the Government of Nigeria and its hired agents including
leprous Civil Society Organizations. Beyond issuance of such damning reports,
the internationally respected rights body should go a step further by using its
vast global contacts and goodwill to ensure that those who perpetrated the
heinous crimes under referenced in Nigeria or any part thereof are brought to
local, regional or international criminal and compensatory justice.
Signed:
For: International Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law
(Intersociety)
Emeka Umeagbalasi, Board Chairman
Mobile Line: +2348174090052
Email: emekaumeagbalasi69@gmail.com
Website: intersociety-ng.org
Obianuju Igboeli, Esq.
Head, Civil Liberties & Rule of Law Program
Mobile Line: +2348180771506
Chinwe Umeche, Esq.
Head, Democracy & Good Governance Program
Mobile Line: +2347013238673
Ndidiamaka C. Bernard, Esq.
Head, Int’l Justice & Human Rights Program
Mobile Line: +23430821493
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