Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1987
NIGERIA
.
President Ibrahim Babangida came to power in a military coup
in August 1985, overthrowing a previous military government
which had seized power from civilians in December 1983. A
30-member Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC) is the country's
main decisionmaking organ, while a mixed military/civilian
cabinet presides over the Federal Government's executive
departments. Military governors head each of the 21 states.
The 1979 Constitution remains partially in effect, but
significant provisions, namely, those guaranteeing free
elections, political parties, and the right to due process and
habeas corpus, are suspended. Due process and habeas corpus,
however, continue to be respected in most cases. Federal and
state legislation are promulgated by decrees, which are exempt
from challenge in the courts. The Government elaborated plans
in 1987 to return the country to civilian rule featuring a
two-party system, although in July it postponed the final date
from 1990 to 1992. As first steps, the Government in 1987
created a National Electoral Commission and a Constitutional
Review Committee, both composed of civilians, and conducted
nationwide elections in December for local governing councils.
The Government enforces its authority through the Federal
security apparatus--the military, the State Security Service
(SSS) , and the national police--and through the courts. No
separate law enforcement agencies exist at the state and local
levels. The Government generally exercises effective control
over the security apparatus, but deficiencies in organization
and management sometimes lead to human rights violations.
Nigeria, with an estimated 108 million people, is Africa's
most populous country. It has a mixed economy in which the
Government plays a major but declining role. In June 1986,
President Babangida announced an economic structural adjustment
program calling for increased reliance on market forces and
the private sector.
The Babangida Government continued to articulate a policy of
general respect for fundamental human rights. Important
exceptions related to the Government's efforts to restrain
political debate and participation prior to a return to
civilian rule and significant deficiencies in the judicial and
state security systems. Freedom of the press was undercut by
several notable cases in which government authorities moved
against publishers and journalists for printing articles
either at odds with government decisions or considered
inimical to national security. In the wake of serious
religious rioting between Christians and Muslims in March,
which left 19 dead, the Government instituted various bans on
religious advertising and campus-based religious organizing as
well as limitations on proselytizing. The Government
continued its practice of reviewing the cases of Nigerians
detained or convicted under decrees of the previous military
administration. The impact of these efforts was reduced by
the slow pace of judicial procedures, especially in the case
of the corruption and civil disturbances tribunals.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political Killing
There was no evidence of politically motivated killing at
government or private instigation in 1987. The October 1986
letter-bomb killing of the editor-in-chief of an influential
weekly newsmagazine. Dele Giwa, remains unsolved, despite an
ongoing government investigation. The incident continues to
generate keen public interest and unsubstantiated allegations
of government involvement.
b. Disappearanceppearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearance.
c. Torture or Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishmenture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
A portion of the 1979 Constitution that is still in effect
outlaws torture and mistreatment of prisoners. Nigerian law
provides that such excesses be dealt with in criminal or civil
proceedings. There were no reports or allegations of torture
in 1987. Public allegations of police brutality surfaced
periodically, primarily in connection with periods of
heightened religious or community tensions. Prominent
northerners alleged, following March rioting in northern
Kaduna state, that the police and military committed excesses
in their efforts to stem the violence and apprehend
perpetrators. Similar charges were made about the treatment
of detainees, some of them children. There has been no public
investigation of these allegations. Suspected criminals
allegedly killed by police in separate instances in different
states led to antipolice mob violence. In one of the
incidents, the state governor ordered a judicial probe, and in
both cases police suspected of the actions were arrested.
Prison conditions remain poor because of the lack of basic
necessities. In May, inmates at one prison rioted over food
supplies, resulting in the deaths of 24 prisoners. A special
tribunal appointed by the Government to look into the incident
began hearings in September.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, Exile or Forced Laborrary Arrest, Detention, Exile, or Forced Labor
The Babangida Government has retained the authority to detain
without charge persons suspected of acts prejudicial to state
security or harmful to the economic well-being of the country
under Decree 2 of 1984, the State Security (Detention of
Persons) Decree. This Decree suspends sections of the 1979
Constitution guaranteeing citizens the right to fair trial,
due process, and judicial determination of the legality of
detention (habeas corpus). While it imposes no time limit and
disallows challenges of the detention in a court of law, the
Decree does provide for administrative review of detention
cases every 3 months. Several persons, including former
politicians returning from self-exile, were detained under
this Decree during 1987. One American citizen was detained
for 103 days without charge before his release on his own
recognizance on November 23.
