Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1990
NIGERIA
Nigeria is ruled by a military regime, the Federal Military
Government (FMG), headed by President Ibrahim Babangida, who
came to power following a 1985 coup. A 19-member Armed Forces
Ruling Council (AFRC) is the country's main decisionmaking
organ, and its decisions, promulgated by decree, are the
supreme law of the land. A 25-member, mixed military-civilian
cabinet presides over executive functions. President Babangida
controls both the AFRC and the Cabinet. Military governors
head each of the 21 states, and a minister heads the federal
capital territory, Abuja. During 1990 the FMG took specific
measures toward returning Nigeria to democratic, civilian rule
by 1992. Nigeria's two political parties (newly created by
the FMG) elected their own local, state, and national officials
and held national conventions in July. In October the FMG
issued a decree changing the effective date of the new
Constitution from October 1992 to May 1989. Whether the
provisions of the new Constitution guaranteeing fundamental
civil liberties are suspended, as was the case with similar
provisions in the 1979 constitution, will apparently not be
known unless the issue is taken to court.
The FMG enforces its authority through the federal security
system—the military, the State Security Service (SSS), and
the national police—and through the courts. Some police and
security services officials have been responsible for human
rights violations: arbitrary arrests, detention without
trial, and excessive use of force by law enforcement officers,
sometimes leading to deaths of persons in official custody.
There were no known instances of authorities being punished
for such abuses.
Most of Nigeria's population of over 100 million is rural,
engaging in small-scale agriculture. Unemployment is
widespread, and underemployment is high in urban areas. The
country depends on oil revenues (90 percent of export earnings)
to pay for 80 percent of its budgetary expenses. Government
efforts to address economic problems, exacerbated by the fall
in oil revenues which began in 1981, have had mixed results.
While industrial output has declined sharply, there have been
some improvements in the agricultural sector. Inflation,
while rising, remained in check during the year.
Notwithstanding the FMG's firm measures to implement a
democratic system from the top, human rights remained
circumscribed in 1990, especially after a failed coup attempt
on April 22 when scores of persons were jailed without being
given due process and some newspapers and journals were closed
for short periods. There were persistent but unconfirmed
reports that summary executions of rebel soldiers took place
after the coup attempt. Sixty-nine alleged coup plotters were
convicted and executed following closed judicial proceedings
in July and September. Police brutality (including the use of
torture); deaths of prisoners due to poor prison conditions;
arbitrary detentions, especially of journalists; lack of fair
trials (notably by special tribunals); and restrictions on the
rights of women and labor remained problems. The Government
granted amnesty to more than 5,000 persons in 1990 in an effort
to reduce overcrowding in jails, and in January it amended
Decree Two, the State Security (Detention of Persons) Decree of
1984, shortening the allowable time of detention without charge
from 6 months to 6 weeks. Two-party local government elections
went smoothly on December 8, with the Social Democratic Party
(SDP) winning a majority of the contested offices.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
There were unconfirmed reports of summary executions of rebel
soldiers while the April 22 coup attempt was under way or
immediately afterward. It is not known to what extent highlevel
FMG officials may have had knowledge of the alleged
executions. However, the FMG stated that only those who were
tried and found guilty by special tribunals were executed.
According to credible human rights activists, use of excessive
force by police officials—sometimes resulting in death
—
increased during the year. Shootings sometimes occurred at
police checkpoints located throughout Lagos, particularly in
the aftermath of the attempted coup. There are credible
reports that some criminal suspects were killed in police
custody. Human rights activists claimed at least a dozen
criminal suspects were shot and killed at a Lagos police
station in June and July. There have been no reported
government investigations or officers disciplined for these
alleged offenses.
b. Disappearance
Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti , president of the Committee for the
Defense of Human Rights and attorney Femi Falana, chairman of
the National Association of Democratic Lawyers, were abducted
in early April by persons identifying themselves as State
Security Service (SSS) officers, but they managed to escape
after several hours. The abductors did not mention any
criminal charges or take the captives to an SSS or police
station. There have been frequent but unsubstantiated reports
that many soldiers and a few civilians disappeared after the
coup attempt. The Government stated that it had detained
approximately 300 persons, civilian and military, in connection
with the coup, and that it was still investigating some of
them. No list of names had been issued by the end of 1990.
c. Torture, and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The May 1989 Constitution, as did its predecessor, outlaws
torture and mistreatment of prisoners, and Nigerian law
provides penalties for such excesses. However, there were
widespread, credible reports that police regularly beat
suspects to extract criminal confessions. Torture of
prisoners, men and women, by prison guards and security
officials is also believed to have occurred. A recent study
by a legal research institution reported that over 80 percent
of lawyers interviewed stated that their clients complained
about torture and mistreatment while incarcerated. All
leading human rights groups report incidents of torture,
including inmates beating other inmates at the behest of, or
with the consent of, prison officials or guards. Some courts
acknowledged the existence of torture by quashing confessions
where torture was alleged. There have been no known government
investigations or efforts to punish those responsible. In the
aftermath of the April 22 coup attempt, a few journalists
claimed they were flogged while under detention. It is
believed that rebel soldiers were held incommunicado and dealt
with brutally after the coup attempt.
