Security Agencies and Human Right Violations in Nigeria

Human rights activists, litigators and scholars are actively seeking means to hold accountable those responsible for egregious human rights abuses. In the absence of effective international enforcement mechanisms, domestic courts play an important role in the effort to implement international human rights norms. In most of the world, domestic enforcement efforts focus on criminal prosecutions. Most dramatically, Chilean General Augusto Pinochet was arrested in England in 1998 and held for extradition to Spain to face criminal charges. By contrast, efforts in the United States have focused on civil human rights litigation. Had General Pinochet come to the United States instead of to England, he is far more likely to have been sued than arrested. Civil human rights litigation in the United States began in 1980 with the Second Circuit’s decision in Filartiga v. Pena-Irala, 630 F.2d 876 (2d Cir. 1980), followed by a series of cases that have further developed U.S. civil remedies for international human rights violations. U.S. attorneys regularly ask why there have been no Filartiga lawsuits in other countries. The key to unraveling this puzzle is to recognize the impact of differences in legal procedure and legal culture. Several procedural and cultural characteristics of the U.S. legal system lead to civil lawsuits for human rights violations. Other legal systems offer instead a range of administrative and judicial remedies for wrongs that may be styled as human rights violations, torts or crimes; filed against both domestic and foreign defendants; for violations committed both at home and abroad. These varied legal mechanisms represent the “translation” into domestic legal systems of the international law principle of accountability for human rights violations. Each implements the international mandate to hold responsible perpetrators of human rights abuses, provide remedies for victims of those violations, and deter future abuses.Victims of human rights violations the world over face disheartening struggles for justice as they seek remedies for their injuries, punishment of those responsible, and assurance that future abuses will be deterred. They utilize a wide range of international and domestic mechanisms in that quest, including both criminal and civil actions. An understanding of the varied means by which common goals can be attained contributes to the development of these remedies and strengthens accountability principles.

Nigeria is facing significant security challenges arising from terrorism, particularly from groups such as Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (IWAP). In response, Nigerian government has adopted various counterterrorism strategies, such as military operations, emergency security regulations and intelligence gathering. While these measures intend to protect national security and maintain public order, they equally raise concerns in respect of violations of fundamental human rights. The aim of this paper is to examine the relationship between counterterrorism measures and human rights in Nigeria, with particular reference to the implementation of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022. The paper argues that although combating terrorism is a legitimate state objective, counterterrorism strategies must comply with human rights obligations under domestic and international law. the paper uses doctrinal and analytical methodology, relying on primary and secondary sources of information. The paper finds that despite the existence of legal safeguards, some of the counterterrorism strategies adopted by Nigerian government undermine the rule of law and due process. The paper concludes that although counterterrorism remains important component of Nigeria’s national security, efforts to combat terrorism ought not to undermine the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended). It recommends reforms aimed at ensuring that counterterrorism operations are conducted in strict compliance with national and international human rights obligations.

Horizontal Effect of Human Rights in the Era of Transnational Constellations: On the Accountability of Private Actors for Human Rights Violations

The United Nations is a worldwide organization devoted to promote international peace and security, economic and social growth, and human rights. From its founding in 1945, the UN has been involved in a number of disputes and violations of human rights, both as a mediator and as an active participant. This research investigates the UN's role in preventing wars and human rights violations all around the globe. Moreover, the UN has taken part in peacekeeping initiatives around the world, notably in Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. These missions, which tried to re-establish security and stability in conflict-affected areas, have received praise in some instances but condemnation in others. This research paper examines how the United Nations responds to wars and breaches of human rights all across the world. It will specifically look at how the UN has intervened in numerous crises and peacekeeping operations, as well as how it has attempted to remedy human rights abuses by forging international laws and conventions. The essay will also look at instances where the UN's handling of conflicts and violations of human rights has come under fire and explore alternative avenues for the organization to increase its efficacy in advancing security, fairness, and human rights. The chapter on the United Nations, Wars, and Human Rights Violations has included several outlines that explore different aspects of the subject. First, an introduction of the book and its goals is presented, along with a short description of the United Nations and its efforts to date to address international conflicts and breaches of human rights. Second, The United Nations and Conflict Resolution Examines the UN's Authorization of Military Force and Peacekeeping Missions. The UN's abilities to avert violence, protect people, and promote stability during crises would be assessed. Third, The United Nations and Human Rights," and it looks at how the organization has responded to crises like the Rwandan genocide and the war in Yemen by enacting international treaties and conventions meant to defend human rights. The effectiveness of the United Nations in addressing human rights abuses, both in terms of preventing and reacting to mass crimes, would be evaluated. Forth, The UN's Response to Conflict and Human Rights Violations: A Critical Analysis is a chapter that examines the criticisms leveled against the United Nations for its response to conflicts and human rights violations, such as its inability to resolve ongoing conflicts and its inadequate response to genocide and other mass atrocities. The accountability procedures of the United Nations would be analysed to see how well they promote accountability and justice. Fifth, Case Studies Including the Rwandan genocide, the war in Syria, and the present situation in Myanmar, this chapter gives thorough case studies of various conflicts and human rights abuses in which the UN has been engaged. The UN's reaction to these crises and the lessons learnt from them would be the focus of this chapter. Sixth, "The Future of the UN," and it discusses the obstacles that the United Nations (UN) must overcome to fulfil its mission of promoting international peace, justice, and human rights. Addressing the causes of conflicts, promoting sustainable development, and forming partnerships with member states and other stakeholders are all possibilities that might increase the UN's efficiency in dealing with these issues. Seventh, Conclusion: An overview of the book's major arguments and conclusions, together with a discussion of their relevance to philosophy, policy, and practice. Every topic is structured in a way that provides a clear and concise overview of the topic, examines relevant research and literature, and offers insights and analysis into the key issues. The chapter would be intended for a broad audience, including students, scholars, policymakers, and anyone interested in the United Nations and its role in addressing global conflicts and human rights violations.