Some Nigerians have been detained in 1987 without being held
under the provisions of Decree 2 of 1984. Cumbersome
administrative procedures and bureaucratic inefficiency
sometimes result in persons suspected of criminal offenses
being held for extended periods without charge or trial even
though provisions of the 1979 Constitution still in force
guarantee persons charged with crimes a fair public trial in
civilian courts within 3 months from the date of arrest. The
Director of Prisons said in September that about two-thirds of
Nigeria's 54,000 inmates are awaiting trials. During routine
inspections of prisons in 1987, High Court chief judges
exercised their right to release detainees found to have spent
more time in prison than they would have if they had been
convicted for their alleged crimes.
An unknown number of persons are still in detention without
charge or trial following the arrests of about 700 persons in
connection with the March religious disturbances in northern
Nigeria. The Civil Disturbances (Special Tribunal) Decree of
1987, promulgated after the disturbances, provided for
investigation of the rioting and for the arrest and trial by
special tribunal of those suspected of committing specified
offenses. This decree makes northern Nigeria's criminal
procedure code the applicable law for the trials (including
provisions for bail, representation by lawyers, and appeal—
except in cases of armed robbery). However, administrative
confusion has resulted in continued detention without charge
or bail for many. The refusal of some of the accused to
accept government-appointed lawyers has delayed tribunal
proceedings. At the end of 1987, about three-fourths of the
89 cases initially slated for trial by the civil disturbances
special tribunal had been tried. In July a Kaduna state High
Court judge ordered the release of two of those arrested on
grounds that the government counsel was unable to produce
evidence to justify their arrest under the Civil Disturbances
(Special Tribunal) Decree of 1987. In August, 44 of those
slated for trial engaged in a 4-day hunger strike to protest
the pace of the trials, prison conditions, and being forced to
share cells with convicted criminals. The Federal Government
responded by transferring the convicts to other jails.
In 1987 the Government continued a process, begun in 1986, of
reviewing the cases of persons detained or convicted under
various decrees during the previous military administration
(1984-85), many of whom had already been released. In June a
detainees 's review panel ordered the release of 22 persons
following a review of all outstanding detentions. Some were
granted bail, others were either recommended for trial or had
cases pending in court. The panel is headed by the Attorney
General, who said the panel will continue to meet periodically.
In 1987 two state governments released over 650 suspected
members of the Maitatsine religious sect. They had been
detained without charge since uprisings in 1984 and 1985 in
Gongola and Bauchi states. The state governments had been
unable to prosecute them due to the unwillingness of witnesses
to testify against them in court. According to the Gongola
state Attorney General, the 50 most dangerous prisoners will
remain in detention indefinitely. About 100 of the detainees
reportedly died of hunger, disease, and malnutrition while in
prison custody.
Still in detention without charge since August 1985 are former
military Head of State (1984-85) Muhammadu Buhari and his
Chief of Staff Tunde Idiagbon. No Nigerian has been exiled.
Self-exiled politicians are free to return home with the
caveat that those suspected of crimes are subject to
prosecution. Former Senate President Joe Wayas has been
detained without charge since returning to Nigeria in June
1987. A former Speaker of the House of Representatives who
returned in December 1986 is also in detention. A former
Minister of Commerce and Internal Affairs, detained without
charge since his return to Nigeria in 1986, was released in
May 1987.
The Government does not use forced labor as a means of
political coercion or as a sanction against free expression.
Nigeria's 1979 Constitution provides that "no person shall be
required to perform forced or compulsory labor." The latter
excludes community service programs such as the National Youth
Service Corps and environmental clean-up campaigns.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial of Fair Public Trial
The 1984 decree modifying the 1979 Constitution left the
judiciary relatively unscathed, but it shifted judicial
activity for certain specified offenses to special military
tribunals that were established outside the regular judicial
system, notably for corruption cases( see below). The regular
judiciary is composed of both Federal and state courts and
includes procedures for appeals from courts of first instance
to parallel appeal courts at state levels, then to the Federal
Court of Appeal and finally to the Federal Supreme Court.