Conditions in Nigerian prisons are very bad. The Civil
Liberties Organization, one of Nigeria's leading human rights
groups, reported that the lack of food and potable water in
prisons is universal (approximately 55 cents per day is spent
on each prisoner for food). Severe overcrowding in cells
forces prisoners to sleep in rows or in shifts. Prisoners
are sometimes manacled, and they are permitted minimal time
outside their cells for exercise. Most cells are filthy, with
no toilets or water and poor ventilation; vermin is rampant.
Most long-term prisoners suffer respiratory ailments, and
medical care is inadequate. One credible source indicates
that pregnant women prisoners may deliver in prison with
little medical care or help. Prison-born children may remain
there for some time, without adequate nutrition or medical
attention. Family and friends are allowed to visit most
prisoners, although there are reports of difficulties,
especially with guards demanding bribes. Persons desiring to
visit some detainees held under Decree Two for state security
reasons cited particular difficulty in arranging visits.
The press and human rights groups reported that, in April 7 of
29 robbery suspects died in prison in Ibadan, Nigeria's second
largest city, while awaiting pretrial appearance before a
criminal court judge. A leading human rights group estimates
that in Lagos' Kirikiri maximum security prison alone, three
prisoners per week die due to illness. The FMG, acknowledging
faults in the prison system, established in August the
National Committee on Prison Reforms, charged with reporting
on prison conditions and recommending improvements to the
Attorney General. Attorney General Bola Ajibola publicly
admitted that convicted prisoners are treated better than
detainees. He said that the Ministry of Justice would soon
issue minimal standards for treatment of detainees and
conditions of detention, although by year's end no guidelines
were made public.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The 1989 Constitution provides for trial within 3 months for
the criminally accused. However, inefficient administrative
procedures and bureaucratic inertia resulted in many detainees
being held for protracted periods without charge or trial. A
police officer is empowered to make an arrest without a
warrant if he reasonably suspects a person of committing an
offense, witnesses the commission of an offense, or if the
person "has no ostensible means of subsistence and cannot give
a satisfactory accounting of himself." These provisions give
police officers wide discretion, which is frequently abused.
Under the law, the arresting officer must inform the accused
of the charges at the time of arrest and take the person to
the station for processing within a reasonable time. Police
must also give the suspect the opportunity to engage counsel
and to apply for bail. Credible reports indicate that police
often did not strictly adhere to these procedural safeguards
and held suspects incommunicado for extended periods without
informing them of their rights or of the charges.
Arbitrary detentions of ordinary citizens occurred throughout
1990, according to human rights observers. Although the crime
of "wandering," akin to vagrancy, was abolished in 1989, police
detained persons and groups under this charge in 1990.
Motorists stopped at police checkpoints were sometimes jailed
for purposes of extortion. In some instances, following
unsuccessful searches for criminal suspects, police detained,
usually temporarily, the suspect's relatives.
Decree Two of 1984, the State Security (Detention of Persons)
Decree, provides that the FMG may detain, without charge,
persons suspected of acts prejudicial to state security or
harmful to the economic well-being of the country. When
invoked. Decree Two suspends many constitutional rights such
as due process and the freedoms of expression and assembly.
Decree Two also contains a "judicial ouster" clause,
apparently intended to prohibit judicial scrutiny of acts
under its purview.
In January the FMG amended Decree Two, shortening the time a
person may be detained without charge from 6 months to 6
weeks; it named the Chief of the General Staff (CGS) as the
only authorized signatory of detention orders and created a
review panel to make recommendations for the release or
continued detention of detainees. Ministry of Justice
officials stated that Decree 24, issued in late 1990,
transferred those authorizing powers to the civilian vice
presidency, the office that replaced the CGS in August. The
Decree had not been made public at year's end, causing some
civil rights attorneys to criticize its issuance as an effort
to sidetrack wrongful detention suits pending against the
FMG. Modifications notwithstanding, many Nigerians still
consider Decree Two a threat to their basic freedoms because
the Decree's judicial ouster clause encourages arbitrary
detention, with impunity for the arresting officers.
Additionally, there are widespread credible reports that the
provisions of Decree Two were not always followed by police
and security officers. Police and security officials
routinely forged detention orders. In the aftermath of the
April 22 coup attempt, it is probable that the FMG detained
more than 100 civilians for statements critical of the
Government or for possible association with suspected coup
plotters. Some were detained under Decree Two, others without
being charged. Among the prominent detainees were attorney
and former presidential candidate Tunj i Braithwaite, Christian
Association of Nigeria (CAN) vice president Jolly Tanko Yusuf
,
former Minister of Mines, Power and Steel Paul Unongo, and
several university professors and student leaders. Their
periods of detention ranged from a few days to over 3 months
for Professor Obaro Ikime. The postcoup detentions under
Decree Two reaffirmed the fact that the FMG accounts to no
institution or court for Decree Two cases.
