TheCable

Femi Falana, human rights lawyer, says the government is failing in its “most basic” duty of protecting citizens.

The lawyer said this while reacting to a claim by Amnesty International that the deployment of soldiers in various communities had resulted in “excessive use of force, unlawful killings and extrajudicial executions.”

Osai Ojigho, country director of the organisation, had said that at least 35 Nigerians were killed during air strikes launched by the military on villages beset by communal violence.

While condemning the reported killings, Falana said combating violence and crime “must not put security before human rights”.

In a statement on Tuesday, Falana urged the security agencies and the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure the respect for human rights and the rule of law in security operations across the country.

“The government is failing in its most basic duty of protecting citizens and ensuring the rule of law,” he said.

“I am very concerned that these killings may go unpunished, as law enforcement and security agencies are rarely held accountable for serious human rights violations.

“To prevent further killings and violence, the authorities must investigate these latest allegations and bring anyone responsible to justice.”

Falana said failing to put in place appropriate law enforcement measures to prevent such killings as well as investigate and punish perpetrators, is a sign that the federal government has “neither respected, nor met their national and international legal obligations, including to exercise due diligence to protect human rights.”

He said: “The government’s failure on internal security is also a serious breach of the government’s human rights obligations and commitments, including under the Nigerian constitution and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to which Nigeria is a state party.

“The government must truly make security and safety of those who live in Nigeria a public policy priority by tackling the root cause of violence and crime.

“Victims of violence and crimes must also have effective access to legal and health services, and should have access to an effective remedy, including reparation.”