Courts of first instance under the 1979 Constitution include
magistrate or district courts, customary or area courts,
religious or Shari'a courts, and for some specified cases, the
state high courts. In some instances the nature of the case
determines which court enjoys jurisdiction. In others, when
jurisdiction is overlapping as in the case of customary and
Shari'a courts, the plaintiff can designate the court.
Shari'a, or Islamic courts, are limited by the Constitution to
the 11 northern states of Nigeria.
Trials in the regular court system are public and adhere to
certain constitutionally guaranteed individual rights. These
include a presumption of innocence, the right to be present at
a public trial, to confront witnesses and present evidence,
and to be represented by legal counsel if so desired. In
capital cases, the Government provides counsel for indigent
defendants. In other cases, indigents must rely for counsel
on the Nigerian Legal Aid Society, which has limited resources,
Assistance is extended under the Legal Aid Act of 1976 to
persons with incomes of up to $400 per year. There is a
functioning bail system. In his Independence Day speech,
President Babangida announced that the Government would ensure
strict compliance with laws denying bail to those charged with
murder and armed robbery.
Through decrees promulgated by the previous military
government, but still in effect, the AFRC transferred
jurisdiction over cases involving corruption, currency
violations, armed robbery, and a variety of miscellaneous
offenses, such as drug trafficking and illegal oil bunkering,
from the civilian judicial system to special military
tribunals. In these cases, those charged have access to legal
assistance, bail (except in the case of armed robbery), and
the right to appeal (except in the case of armed robbery and
conviction under the Civil Disturbances Decree). Civilian
judges head all special tribunals even though military members
may be included. Currently six special tribunals including a
Special Appeal Tribunal are in operation. Convictions for
armed robbery by the Special Robbery and Firearms Tribunals
carry the death sentence and no right of appeal, although the
sentence must be confirmed in some states by state military
governors or the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory
before it is carried out. The Special Appeal Tribunal began
its first hearing in September, but no appeals were concluded
before the end of the year. Recommendations of the Appeal
Tribunal are subject to AFRC confirmation.
Amnesty International's 1987 Report (covering 1986) gave
prominent attention to the activities of the Special Robbery
and Firearms Tribunals, noting the large number of persons
sentenced to death and executed in 1986 and the need for an
appeal mechanism to a higher court. The judicial review
panels of 1986 recommended corruption trials for nearly 800
former public officials. However, the two corruption
tribunals created in September 1986 to try these suspects have
so far heard fewer than a dozen of the pending cases.
In September, five defense attorneys withdrew under protest
from the civil disturbances tribunal proceedings on the March
religious riots. The lawyers, who were jointly defending 67
people, claimed they were being denied regular access to their
clients and accused the judges of partiality. The Trial
Lawyers Association of Nigeria has offered free legal service
to the accused persons who have rejected government-appointed
counsel. The accused have no right of appeal, and the AFRC
must confirm all sentences.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home or Correspondencerary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
Nigerian society is generally free of arbitrary interference
by the State in the private lives of its citizens. Provisions
of the 1979 Constitution still in force guarantee rights of
privacy in the home, correspondence, and oral electronic
communications. General surveillance of the population by the
State is not practiced. In April police reportedly searched
the homes of some members of the government-appointed Political
Bureau, during investigations into the unauthorized leak to the
press of the Bureau's report. No Bureau members were arrested
or detained. Forced entry into homes without a warrant rarely
occurs
.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Pressof Speech and Press
The modified 1979 Constitution provides for freedom of
expression and the press. Political, social, and economic
issues are openly discussed. However, officials frequently
caution journalists both publicly and privately on their
responsibility and the extent of press freedom. In addition,
in 1987 the Government took actions against a number of
publishers and journalists to limit news reporting that is
critical of government policies. Academic freedom is
generally respected.
The 1979 Constitution reserves to the Federal and state
governments the exclusive right to own and operate radio and
television stations. There are no restrictions on ownership
of print media, and Nigeria has a lively press. Among the
vast array of Nigerian daily newspapers are seven privately
owned national dailies with large circulations, one daily
owned by the Federal Government, and another in which the
Federal Government owns a majority share. Some states operate
their own daily newspapers. In some states privately owned
dailies compete with state papers. Four weekly newsmagazines
vie for national readership.