Attorneys were detained by security forces because they filed
wrongful imprisonment suits on behalf of clients. In the most
publicized case, attorney Tunji Braithwaite was detained on
April 25 after publicly stating the coup attempt brought to
the surface ethnoreligious tensions that the Government should
address. He immediately filed suit, and the court granted his
motion for a writ of habeas corpus, i.e., to bring Braithwaite
before the court to enable the judge to question him about the
detention. The FMG refused to comply with the writ, claiming
the court lacked jurisdiction because Braithwaite was detained
pursuant to Decree Two. On May 22, Braithwaite requested the
dismissal of his suit, claiming it was futile to proceed after
the Government invoked Decree Two. He was not released until
June 25. On June 1, the SSS arrested Chief Olu Onuguruwa for
failing to drop a wrongful detention suit filed by his client,
Paul Unongo. Onuguruwa was released from jail on June 14. By
early August, all well-known persons detained after April 22
were released. Yet, detentions of less prominent persons
remained a problem. Many criminal suspects are arbitrarily
held under Decree Two. A credible report alleged that over 50
such criminal suspects were being held in Kirikiri prison in
Lagos alone.
The FMG occasionally publicized the release of some persons
detained after the coup attempt, the largest group numbering
61 in May. Additionally, the Decree Two review panel convened
several times. The FMG stated that it released numerous
detainees based on the panel's recommendations. Many question
the Government's figures because usually only the numbers and
not the names of those released were given.
During 1990, there were no instances of forced exile as a
means of political control.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
Decree One of 1984, the Basic Constitution (Modification and
Suspension) Decree, left the institutional framework of the
judiciary relatively intact, but set up a parallel system by
transferring substantive jurisdiction over certain major
criminal offenses from the courts to special military
tribunals, thereby weakening the regular court system. The
independence of the judiciary has been seriously challenged by
the AFRC ' s role as final arbiter and the use of decrees that
prohibit judicial intervention in political and security cases.
The regular court system is composed of both federal and state
trial courts, state appeal courts, the Federal Court of
Appeal, and the Federal Supreme Court. Courts of first
instance under the 1989 Constitution include magistrate or
district courts, customary or area courts, religious or
Shari'a (Islamic) courts, and, for some specified cases, the
state high courts. The nature of the case usually determines
which court has jurisdiction. In principle, customary and
Shari'a courts have jurisdiction only if both plaintiff and
defendant agree to it, though in practice fear of legal costs,
delay, and distance to alternative courts encourage many
litigants to use these courts. Under the 1989 Constitution,
Shari'a courts are limited to followers of Islam and to the 11
northern states of Nigeria.
Trials in the regular court system are public and respect
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. In capital cases, the
Governm.ent provides counsel for indigent defendants. In other
cases, indigents must rely for counsel on the Nigerian Legal
Aid Council, which has limited resources. There is legal
provision for bail, though the Nigerian Bar Association
charges that bail is underutilized, with the result that many
accused persons remain in jail while awaiting trial for petty
offenses. Bail is denied to those charged with murder or
armed robbery.
The AFRC has weakened the regular court system through decrees
that transfer to special military tribunals jurisdiction over
cases involving corruption, currency violations, armed
robbery, and a variety of miscellaneous offenses, such as drug
trafficking and illegal oil sales, and also for cases
prejudicing the political transition program (see Section 3).
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 now
chair all special tribunals, but military and police officers
sit as coequals with the judges. Sentences handed down by
these special tribunals are generally severe. Convictions for
armed robbery carry the death sentence with no right of
appeal, although the sentence must be confirmed by the state's
military governor before it is carried out. Conviction under
the Treason and Other Offenses Tribunal (formed in 1986) also
carries the death sentence and provides for appeal only to the
Joint Chiefs of Staff, whose recommendations cannot be
appealed but are subject to AFRC confirmation. Legal
observers remain particularly critical of the mandatory death
penalty without right of appeal, especially for cases
involving armed robbers who have been sentenced to death for
stealing small sums of money.
Persons accused of plotting the April 22 coup were tried by a
military tribunal constituted under Decree One (Special
Military Tribunal) of 1986. Because the proceedings were not
public, it cannot be determined whether the defendants were
afforded minimal due process, i.e., fair evidentiary standards
as well as the opportunity to be heard and confront opposing
witnesses. Tribunal members were all high-ranking military
officers; the accused were denied use of civilian counsel of
their choice; and appeals could only be to the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, not to a civilian appellate court. Based on tribunal
findings, the AFRC ordered the execution of 42 convicted coup
participants on July 27. An additional 27 were executed in
September. They had been retried after being sentenced to
prison terms during the first court-martial, according to some
legal observers. Four others received substantial prison
sentences during the second trial. Human rights groups
protested against the retrial because it was also secretly
held and because of the perception of double jeopardy
surrounding the retrial.
There are widespread but unsubstantiated claims that some
judges seek the Government's advice before deciding cases
where the Government is a litigant; courts frequently grant
long adjournments in cases in which the Government is a
defendant. Also, many attorneys privately complain that some
judges are corrupt and open to improper influence.
Additionally, there are credible reports that the security
services have pressured people into dropping lawsuits against
the FMG or state governments. Very few released detainees
have filed and pursued suits against the FMG.
