Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sent “an
\nurgent complaint to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary
\nDetention over the arbitrary detention, torture and other ill-treatment
\nof journalist Omoyele Sowore and four other activists simply for
\npeacefully exercising their human rights.”<\/p>\n
SERAP said: “The Working Group should request the Nigerian authorities
\nto withdraw the bogus charges against Mr Sowore and four other
\nactivists, and to immediately and unconditionally release them.”<\/p>\n
In the complaint dated 4 January, 2021, and signed by SERAP deputy
\ndirector Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization said: “The detention of
\nOmoyele Sowore and four other activists constitutes an arbitrary
\ndeprivation of their liberty because it does not have any legal
\njustification. The detention also does not meet minimum international
\nstandards of due process.”<\/p>\n
According to SERAP: “The arrest, continued detention and torture and
\nill-treatment of Mr Sowore and four other activists solely for
\npeacefully exercising their human rights to freedom of expression and
\npeaceful assembly is a flagrant violation of the Nigerian Constitution,
\n1999 (as amended) and international human rights law. They are now
\nfacing bogus charges simply for exercising their human rights.”<\/p>\n
SERAP is calling on the Working Group to “initiate a procedure involving
\nthe investigation of the detention, torture and bogus charges against Mr
\nSowore and four other activists, and to urgently send an allegation
\nletter to the Nigerian government inquiring about the case generally,
\nand specifically about the legal basis for their arrest, detention,
\ntorture and other ill-treatment, each of which is in violation of
\ninternational human rights law.”<\/p>\n
SERAP is also urging the Working Group to “issue an opinion declaring
\nthat the deprivation of liberty and detention of Mr Sowore and four
\nother activists is arbitrary and in violation of Nigeria’s Constitution
\nand obligations under international human rights law. We also urge the
\nWorking Group to call for their immediate and unconditional release.”<\/p>\n
According to SERAP, “We urge the Working Group to request the Nigerian
\ngovernment to investigate and hold accountable all police officers and
\nsecurity agents suspected to be responsible for the unlawful arrest,
\ncontinued detention, and torture and other ill-treatment of Mr Sowore
\nand four other activists.”<\/p>\n
SERAP is also calling on the Working Group “to request the Nigerian
\ngovernment to award Mr Sowore and four other activists adequate
\ncompensation for the violations they have suffered as a result of their
\nunlawful arrest, arbitrary detention, torture and other ill-treatment.”<\/p>\n
SERAP also argued that: “A detention is arbitrary when it is clearly
\nimpossible to invoke any legal basis justifying the deprivation of
\nliberty. Article 9(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and
\nPolitical Rights, which confirms the right to liberty and freedom from
\narbitrary detention, guarantees that no one shall be deprived of his
\nliberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as
\nare established by law.”<\/p>\n
The complaint addressed to Mr. Jos\u00e9 Guevara Berm\u00fadez Chairman\/Rapporteur
\nof the Working Group, read in part: “The Human Rights Committee has
\ninterpreted this right to mean that procedures for carrying out legally
\nauthorized deprivation of liberty should also be established by law and
\nState parties should ensure compliance with their legally prescribed
\nprocedures.”<\/p>\n
“Pursuant to the mandate of the Working Group, the “Manual of Operations
\nof the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council” and the
\npublication “Working with the UN Human Rights Programme, a Handbook for
\nCivil Society”, SERAP, a non-governmental human rights organization, can
\nprovide information on a specific human rights case or situation in a
\nparticular country, or on a country’s laws and practices with human
\nrights implications.”<\/p>\n
“SERAP therefore argues that the case adequately satisfies the
\nrequirements by which to submit an individual complaint to the UN
\nWorking Group on Arbitrary Detention.”<\/p>\n
“SERAP is therefore seeking an opinion from the Working Group finding
\nthe continuing detention of Mr Sowore and four other activists to be
\narbitrary and in violation of Nigeria’s Constitution and obligations
\nunder international law.”<\/p>\n
“Accordingly, it is hereby requested that the Working Group consider
\nthis Individual Complaint a formal request for an opinion of the Working
\nGroup pursuant to Resolution 1997\/50 of the Commission on Human Rights,
\nas reiterated by Resolutions 2000\/36, 2003\/31, and Human Rights Council
\nResolutions 6\/4, 15\/18, 20\/16, and 24\/7.”<\/p>\n
“SERAP respectfully requests the Working Group to initiate the procedure
\ninvolving the investigation of individual cases toward reaching an
\nopinion declaring the detention of Mr Sowore and four other activists to
\nbe arbitrary and in violation of international human rights law. To this
\nend, SERAP will pursue the regular communications procedure before the
\nWorking Group in order to have the ability to provide comments on any
\nresponse by the Nigerian government.”<\/p>\n
“On the midnight of 1st January, 2021, Mr Sowore and four other
\nactivists were arrested by the officers of Nigeria Police Force,
\nparticularly men dispatched from Apo Division, Abuja, at the
\n#CrossoverWithProtest, a planned procession across the country on New
\nYear Eve. They were reportedly subjected to severe torture and other
\nill-treatment, and Sowore was left with bruises in his nose and all over
\nhis body in an apparently the use of excessive force by the police
\nofficers.”<\/p>\n
“Sowore and four other activists were arraigned at the Magistrate Court
\nin Wuse Zone 2 on Monday, 4th January, 2021 on three charges of criminal
\nconspiracy, unlawful assembly, and attempting to incite others. Sowore
\ndenied all the charges, but the Magistrate ordered that he, alongside
\nother activists, be remanded in Kuje Prison. He was denied access to his
\nfriends and family for days. The authorities have also refused to
\nprovide him with medical attention despite overt marks of torture and
\nother ill-treatment he reportedly suffered.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":56720,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77527","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n