UK lawmakers have written to Patricia Scotland, Secretary-General of Commonwealth highlighting the lackadaisical attitude of the Nigerian government in ending incessant killings in Northern Nigeria.
Caroline Cox, David Alton, Jin Shannon and Helena Kennedy in a letter addressed the Commonwealth ,expressed serious concerns over the rising level of insecurity in Northern part of Nigeria.
According to UK lawmakers, findings revealed Nigerian Army may have colluded with some elements to be lax in the fight against insecurity.
Seeking the prompt intervention of the Commonwealth to prevent further bloodshed, the lawmakers wrote a report detailing their investigations on the killings in Nigeria.
Other UK lawmakers who appended their signatures on the letter include;
Lord Williams, Lord Carey, Dr Christopher Cocksworth, Phillip Mounstephen, Lord Stoddart, Lord Anderson, Lord Cormack.
Sir Geoffrey Nice QC, Ayo Adedoin, Ewelina Ochab, Mervyn Thomas, Dr Khataza Gondwe, Nevile Kyrte-Smith, Dr John Eibiner and Ann Buwalda.
The letter reads:
“We write to highlight urgent concerns about escalating violence in Nigeria where attacks led by Boko Haram, Fulani herders and other Islamic militia continue in Northern and central-belt states with reports of increasing violence in the South-East.
“According to a report by the UK All-Party Parliament Group for international Freedom of Religion or Belief, thousands of civilians have been killed and elements of the Nigeria Government may be complicit in violence.
“The APPG’s concern reflects the findings of a report by Amnesty International, which concludes that the Nigerian armed forces have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during their operations.
“The Nigerian former army Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Theophilus Danjuma, whom some of us have met and spoken to, says the armed forces are “not neutral, they collude” in the “ethnic cleansing” by Fulani herders. He insists that villagers must defend themselves because “depending on the armed forces” will result in them dying” one by one. The ethnic cleansing must stop.
“The state’s failure to protect its citizens is a clear breach of its obligations under the commonwealth charter in respect of human rights. There is now an urgent need (a) to ensure adequate protection and aid for those suffering the loss of family members and destruction of their homes and livelihood and (b) to end impunity by ensuring that complaints related to human rights violations are promptly, inadequate and impartially investigated, and those responsible are held to account after fair trials.
“We write therefore, to ask whether you are able to respond on behalf of The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group. We should be very willing to meet in person (or perhaps more practically, online via Zoom) to discuss how we might proceed.”
Leave a Reply