Nevertheless, within a complex judicial system, in which the
AFRC has encroached on the jurisdiction of the judiciary,
Nigeria's courts have an established legal tradition, and a
number of judges seek to uphold it. For example, in a 1990
case, in which the FMG argued that Decree Two's ouster clause
barred the court from hearing a wrongful imprisonment suit
filed by two detained university professors, the presiding
Lagos State High Court judge ruled in July that the Court
indeed had jurisdiction to determine whether detention was
ordered in accordance with the Decree. The Government
appealed the Court's decision but meanwhile released the
professors in August. Some legal experts believe this
judicial decision contradicts an earlier 1990 opinion in which
the Nigerian Supreme Court held that judicial ouster clauses,
if explicitly intended by the AFRC, eliminate court
jurisdiction over any issue in a case. The FMG issued Decree
Nine in June, which grants immunity from civil and criminal
liability for acts taken while in public office for certain
members of the FMG, including the President, the Chief of the
General Staff, and military state governors. It is not clear
if the Decree allows for limited, official liability for
official acts and personal liability for nonofficial acts, or
absolves the officials from both personal and official
liability for any acts. The Civil Liberties Organization
filed suit against the FMG to determine the scope of the
Decree; the suit was still pending at year's end.
Some observers claim that there are political prisoners in
Nigerian jails, but can give no numbers and often make no
distinction between those detainees held without charge and
those convicted of political offenses.
f . Arbitrary 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 the rights
of privacy in the home, correspondence, and oral electronic
communications. While there have been isolated instances of
unauthorized forced entry by security elements, the State does
not carry out general surveillance of the population.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
-
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The 1989 Constitution provides for freedom of speech and the
press, but there were significant restrictions in practice.
In 1990 federal and state governments continued to arrest,
interrogate, and detain persons who made or were preparing to
make public statements the Government considered threatening,
such as the arrests of Professor Obaro Ikime and attorney
Tunj i Braithwaite (see Section l.d.).
The Constitution reserves for the federal and state
governments the exclusive right to own and operate radio and
television stations. Radio and television programs rarely air
points of view expressly critical of the FMG and never on
issues thought sensitive to the Government.
There are no restrictions on ownership of print media, and
Nigeria has a lively press. Among the many 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. In some states privately owned dailies compete with
state papers. Six weekly newsmagazines vie for national
readership. Criticism of the Government is tolerated to a
degree, and there is open discussion of political, social, and
economic issues. However, officials frequently caution
journalists, both publicly and privately, on their
responsibility and the limits of press activity.
Although there are no published guidelines or decrees directly
limiting freedom of speech and the press, Decree Two's
prohibitions against acts prejudicial to state security or
economic stability cast an expansive shadow, and most
journalists make a well-considered decision before publishing
sensitive news articles. The issues considered most sensitive
by the Government continue to be identifying top government
officials involved in corruption, publication of subjects the
Government believes are incitements to riot or undermine state
security, and subjects "disrupting the transition to civilian
rule program." Journalists maintain that as a result
self-censorship is common.
Journalists who did not exercise self-censorship were targeted
during the postcoup crackdown. At least 10 well-known
journalists were arrested or detained in the wake of the
attempted coup. An official of the newspaper Punch was
detained on April 27 and held for 6 weeks after publishing
articles regarding the coup attempt; Punch was closed for 3
weeks after the articles appeared. On June 8, security forces
detained the publisher of the magazine Newbreed and closed the
magazine and other businesses owned by the publisher after the
magazine published a letter purportedly from the civilian
accused of financing the coup attempt. The editor, Chris
Okolie, subsequently filed four lawsuits against the FMG,
alleging approximately $4 million in losses based on his
detention and the closure of the magazine and his other
businesses. The editor of the Daily Champion was arrested and
charged with sedition for articles criticizing the Lagos state
government's handling of a violent disturbance at a major
local marketplace. The sedition charge was later dropped, and
the editor released. Journalists from the Vanguard newspaper
and some broadcast journalists were also detained. The Daily
Champion and the Vanguard were closed temporarily, as was the
TSM magazine. On June 11, the Bar Association urged the FMG
to release all detained journalists and to reopen all
publications. By late July, all known detained journalists
had been released, and the publications allowed to reopen.
The Government and journalists continue to differ on the Media
Council Decree of 1988 which has not been put into effect
because private journalists refuse to participate in the Media
Council as contemplated under the Decree. The Decree
establishes licensing and educational requirements for
journalists. It also empowers the Media Council, to be
comprised of government officials and journalists from both
government-operated and private media, to subpoena journalists
and require them to divulge sources of news articles.
Academic freedom is generally respected by the FMG. There
were no reports of censorship of books or other academic
publications in 1990 or of intimidation of university
faculty. Some observers allege that the SSS maintains an
active undercover presence on university campuses and reports
directly to the Government on acts or attitudes deemed to
threaten state security. The National Association of Nigerian
Students remains banned for what the Government considered to
be radical activities. However, the FMG removed the ban on
the Academic Staff Union of Universities in August and has
tolerated formation of new organs of student government on
individual campuses. University vice-chancellors are held
directly responsible for the maintenance of public order on
campuses and are given broad authority to close universities.