On several occasions in 1987 Federal and state authorities
interrogated, jailed, or fired editors and reporters of
government-owned papers on grounds that they had published
articles inconsistent with official policy or otherwise
embarrassing to the Government. Triggering these actions were
items such as a two-page paid advertisement charging government
security forces with bias in handling the March religious
riots, an erroneously reported trip abroad by the President's
wife, and an editorial critical of the Federal Government's
removal of two leading directors of government-controlled
banks who objected to central bank policies.
In April President Babangida pledged not to revive Decree 4, a
curb on the press imposed by the previous military Government.
However, later in the year the President prohibited any
attempts by the media to give publicity to those banned from
elective office and to those advocating creation of new states
in Nigeria.
The 1979 Constitution includes a provision aimed at preventing
disclosure of confidential information harmful to national
security. Citing national security among its reasons, the
Government closed for 5 months a leading weekly newsmagazine,
Newswatch, and briefly detained three of its editors for
publishing excerpts of the then-classified Political Bureau
report on Nigeria's political future. The editors publicly
apologized and stated they had not intended to embarrass the
Government. They were not prosecuted.
During 1987 the Government made several other moves aimed at
curbing what it considers media irresponsibility with national
security implications. It impounded an issue of a privately
owned newsweekly for criticizing the firing of the bank
officials, continued to require official authorization prior
to press interviews of civil servants, limited the quantity of
religious broadcasting on television and radio (all government
owned) following religious rioting, and prohibited publication
of advertisements paid for by religious organizations. A
military tribunal hearing a corruption case against a former
politician acquitted the publisher, editor, and reporter of a
leftwing magazine of contempt for publishing an article
tribunal authorities had considered prejudicial to the
tribunal. In October Federal security authorities temporarily
prevented publication of a book about the life of a prominent
newsmagazine editor killed by a letter-bomb in 1986.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Associationof Peaceful Assembly and Association
Although Nigeria's 1979 Constitution assures all citizens the
right to assemble freely and to associate with other persons
in political parties, trade unions, or other special interest
associations, in practice, there are important exceptions.
The provision regarding the right to form and join political
parties was suspended by Decree 9 of 1984. This Decree also
authorizes the Government to dissolve or ban any other group
considered to have objectives similar to those of a political
party. Police monitor gatherings suspected of violating the
ban. Government officials frequently reminded Nigerians
during 1987 of the continuing ban on political activity but
did not dissolve any other organizations despite widespread
allegations that an organization formed by a group of northern
elders had objectives similar to those of a political party.
The Government announced in June that political activity and
the formation of political parties, limited to two, will
resume in 1989.
Nigerians form and participate in a myriad of special interest
organizations, including a wide range of religious groups,
trade groups, women's organizations, and professional
associations. Organizations are not required to register with
the Government. However, following the March religious
disturbances, the Government introduced a requirement that
religious groups be sanctioned by either the Christian
Association of Nigeria, in the case of Christian groups, or
the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, in the case of Muslim
groups. Permits are not normally required for public meetings
unless the venue is outdoors in a government facility and
police security would be appropriate. In most states open-air
religious services, outside a church or a mosque, are
prohibited.
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has been
banned since nationwide student demonstrations in May 1986.
However, in December 1986 the Government authorized individual
campuses to reinstitute student organizations. In May 1987,
police were deployed to forestall a news conference scheduled
by NANS to commemorate the previous year's demonstrations.
Earlier the Inspector-General of Police had broadcast a
reminder to students that the ban on NANS demonstrations and
meetings was still in force. The police also published new
guidelines for handling campus disturbances to avoid
fatalities such as occurred in 1986.
All Nigerian workers 16 years or older may join trade unions,
with the exception of members of the armed forces and
designated employees of essential government services at the
Federal, state, and local levels. Employers are obliged to
recognize trade unions and must pay a dues checkoff for
employees who are members of a registered trade union. The
establishment of closed shops is prohibited. About 10 percent
of the 3 million nonfarm work force claims union membership,
and the unions constitute a strong bargaining force for worker
rights. With the ban on political parties still in force,
unions have been cautious not to assume the role of a
political party, but labor leaders have spoken out both in
support and criticism of government labor policies. However,
in response to a labor-led campaign against the Government's
stated intention to eliminate or reduce petroleum subsidies,
about 30 officials of the Nigeria Labour Congress, including
its President, were detained without charges for 8 days in
mid-December. Although the Government threatened to charge
them with subversion, all were released unconditionally.