Identifying potential abuses of human rights through imagery is a novel and challenging task in the field of computer vision, that will enable to expose human rights violations over large-scale data that may otherwise be impossible. While standard databases for object and scene categorisation contain hundreds of different classes, the largest available dataset of human rights violations contains only 4 classes. Here, we introduce the ‘Human Rights Archive Database’ (HRA), a verified-by-experts repository of 3050 human rights violations photographs, labelled with human rights semantic categories, comprising a list of the types of human rights abuses encountered at present. With the HRA dataset and a two-phase transfer learning scheme, we fine-tuned the state-of-the-art deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) to provide human rights violations classification CNNs (HRA-CNNs). We also present extensive experiments refined to evaluate how well object-centric and scene-centric CNN features can be combined for the task of recognising human rights abuses. With this, we show that HRA database poses a challenge at a higher level for the well studied representation learning methods, and provide a benchmark in the task of human rights violations recognition in visual context. We expect this dataset can help to open up new horizons on creating systems able of recognising rich information about human rights violations.

Background: COVID-19 prevention and mitigation efforts were abrupt and challenging for most countries with the protracted lockdown straining socioeconomic activities. Marginalized groups and individuals are particularly vulnerable to adverse effects of the pandemic such as human rights abuses and violations which can lead to psychological distress. In this review, we focus on mental distress and disturbances that have emanated due to human rights restrictions and violations amidst the pandemic. We underscore how mental health is both directly impacted by the force of pandemic and by prevention and mitigation structures put in place to combat the disease.Methods: We conducted a review of relevant studies examining human rights violations in COVID-19 response, with a focus on vulnerable populations, and its association with mental health and psychological well-being. We searched PubMed and Embase databases for studies between December 2019 to July 2020. Three reviewers evaluated the eligibility criteria and extracted data.Results: Twenty-four studies were included in the systematic inquiry reporting on distress due to human rights violations. Unanimously, the studies found vulnerable populations to be at a high risk for mental distress. Limited mobility rights disproportionately harmed psychiatric patients, low-income individuals, and minorities who were at higher risk for self-harm and worsening mental health. Healthcare workers suffered negative mental health consequences due to stigma and lack of personal protective equipment and stigma. Other vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children, and refugees also experienced negative consequences.Conclusions: This review emphasizes the need to uphold human rights and address long term mental health needs of populations that have suffered disproportionately during the pandemic. Countries can embed a proactive psychosocial response to medical management as well as in existing prevention strategies. International human rights guidelines are useful in this direction but an emphasis should be placed on strengthening rights informed psychosocial response with specific strategies to enhance mental health in the long-term. We underscore that various fundamental human rights are interdependent and therefore undermining one leads to a poor impact on the others. We strongly recommend global efforts toward focusing both on minimizing fatalities, protecting human rights, and promoting long term mental well-being.

Claiming reparations for human rights violation by states or by any governmental agencies, have been a vital challenge at local and international levels. Although, there has been few developments in theory and in reality of reparations for human rights violations by states in some parts of the world as will be seen later in this article, many of the violations committed in Africa, in places like South Africa, Uganda, Nigeria and elsewhere, during colonial times either remained unresolved, partly reparated or reparations denied completely. As a result of what has been said, issues concerning responsibility for gross human rights abuses have never been considered favorably in Africa. In some African states for example, the way states deal with past human rights abuses is often dependent on the way in which political change has occurred and the way the state deals with the tensions between justice, truth and reconciliation. Beyond the foregoing, irrespective of the legal requirement to afford reparation which in itself makes reparation a vital component of the underlying need to respect victims’ rights to justice and to underscore the role of law in society, reparation serves a number of purposes. One of such purposes include but not limited to victims’ right to recover and/or receive compensation or reparation for past violations; helping to restore the disequilibrium between those whose rights have been violated and society which typically underpins human rights violations. More 6so, assisting in victims’ rehabilitation and taking measures to prevent recurrence of violations will help victims overcome trauma, restore confidence in the legitimacy of the justice system and the affirmation of the rule of law.