University closures occurred in the first half of the year as
students at several universities protested a proposed $120-
million World Bank loan to Nigerian universities because of
widely circulated rumors that the loan was conditioned on a
substantial reduction of university staff. The three
university professors who were released from detention under
Decree Two in August were involuntarily and retroactively
retired from university employment by the Minister of
Education. This action has been challenged in court, and the
professors have been reinstated pending the outcome of the
case.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
Nigeria's 1989 Constitution assures all citizens the right to
assemble freely and to associate with others in political
parties, trade unions, or other special interest groups.
Permits are not normally required for public meetings
indoors. Permits are required in many areas for outdoor
gatherings, but the requirement is routinely ignored by both
the authorities and organizations holding meetings or rallies.
In a few instances in 1990, security forces disbanded public
meetings when the subject matter of the meetings was
objectionable to the Government. In most states, open-air
religious services outside a church or mosque continue to be
prohibited in order, according to the Government, to prevent
their use for political purposes. In early September, a
conference, organized by human rights advocates and government
critics, to discuss important national issues, such as the
country's ethnoreligious situation and the transition to
civilian rule program, was aborted when conference
participants were locked out of the conference site by the
police, presumably by order of the FMG. The Minister of
Justice warned organizers the day before the conference was to
convene that opening the conference might violate Decree 19 of
1987 which prohibits acts prejudicial to the transition to
civilian rule program and carries a 5-year maximum prison
sentence. None of the organizers was arrested or charged
under Decree 19; however, the passport of one of the
organizers was seized by SSS agents in late August and had not
been returned by years 's end.
Following religious disturbances in March 1987, the Government
required that religious groups be sanctioned by either the
Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) or the Supreme Council
for Islamic Affairs. Six Christian leaders in Kaduna were
arrested on charges of unlawful assembly, following
demonstrations in May. Three of the six surrendered to the
police in order to resolve the issue of the right to peaceful
assembly. They were released on June 21 without being tried.
Hundreds of present and former officials and politicians
remain banned from running for elective office in the state
and national elections scheduled for 1991 and 1992, as they
were for the local elections in 1990. Nevertheless, the FMG
continues to turn a blind eye to their presence at political
events, provided they remain discreet and do not openly
challenge the banning decree.
Nigerians form and participate in a wide variety of special
interest organizations, including religious groups, trade
groups, women's organizations, and professional associations.
Organizations are not required to register with the Government
and are generally permitted free association with other
national and international bodies.
c. Freedom of Religion
Nigeria's 1989 Constitution prohibits the federal and state
governments from adopting any state religion. This prohibition
is adhered to in practice, though some Christians maintain
that adherence to Islam provides a political advantage and
have called on the FMG to state publicly that Nigeria is not a
member of the Islamic Conference. Christians staged
demonstrations early in the year in northern Nigeria to express
their concern that Christians were underrepresented in the
FMG, particularly after the cabinet shuffle in late December.
Constitutional provisions guaranteeing freedom of religious
belief, religious practice, and religious education are
generally respected. Nonetheless, reports are common that
various ethnic groups (including local and state officials
belonging to that group) discriminate against minorities (both
ethnic and religious). Such actions often take the form of
employment discrimination and bureaucratic obstacles to church
or mosque construction that delay projects, sometimes
indefinitely. Local authorities in Sokoto, a northern,
predominantly Muslim state, ordered the demolition of nine
Christian churches, ostensibly for lacking proper occupancy
certification. Christian leaders allege that other religious
buildings without proper certification, including mosques,
were not threatened and that two of the demolished churches
had proper certificates of occupancy.
There are no restrictions on the numbers of clergy trained or
on contacts with coreligionists in other countries. Religious
travel, including the hajj, is permitted and is even
subsidized by the Federal Government. Publications in Arabic
and the teaching of Arabic are freely allowed, even in
predominantly Christian areas. Missionaries and foreign
clergy, though limited by quotas, are permitted work in
Nigeria and have not encountered official harassment or
mistreatment. The Government places no obstacles in the way
of Nigerian missionaries working in other countries.
Tensions between the Muslim and Christian communities remain
high in some parts of the country, particularly the north.
There are sporadic demonstrations and disturbances in these
areas. The postcoup crackdown increased these tensions. The
vast majority of suspected coup plotters were Christian.
Christian leaders such as Professor Obaro Ikime and several
CAN officials, including the organization's vice-president,
were detained. Christian schools in Bauchi state were
attacked in May and June, presumably by groups of Muslims,
reportedly killing 2 and injuring about 40. However, the
religious disturbances never approximated the scale of the
rioting which affected the northern state of Kaduna in 1987.