Despite provisions in the 1979 Constitution and Nigeria's
ratification of 28 International Labor Organization (ILO)
conventions, government decrees and policy continue to
restrict certain labor freedoms. A 1978 decree created a
single central labor body, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC),
forcibly merged a number of unions into 42 industrial unions,
and deregistered all other unions. The Government has not
responded to a 1982 ILO committee of experts finding that this
decree violates ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association
and Protection of the Right to Organize. The 1978 decree also
created senior staff associations to represent white-collar
workers, which a 1986 decree explicitly excluded from NLC
membership, forcing two such associations to withdraw. Since
1975 government policy has permitted international labor
affiliation only with the ILO and the Organization of African
Trade Union Unity and its affiliated pan-African labor
federations. Government policy does permit, however, informal
"fraternal relations" with foreign unions and secretariats.
The labor laws of Nigeria permit collective bargaining between
management and trade unions. However, a series of restrictive
measures imposed by the Government have significantly reduced
the range of issues left for bargaining. In February 1987,
the National Economic Emergency Decree of 1985, which granted
the Federal Government broad authority over labor matters, was
extended for 2 more years. The Government transferred to
state governments the power to deduct special levies
involuntarily from the salaries of workers for financing state
development projects. The nationwide wage freeze, an
anti-inflation measure, was imposed in 1984 and lifted in
1987. Also, in 1987 the Government reestablished the
requirement, in the Minimum Wage Act, that the minimum wage
must be paid to employees in companies with 50 or more
employees. (It had amended the Act in 1986 to require the
minimum wage scale only in companies with more than 500
employees .
)
Work stoppages and strikes are allowed by law (except in
essential services), but few occurred during 1987. In June
seven public service unions representing civil service
employees of Bendel state went on strike because the state
government was not meeting its financial obligations to its
employees and retirees. The NLC supported the striking civil
servants, and the Federal Government moved quickly to achieve
a settlement. In October some 40 petroleum workers seized
control of an offshore oil rig and locked their expatriate
supervisors in their quarters for 2 days because their
employer, a Nigerian company, had refused to turn over union
dues to union representatives. The dispute was defused
without government intervention when management agreed to
accept the demands of the workers. The 1976 Trade Disputes
Decree provides for mediation of such disputes by an
industrial arbitration panel and a national industrial court,
and forbids strikes and lockouts while disputes are under
mediation.
c. Freedom of Religionof Religion
Nigeria's 1979 Constitution prohibits the Federal and state
governments from adopting any religion as a state religion.
This is adhered to in practice. Constitutional provisions
guaranteeing freedom of religious belief, religious practice,
and religious education are generally respected. Allegations
persist of harassment of Christians by officials in
predominantly Muslim areas of northern Nigeria in the form of
bureaucratic obstacles to church construction that delay
projects, sometimes indefinitely. There are no restrictions
on numbers of clergy trained nor on contacts with
coreligionists in other countries. Religious travel,
including the hajj, is permitted and in some cases officially
supported. Missionaries and foreign clergy, though limited by
quotas, are permitted to work in Nigeria. Some states require
licenses for religious services outside churches and mosques.
Tensions between the Muslim and Christian communities of
Nigeria escalated in March 1987 to several days of violent
rioting in the northern state of Kaduna . The Government
announced a death toll of 19, along with the destruction of
162 churches, 5 mosques, and 152 private homes. The Government
created a special civil disturbances tribunal to try persons
arrested by a joint police-military investigative panel. The
Government also announced a ban, still in effect, on all
religious organizations on postprimary campuses, while
reaffirming the right of individual students to practice their
religion in recognized places of worship. Several state
governments temporarily banned religious preaching and playing
of religious cassettes outside places of worship without the
written permission of police. Publication of advertisements
paid for by religious organizations remains banned, and
religious programming on radio and television remains limited
in some areas. The Minister of Internal Affairs announced
that no new religious organizations could be formed without
approval from one of two designated religious bodies, one
Muslim and one Christian. In July the Government launched an
advisory council on religious affairs, comprised of equal
numbers of Christian and Muslim leaders.
