BY Taiwo Adebulu
Adeola Oyinlade, a Nigerian human rights lawyer, has won the 2021 American Bar Association (ABA) international human rights award.
ABA is the largest voluntary association of attorneys and legal professionals in the world.
Oyinlade was presented the award on Thursday at the association’s hybrid annual meeting in Chicago, United States.
The association noted that Oyinlade earned the honour for his “exceptional commitment and contribution to the advancement of human rights in Nigeria”.
In a statement, Patricia Lee Refo, ABA president, commended Oyinlade for his contribution to the African Union on the implementation of the African Youth Charter.
“Oyinlade has advanced solutions to human rights issues across Africa, including the South Sudan political crisis, the Central African Republic crisis, the Congo Democratic Republic armed conflict and Libyan peace talks,” Refo said.
Speaking on the development, Oyinlade dedicated the award to human rights activists in Nigeria.
“I am sincerely humbled by this recognition, particularly honouring my human rights work that has arrested my heart, soul and tireless efforts for over a decade in my home country, Nigeria,” he said.
“In the last 13 years, I have seen that all I needed to contribute to expanding the frontiers of human rights was courage. It is by courage that speaking truth to power and standing for the oppressed can keep hope alive. Courage is that super power that we all have but only few decide to use. It is only courage that can make one believe in a vision when it appears that one is alone. It can only take courage to fight injustice even in the face of danger. Only the courageous act when others look away.
“Mine is a journey of standing for human rights, offering pro-bono legal services to the poor, pioneering new ideas and developing new methods for human rights empowerment to help prevent destabilisation of societies and for non-violent interrelation in Nigeria.”
Oyinlade is the founder of Constitutional Rights Awareness and Liberty Initiative (CRALI) and a member of the National Committee against Torture (NCAT).
In 2016, he initiated the human rights empowerment app called “Know Your Rights Nigeria”, which helps users consult lawyers in different languages.
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