In the wake of those 1987 disturbances, the Government
instituted 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. Publication of advertisements
paid for by religious organizations remains banned, although
the ban is not strictly enforced, and such advertisements
occasionally appear in the press. Religious programming on
radio and television, both government controlled, remains
limited in some areas. The 1982 ban on the Maitatsine Muslim
sect, the source of bloody disturbances in 1982, remains in
effect. The group still exists but is closely monitored by
the police.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
Nigeria's Constitution entitles its citizens to move freely
throughout Nigeria and reside and work where they wish. The
Constitution also prohibits expulsion from Nigeria or the
denial of exit or entry to any Nigerian citizen. Nigerians
travel abroad in large numbers, and many thousands study
overseas. Passports of some human rights activists were
seized in 1990 to prevent them from traveling abroad after
making statements or engaging in activities offensive to the
Government. Also, under Nigerian law, wives—including
expatriates—must have the permission of their husbands to take
their children out of Nigeria. Security officials in the past
have prevented wives from leaving with children, but there were
no known instances of such interference in 1990. Citizenship
cannot be revoked for any reason. No known penalties have been
levied against the thousands of Nigerians who have emigrated,
settled abroad, or acquired another nationality. However,
Nigeria does not recognize dual nationality; naturalization in
another country does provide exemptions from Nigerian laws.
There were instances of forced resettlement during 1990. After
posting a 7-day notice to leave the area, the Lagos state
government demolished the slum of Maroko in July, evicting an
estimated 300,000 inhabitants in the process, despite legal
challenges to stop eviction filed by human rights activists.
The evictions were carried out without a judicial determination
of the property ownership or rights of possession of the
inhabitants. According to many human rights observers,
resettlement was marked by confusion as most of the buildings
the evacuees moved to were not ready for occupancy and suffered
from the same inadequacies cited to justify Maroko 's
destruction. Additionally, sufficient resettlement housing
was not available, forcing many Maroko residents to leave
Lagos altogether.
Nigerian law and practice permit temporary refuge and asylum
in Nigeria for political refugees from other countries.
Nigeria supports and fully cooperates with the Lagos office of
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. In 1990
several hundred Chadian refugees were voluntarily repatriated,
continuing a practice from previous years. No refugees were
expelled in 1990. As part of an exodus brought about by the
civil war in Liberia, some 1,400 Liberian refugees entered
Nigeria in 1990 and are receiving some assistance from the
Government.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
The 19-member AFRC headed by President Babangida is the
highest political authority in the land. There is no elected
legislative body. In 1990 citizens did not have the right to
change their national or state governments through the
electoral process. During the year, however, the FMG
continued the program of political transition to civilian
government. In implementing the prescribed two-party system,
the FMG issued a schedule of local, state, and national
elections. President Babangida initiated further changes,
including establishment of a civilian vice president,
appointment of civilian deputy governors in all 21 states, and
removal of military officers as heads of public corporations
and government commissions. The FMG also provided party
manifestos, constitutions, and financing for the two political
parties it created.
Party delegates were chosen at the local, state, and national
levels for both the National Republican Convention (NRC) , the
party "slightly to the right," and the Social Democratic Party
(SDP), the party "slightly to the left." Local level
delegates were chosen through a system wherein party members
cast open ballot votes by standing in line behind photographs
of their preferred candidates. These elections were
relatively trouble free. However, some human rights activists
claim that the open ballot system subjected voters to coercion
and social pressure, particularly in rural areas.
In July both parties held conventions to select national
committee officials. In September the FMG approved the
amended policy manifestos of both parties and authorized them
to begin campaigning for the open ballot, local general
elections that were held December 8. However, as the parties
began fleshing out their organization and programs, many
activists and political aspirants, who in the Nigerian context
were more than "slightly to the left or right" on the
political spectrum, called publicly and privately for an
unstaged, multiparty system. These statements occasionally
provoked public criticism from the Government, but no one was
reported detained for making them.
Local general elections under the two-party system created by
the FMG were held December 8 under an open ballot system, with
the voter turnout estimated roughly at well under 20 percent
nationwide. The SDP won about 53 percent of the local
government chairmanships and local councillor positions.
Traditionally, Nigerian politics have been male dominated,
though women face no legal impediments to political
participation or voting. During the party elections, women in
various parts of Nigeria, including the traditionally
conservative north, won positions in both the NRG and SDP.
For example, the Lagos state chairpersons of both parties are
women. A number of women openly aspire to local, state and
national offices, and some were candidates (a few successful)
in the December elections. However, financial limitations and
traditional familial obligations are serious hurdles to
increased participation of women in Nigerian politics.
Thousands of former Nigerian government officials, both
civilian and military, are prohibited from participating fully
in the transition process, though still eligible to vote.
Under the provisions of the ban, these persons, including
President Babangida himself, will be barred from contesting
any election until the transition is completed in 1992.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
The Human Rights Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association
(NBA) monitors the domestic human rights situation and
occasionally speaks out against human rights abuses. At least
five other major local groups are active in human rights
matters: the Committee for the Defense of Human Rights
(CDHR), led by a prominent Lagos physician; the Nigerian
Council for Human Rights, chaired by a leading Senior Advocate
of Nigeria; Human Rights Africa, led by a prominent Lagos
lawyer and president of the Nigerian Trial Lawyers
Association; the Civil Liberties Orgatnization (CLO), led by
several Lagos attorneys and a prominent journalist; and the
National Association of Democratic Lawyers. The NBA, Nobel
laureate writer Wole Soyinka, and leaders of all five human
rights groups made strong public statements in 1990 criticizing
continued use of Decree Two, notwithstanding the amendments
enacted in January, and against other forms of detention
without charge. A former president of the NBA, who also served
as the chairman of its Human Rights Committee, continues to
hold the post of Attorney General and Minister of Justice. He
has been severely criticized by human rights activists for his
defense of Decree Two.
