Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sent “an
urgent complaint to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary
Detention over the arbitrary detention, torture and other ill-treatment
of journalist Omoyele Sowore and four other activists simply for
peacefully exercising their human rights.”
SERAP said: “The Working Group should request the Nigerian authorities
to withdraw the bogus charges against Mr Sowore and four other
activists, and to immediately and unconditionally release them.”
In the complaint dated 4 January, 2021, and signed by SERAP deputy
director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization said: “The detention of
Omoyele Sowore and four other activists constitutes an arbitrary
deprivation of their liberty because it does not have any legal
justification. The detention also does not meet minimum international
standards of due process.”
According to SERAP: “The arrest, continued detention and torture and
ill-treatment of Mr Sowore and four other activists solely for
peacefully exercising their human rights to freedom of expression and
peaceful assembly is a flagrant violation of the Nigerian Constitution,
1999 (as amended) and international human rights law. They are now
facing bogus charges simply for exercising their human rights.”
SERAP is calling on the Working Group to “initiate a procedure involving
the investigation of the detention, torture and bogus charges against Mr
Sowore and four other activists, and to urgently send an allegation
letter to the Nigerian government inquiring about the case generally,
and specifically about the legal basis for their arrest, detention,
torture and other ill-treatment, each of which is in violation of
international human rights law.”
SERAP is also urging the Working Group to “issue an opinion declaring
that the deprivation of liberty and detention of Mr Sowore and four
other activists is arbitrary and in violation of Nigeria’s Constitution
and obligations under international human rights law. We also urge the
Working Group to call for their immediate and unconditional release.”
According to SERAP, “We urge the Working Group to request the Nigerian
government to investigate and hold accountable all police officers and
security agents suspected to be responsible for the unlawful arrest,
continued detention, and torture and other ill-treatment of Mr Sowore
and four other activists.”
SERAP is also calling on the Working Group “to request the Nigerian
government to award Mr Sowore and four other activists adequate
compensation for the violations they have suffered as a result of their
unlawful arrest, arbitrary detention, torture and other ill-treatment.”
SERAP also argued that: “A detention is arbitrary when it is clearly
impossible to invoke any legal basis justifying the deprivation of
liberty. Article 9(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, which confirms the right to liberty and freedom from
arbitrary detention, guarantees that no one shall be deprived of his
liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as
are established by law.”
The complaint addressed to Mr. José Guevara Bermúdez Chairman/Rapporteur
of the Working Group, read in part: “The Human Rights Committee has
interpreted this right to mean that procedures for carrying out legally
authorized deprivation of liberty should also be established by law and
State parties should ensure compliance with their legally prescribed
procedures.”
“Pursuant to the mandate of the Working Group, the “Manual of Operations
of the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council” and the
publication “Working with the UN Human Rights Programme, a Handbook for
Civil Society”, SERAP, a non-governmental human rights organization, can
provide information on a specific human rights case or situation in a
particular country, or on a country’s laws and practices with human
rights implications.”
“SERAP therefore argues that the case adequately satisfies the
requirements by which to submit an individual complaint to the UN
Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.”
“SERAP is therefore seeking an opinion from the Working Group finding
the continuing detention of Mr Sowore and four other activists to be
arbitrary and in violation of Nigeria’s Constitution and obligations
under international law.”
“Accordingly, it is hereby requested that the Working Group consider
this Individual Complaint a formal request for an opinion of the Working
Group pursuant to Resolution 1997/50 of the Commission on Human Rights,
as reiterated by Resolutions 2000/36, 2003/31, and Human Rights Council
Resolutions 6/4, 15/18, 20/16, and 24/7.”
“SERAP respectfully requests the Working Group to initiate the procedure
involving the investigation of individual cases toward reaching an
opinion declaring the detention of Mr Sowore and four other activists to
be arbitrary and in violation of international human rights law. To this
end, SERAP will pursue the regular communications procedure before the
Working Group in order to have the ability to provide comments on any
response by the Nigerian government.”
“On the midnight of 1st January, 2021, Mr Sowore and four other
activists were arrested by the officers of Nigeria Police Force,
particularly men dispatched from Apo Division, Abuja, at the
#CrossoverWithProtest, a planned procession across the country on New
Year Eve. They were reportedly subjected to severe torture and other
ill-treatment, and Sowore was left with bruises in his nose and all over
his body in an apparently the use of excessive force by the police
officers.”
“Sowore and four other activists were arraigned at the Magistrate Court
in Wuse Zone 2 on Monday, 4th January, 2021 on three charges of criminal
conspiracy, unlawful assembly, and attempting to incite others. Sowore
denied all the charges, but the Magistrate ordered that he, alongside
other activists, be remanded in Kuje Prison. He was denied access to his
friends and family for days. The authorities have also refused to
provide him with medical attention despite overt marks of torture and
other ill-treatment he reportedly suffered.”