UN experts call for urgent action to end torture and ill-treatment in Nigeria

The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) has called for urgent measures to end the widespread torture and ill-treatment of detainees in Nigeria following their second official visit to the country from 8 to 19 September 2024.

The delegation aimed to assess Nigeria’s treatment of detained individuals and evaluate the country’s progress in safeguarding the human rights of those deprived of liberty, particularly through the establishment of a National Preventive Mechanism (NPM).

Shujune Muhammad, head of the SPT delegation, expressed disappointment over the lack of cooperation from Nigerian authorities during and before the visit.

“We faced hostility and access restrictions in several detention facilities, a clear violation of Nigeria’s international obligations under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), which the country ratified in 2009,” Muhammad stated.

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The delegation visited various detention facilities, including those for men, women, and children, as well as police stations, criminal investigation departments, and centres run by agencies combating drug and human trafficking. The conditions observed in many of these facilities were described as dire.

“Nigeria must urgently take steps to prevent torture, improve detention conditions, especially in police stations, and enforce legal safeguards. Impunity for acts of torture must end,” Muhammad added.

Despite meeting with senior officials, including the Minister of Justice, parliamentarians, judges, prosecutors, civil society organizations, and UN agencies, the delegation emphasized that Nigeria has failed to establish a functional NPM, which is crucial to preventing torture and ill-treatment.

“Ten years after our first visit, the absence of a national preventive mechanism reflects the state’s lack of seriousness in addressing these issues,” said Muhammad.

At the conclusion of the visit, the delegation shared its confidential preliminary observations with the Nigerian government, expressing grave concern over the lack of commitment to preventing torture and improving detention conditions.

A confidential report containing recommendations will be submitted to the Nigerian authorities, with the SPT urging the government to make it public to encourage implementation.

The SPT delegation was composed of members from several countries, including Aisha Shujune Muhammad (Maldives), Satyabhooshun Gupt Domah (Mauritius), Andrew Christoffel Nissen (South Africa), and Victor Zaharia (Moldova), supported by two Human Rights Officers from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.