(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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