TheCable

Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, says the decision by the federal government not to prosecute repentant insurgents is “in line with global best practice”.

Mohammed said this on Friday in Washington DC, United States, during his engagement with global media outlets. 

Following the mass surrender of Boko Haram insurgents, some Nigerians have kicked against the de-radicalisation and rehabilitation initiative for the insurgents by the Nigerian army under the Safe Corridor programme.

But Mohammed said the call for the prosecution and killing of the repentant insurgents rather than granting them amnesty is against global best practices.

“I personally spoke to the military authority before I left Nigeria and they said what they were doing is what the global practice dictates about soldiers that surrendered that should be treated as prisoners of war,” NAN quoted Mohammed to have said.

“You cannot just shoot them because there are international conventions that give rights also to prisoners of war.

“What the military is doing is that, when they surrender, they profile them to ensure that they are genuine and reintegrate them into the society.”

The minister criticised those alleging that the insurgents are not actual Boko Haram members and also described as “false and demoralising’’ the claim that they would be recruited into the Nigerian military.