The 1982 ban on the Maitatsine religious sect remains in
effect. The group still exists but is closely monitored by
the police.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreignof Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
Nigeria's Constitution entitles citizens to move freely
throughout Nigeria and to reside where they wish. The same
provision prohibits expulsion from Nigeria or the denial of
entry to or exit from Nigeria to any citizen. In general,
these provisions have been observed. Nigerians travel abroad
in large numbers, and many thousands are studying abroad.
Exit visas are not required. Citizens who leave Nigeria have
the right to return. Citizenship cannot be revoked for any
reason, including political reasons, from persons who are
citizens by birth or registration. Fifty-seven naturalized
Nigerians, however, had their citizenship revoked in 1987 for
alleged irregularities in the naturalization process. No
known penalties have been levied on Nigerians who have
emigrated, settled abroad, or acquired another nationality.
However, Nigeria does not recognize dual nationality, and
naturalization in another country does not release Nigerians
from Nigerian laws.
Nigerians are free to change their place of work within
Nigeria, but local laws sometimes disadvantage citizens not
indigenous to the area. For example, access to limited places
in elementary and secondary schools is more difficult for
children of such citizens who must also pay higher school fees
than the children of citizens of the area. There has been no
forced resettlement of Nigerian citizens.
Nigerian law and practice permit temporary refuge and asylum
in Nigeria for political refugees from other countries.
Nigeria supports and cooperates with the Lagos office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
.
Repatriation of refugees is normally conducted in accordance
with UNHCR standards. In 1987 several hundred Chadian
refugees were repatriated at their request as were an
undetermined number of persons allegedly refugees from Libya.
No refugees were expelled in 1987.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change Their Gonvernment
The 30-member Armed Forces Ruling Council headed by President
Babangida is the highest political authority in Nigeria.
There is no elected legislative body, and political parties
are prohibited. In 1987 citizens did not have the right to
change their national or state governments through the
electoral process. However, democratic elections for local
government officials were held in December.
In July President Babangida announced 1992 as the date for
returning Nigeria to civilian rule. The Government based its
program for transition to civilian rule on the recommendations
of the civilian Political Bureau which conducted a nationwide,
year-long public debate on Nigeria's political future during
1986 and presented its findings to the AFRC in April 1987.
While many of the Bureau's recommendations were accepted, the
Government rejected or amended many other significant
provisions, especially on socioeconomic policy. An appointed
civilian Constitutional Review Commission is expected to
propose to the 1988 constituent assembly a draft constitution
closely resembling Nigeria's 1979 Constitution. The Government
has recommended incorporation of one major change which calls
for a two-party rather than a multiparty system. Six political
parties participated in the last elections in 1983.
As a first step in the transition process, free elections for
local government councils were held on a nonpartisan basis in
December, although malpractices and administrative problems
resulted in cancellation of elections in about 5 percent of
the nation's constituencies. Byelections are planned for
early 1988. All citizens 18 years and older were eligible to
vote. Dates have been set for additional elections in the
run-up to 1992, but many former politicians are banned from
contesting. A civilian National Electoral Commission was
appointed in August to administer the elections. Also, a
civilian Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) was appointed
to review the 1979 Constitution. The CRC solicited input from
the general public, as had the civilian Political Bureau, as
the basis for its recommendations to a constitutional
constituent assembly scheduled for 1988.
Thousands of former Nigerian Government officials, both
civilian and military, are prohibited from participating in
the transition process, although they remain eligible to
vote. In September 1987, the Government significantly
extended a ban announced in 1986 on partisan political
activity for a large number of former politicians from the
last civilian regime (1979-83) to include many political
figures from the first civilian republic (1960-66) and past
and present high-ranking military leaders. These persons,
including President Babangida himself, will be barred from
contesting any election until after the transition is
completed in 1992. Also, former politicians will be forbidden
to join any political party until that time. Furthermore, any
person convicted or removed from office for various misdeeds
at any time since 1960 will be banned for life from contesting
elections or holding any political party office.
Along with the announcement in July of the political
transition program, the Government promulgated Decree 19 of
1987, the Transition to Civil Rule (Political Programme)
Decree. This Decree makes persons who might in any way
forestall or prejudice the transition program liable to a
prison term of up to 5 years. This applies to persons who:
seek to undermine the realization of the transition program;
take part in forming a political body prior to the lifting of
Decree 9 (1984); or encourage others to join them in
misrepresenting or distorting the provisions of the transition
program. The special tribunal authorized to try offenses
under the Decree was formed in October. Its decisions may be
appealed to the Special Appeal Tribunal.