While most human rights monitors were able to work with little
or no government interference in 1989, two CLO officers were
briefly detained and questioned by police in May 1990 about
CLO legal representation of persons detained after the coup
attempt. No action was taken against the CLO members. CDHR
meetings were disrupted by security forces in May, and its
president was instructed to report his activities to the
security service for several weeks. Security officials
conducted a search without a warrant of a CDHR meetingplace
and confiscated the documents which have not been returned.
The CDHR president was detained for 2 days in November and
then released without charge. Amnesty International visited
Nigeria in 1990 to evaluate the human rights climate and was
allowed to conduct its investigation free of interference.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Language, or Social Status
There is no official policy of discrimination against any of
Nigeria's 250 ethnic groups, and laws do not favor one group
over another. The 1989 Constitution requires that
governmental employment and the provision of government
services reflect a "federal character," i.e., a proportioning
of government employment and provision of government services
based on the ethnic and regional distribution of the country's
population. The FMG generally makes a conscious effort to
strike a balance among different groups in its decisionmaking
and in appointments to key government positions. Ethnic and
regional hiring quotas are observed in most public sector
employment. However, tradition continues to impose
considerable pressure on individual government officials to
favor their own ethnic or religious group. Religious and
ethnic favoritism or harassment persist. Persons not
indigenous to their state of residence frequently experience
difficulties, e.g., in finding employment and in enrolling
their children in school.
Women have always had some economic power and have exerted
influence in Nigerian society through women's councils, family
connections, and, to a much lesser extent, mainstream social,
economic, or political organizations. As primary school
enrollment increases, and traditional impediments weaken,
girls and young women are gaining greater access to
education. There has been a dramatic increase in the number
of women obtaining university degrees and becoming
professionals, including teachers, lawyers, doctors, judges,
senior government officials, media figures, and business
executives. However, despite some economic independence,
women suffer societal discrimination in employment and other
areas, and experience social prejudice. 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 woman may not own
property in her own right and as a widow may not inherit her
husband's property, which in the absence of children usually
reverts to the husband's family. Women do not receive equal
pay for equal work, and male professionals receive fringe
benefits not extended to their female counterparts. Women
find it extremely difficult to acquire commercial credit or
obtain tax deductions or rebates as heads of households.
I
While violence against women, especially wife beating, exists,
there are no statistical data to help determine the extent of
the problem. The Government had neither actively addressed
nor sanctioned this practice, which is subject to the
provisions of criminal law if brought to the courts. Police
do not normally intervene in domestic disputes. Reports of
wife beating are common in rural areas where women are
generally uneducated and are unlikely to use the legal system
due to traditional pressures and ignorance of the law.
Moreover, in more traditional areas, it is questionable
whether the courts would actively intervene to protect a woman
who has formally accused her husband, if the level of alleged
abuse does not exceed customary norms . The Government
publicly opposes the practice of female circumcision, which
reportedly affects close to 50 percent of the female
population. The most dangerous form, inf ibulation, is still
practiced in some areas. However, because of the deep
cultural roots of this practice, the Government has relied
primarily on education through women's and public health
organizations to help induce a change in attitudes, rather
than on trying to criminalize the practice. Public education
has had some effect, but change has been slow. The Government
also tries to discourage the sale of young girls for marriage
by poor rural families, again primarily through educational
means. There are no estimates on the extent to which this
practice is carried out.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Nigerian workers, except for members of the armed forces and
employees of government services designated essential by the
FMG, may join trade unions. In February the FMG dissolved the
Customs, Excise and Immigration Staff Union and added its
members to the list of essential occupations. The Nigeria
Labour Congress (NLC) has called on the FMG to reinstate the
Union. Employers are obliged by law to recognize
trade unions and must pay a dues checkoff for employees who
are members of a registered trade union. In 1981 organized
labor claimed 3 million members out of a total work force of
30 million. Since then, the available work force has
increased as the population has grown, while trade union
membership has probably declined due to low economic growth.
While the trade union movement has had, within limits,
considerable latitude for action, it has been subject to
government oversight, particularly during the past 3 years.
Despite provisions in the 1989 Constitution and Nigeria's
ratification of 29 International Labor Organization (ILO)
conventions, government decrees and policy continue to
restrict labor freedoms. A 1978 decree established a single
central labor body, the NLC, created 42 (now 41) industrial
unions through forced mergers and deregistered all other
unions. The Government has not acted upon an ILO Committee of
Experts' finding, first enunciated in 1979 and subsequently
repeated, that this 1978 decree violates ILO Convention 87 on
freedom of association and, to which Nigeria is a party. In
recent years the Government has publicly announced its
intention to merge the present 41 unions into 19. During the
past year the Government has said little on the subject, while
the NLC is considering its own merger plan (which would
reportedly result in 21 unions), aimed, in its view, at
strengthening the labor movement.
In December 1988, 10 months of direct governinent administration
of the NLC concluded with elections to NLC national and state
councils. The Government permitted only a single slate of
candidates acceptable to it, comprised of members of the two
major NLC factions, to run in the national council elections.
The report by the government-appointed administrator made a
number of recommendations, including a law reqriiring
constituent unions to pay their dues to the NLC and changing
the NLC general secretary from an appointive to an elective
position. The FMG accepted these recommendations and added a
requirement that the NLC deposit copies of its budget with the
registrar of trade unions. The NLC has objected to this
requirement and to several of the report's recommendations.
Since 1975 Government policy has permitted international labor
affiliation only with the Organization of African Trade Union
Unity and affiliated pan-African labor federations. In
December 1989, the FMG took the policy a step further,
decreeing it into law and providing for the fine and
imprisonment of individuals, and proscription for unions, which
violate the ban. This led to widespread international
criticism and to indications from the Government that the ban
would be lifted. However, no action had been taken by year's
end. Eleven senior employees of the National Electric Power
Authority, whose life sentence had already been reduced to 10
years for conspiracy in connection with the October 1988
disruption of the national electrical power grid, were
pardoned and released from prison in November.
The right to strike is recognized by law, except in the case
of essential services; the application of this exception is,
in practice, at the discretion of the Government. During the
past year strikes were relatively few and of short duration
and focused primarily on pay and benefits. In early 1990, 10
workers at one bank, who had been involved in a strike and had
consequently been dismissed, were ordered reinstated by the
Industrial Arbitration Panel (lAP). The dockworkers ' union
struck briefly for greater fringe benefits; the case was
referred to the lAP for decision. In September fuel truck
drivers struck for several days and won a substantial pay
increase. In December 1989 the NLC threatened a general
strike over the minimum wage level, then withdrew its
ultimatum several days before the deadline in the face of
government pressure. The Government challenged the right of
the NLC, as a central labor body rather than an individual
union, to call a strike; that issue has not . been settled.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
The labor laws of Nigeria permit both the right to organize
and the right to bargain collectively between management and
trade unions. Collective bargaining is, in fact, common in
many sectors of the economy. Nigerian law further protects
workers against retaliation by employers for labor activity
through an independent arm of the judiciary, the Nigerian
Industrial Court. The FMG, however, retains broad authority
over labor matters. In many areas of contention, the unions
often take their demands directly to FMG authorities rather
than to their employers. At the same time, the FMG can
intervene forcefully to end debate on issues that it feels
contravene the Government's essential political or economic
programs, e.g., the dispersal of the labor-organized
conference on alternatives to the Structural Adjustment
Program, which led to the arrest of Chief Gani Fawehinmi in
1989. Moreover, decisions that have a major impact on labor
are often taken unilaterally. NLC chairman Paschal Bafyau
complained, for example, that his organization was excluded
from the formulation of the 1989 budget, which included a
variety of cost-cutting measures of concern to the unions.
There are no export processing zones in Nigeria.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
Nigeria's 1989 Constitution prohibits forced or compulsory
labor, and this prohibition is generally observed. The ILO
Committee of Experts (COE) noted again in 1990 that various
provisions of the Labor Decree of 1974, the Merchant Shipping
Act, and the Trade Disputes Decree of 1976 impose sanctions
that obligate work for breaches of labor discipline or for
taking part in a strike. The COE has urged the Government to
adopt the necessary measures to bring these laws into
compliance with ILO Convention 105 on forced labor, to which
Nigeria is a party.
d. Minimum Age of Employment of Children
Nigeria's 1974 labor decree prohibits employment of children
under 15 years of age in commerce and industry and restricts
other child labor to home-based agricultural or domestic
work. The labor decree does allow the apprenticeship of
youths aged 13 to 15 but only under specific conditions.
Apprenticeship exists in a wide range of crafts, trades, and
state enterprises. With respect to apprentices over the age
of 15, their activity is not specifically regulated by the
Government. These laws are enforced only sporadically by the
Ministry of Employment, Labour, and Productivity, particularly
in the rural areas where most Nigerians live.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Nigeria's 1974 labor decree also established a 40-hour
workweek, prescribed 2 to 4 weeks of annual leave, and set a
minimum wage for commerce and industry of nearly $200 per
month at the time of enactment, but now worth only about $14
per month at the current official rate of exchange. This wage
is now sufficient only for the most minimal standard of living
in the cities, and the NLC called on the Government to
increase it. In January 1991, the Government announced an
increase in the minimum wage to approximately $28 per month.
Expressing disappointment, labor leaders said the new figure
did not represent a real increase since it included many
allowances which were previously granted in addition to the
basic wage. The 1974 decree contains general health and
safety provisions, some aimed specifically at youth and female
workers, enforceable by the Ministry of Employment, Labour,
and Productivity. Employers must compensate injured workers
and dependent survivors of those killed in industrial
accidents. The ineffectiveness of the Ministry in enforcing
these laws in the workplace is regularly criticized by labor
unions .