The composition of the AFRC and Cabinet reflects greater
ethnic and religious diversity than any government in the
recent past. There are currently no women on the AFRC or in
the Federal Cabinet, although some women serve as permanent
secretaries in cabinet departments and as commissioners in
state governments.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
There were no investigations of alleged human rights
violations in Nigeria during 1987 by any international or
nongovernmental agency. In 1987 the Babangida Government
repeatedly renewed its pledge to uphold basic human rights and
tolerated criticism from local human rights advocates. It did
not interfere with local human rights organizations. The
Human Rights Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA)
monitors the domestic human rights situation and
characteristically speaks out against human rights abuses.
The NBA president, following announcement of the ban on former
politicians, publicly questioned the legality of the move. At
least two other groups also monitor human rights practices in
Nigeria: The Council of Human Rights, an independent
organization formed in late 1985, and Citizens for Human
Rights. The former president of the NBA and chairman of its
Human Rights Committee continues to hold the post of Attorney
General and Minister of Justice. Amnesty International
maintains an office in Lagos and has active chapters
throughout the country, both on university campuses and among
civil servants. Its annual human rights report is publicized
in the Nigerian press.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Language, or Social Status
There is no official policy of systematic discrimination among
Nigeria's 250 ethnic groups, and laws do not overtly favor one
group over another. The Government generally makes a conscious
effort to strike a balance among different groups in its
decisionmaking and in appointments to key governmental
positions. However, Nigeria has a long history of tension
among the diverse ethnic groups, and tradition continues to
impose considerable pressure on individual government
officials to favor their own ethnic or religious group.
Allegations of religious and ethnic favoritism or harassment
persist
.
State-of-origin hiring quotas are observed in most public
sector employment. Also, persons whose family is not
indigenous to their state of residence frequently experience
difficulty in job-seeking, school enrollment, and other areas.
Women have always had economic power and have exerted
influence in Nigerian society through women's councils or
through their family connections. As primary school
enrollments increase, women are gaining greater access to
education. There has been a dramatic increase in the number
of women who have university degrees and who have become
professionals, including teachers, lawyers, doctors, judges,
senior government officials, media figures, and business
executives. Despite a degree of economic independence, women
suffer discrimination in employment and other areas,
experience social prejudice, and have virtually no
representatives in the political arena. The pattern of
discrimination against women varies according to the ethnic
and religious diversity of Nigeria's vast population. In some
states, husbands can prevent their wives from obtaining
employment or passports. In many states, a widow cannot
inherit her husband's property, which in the absence of
children usually reverts to the husband's family. Women do
not receive egual pay for equal work, and male professionals
receive fringe benefits not extended to their female
counterparts. Female circumcision, which has never become a
major public issue, is still practiced in many areas, as is
the selling of young girls for marriage by poor rural families.
CONDITIONS OF LABOR
Nigeria's 1974 Labor Decree prescribes a 40-hour workweek, 2
to 4 weeks of annual leave, and other conditions of
employment. The National Minimum Wage Act of 1981 set the
national minimum wage at 125 Naira, or about $150, per month
in 1981. With the minimum wage remaining constant, the
progressive devaluation of the local currency over the past
several years has resulted in a significant reduction in
workers' purchasing power. The 125 Naira are now equal to
about $27 per month, which is not sufficient to provide a
decent standard of living and requires persons to supplement
income through second jobs, extended-family assistance, etc.
Under the Government wage freeze guidelines which were revised
on December 31, 1987, annual increases are allowed at the 1984
rate, the traditional 13th month holiday gratuity payment to
employees is allowed, and improvements in fringe benefits in
the private sector must be approved by the Government.
The labor law prohibits employment of children under 15 in
commerce and industry, restricts other child labor to
home-based agricultural or domestic work, and allows the
apprenticeship of youths aged 13-15 only under specified
conditions. It contains general health and safety provisions,
some aimed specifically at young and female workers,
enforceable by the Ministry of Employment, Labour, and
Productivity. Employers must compensate injured workers and
dependent survivors of those fatally injured in industrial
accidents. The ineffectiveness of the Ministry in enforcing
these laws in the workplace is regularly criticized by labor
unions