The protection of human rights is a cornerstone of international law, with states bearing primary responsibility for ensuring the rights and freedoms of individuals within their jurisdiction. This study provides an in-depth analysis of state responsibility in safeguarding human rights from an international legal perspective. Beginning with an exploration of the foundational principles enshrined in international human rights instruments and customary international law, the study examines the legal obligations incumbent upon states in upholding human rights standards. Key components of state responsibility in protecting human rights are delineated, including the duty to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights, as well as the obligation to prevent and remedy human rights violations. Through a comprehensive review of relevant case law, treaties, and legal scholarship, the study elucidates the evolving nature of state responsibility and the mechanisms available for holding states accountable for human rights abuses. Furthermore, the study explores the role of international institutions, such as regional human rights bodies and the International Criminal Court, in adjudicating human rights violations and enforcing state compliance with international legal standards. Special attention is given to the intersection of state sovereignty and human rights protection, examining the balance between state autonomy and international intervention in cases of egregious human rights violations. In conclusion, the study underscores the indispensable role of states in fulfilling their duty to protect human rights, emphasizing the importance of effective domestic legislation, institutional mechanisms, and accountability measures. By elucidating the legal framework governing state responsibility in human rights protection, this analysis aims to contribute to the advancement of human rights norms and the promotion of global justice and dignity for all individuals.

This is a literature-based paper that looked at the role of Social Studies education in teaching, protecting and advocating for human rights in Nigeria. The paper discussed the meaning of human rights and some of the philosophies and theories of human rights. The paper paid attention to the two human rights theories that influenced the present-day discussions of human rights – the Will theory and the Interest theory. The categories of human rights were also discussed. The writer looked at different Human Rights violations in Nigeria under the following sub-headings; government violations, child labor and child marriage and women abuse. She then discussed the role of Social Studies education in Human Rights Education and concluded by saying that since Human Right education is a program that includes both process dimension and content that since Social Studies primary responsibility is to develop reflective citizens, Social Studies teachers must be adequately prepared to enable them teach the concepts adequately because Human Right is a key component of 21st century civic education. Article visualizations:

Human rights as a strategic system, David Barnhizer human rights priorities and responsibilities for citizens, Noam Chomsky torture in the United States - connecting international human rights standards to abuse in American prisons, Bonnie Kerness tactical innovations for human rights, Douglas A. Johnson and Kate Kelsch the Bureau des Advocats Internationaux - a victim-centred approach, Brian Concannon Jr toward a more responsive sovereignty - confronting human rights violations through national reconstruction, Jennifer Moore protecting civilians in conflict and post-conflict, Kate Robertson babe politics and the victim subject - negotiating agency in women's human rights, Ratna Kapur human rights and the future of international politics - realism and global humanism, Robert Charlick a different look at sovereignty, Anthony D'Amato international jurisdiction and prosecutorial crimes, Richard J. Goldstone coping with chaos while acting justly - lessons from Rwanda, David Rawson the United States approach to international human rights law, David Weissbrodt prosecuting violations of human rights in US courts - a primer for the Justice Department on the Convention against Torture, William J. Aceves why the International Criminal Court should have jurisdiction over contemporary forms of slavery, James G. Wilson will history repeat itself? - case studies of systemic constraints on defence counsel in historic international war crimes trials and the need for resource parity, Richard J. Wilson the (al)lure of the genocide trial - justice, reconciliation and the reconstruction in Rwanda, Mark Drumbl the rights of indigenous peoples to a healthy environment and use of natural resources under international human rights law, Bradford C. Mank civil remedies for gross human rights violations, Michael Ratner holding multinational corporations accountable for human and environmental rights abuses, Richard Herz.

This article analyses the understanding of the pain of others and scrutinizes human rights violations committed against colonial subjects and vulnerable groups by colonial and nation-state actors. It employs an interdisciplinary perspective analyzing journalistic writings, films, documentaries and photography that cover human rights abuses committed against oppressed people. It elaborates on some human rights abuses rooted in the colonialism of European expansionism and other imperial policies that have destroyed the cultural distinctiveness of indigenous people. Exploitation, violence, exclusion are the main elements of colonialism and they are deeply connected with imperialism, the nation-state and the free market. Human rights abuses are discussed here in the context of critiques of colonialism and violence in the works of scholars such as Aime Cesaire, Hannah Arendt, Frantz Fanon and Michael Taussig. This article shows that films, documentaries, journalistic writings and photography are significant genres that can expose crimes committed against colonized subjects by colonial powers and vulnerable society by modern nation-states. It also indicates that instead of whitewashing the oppressors these genres can challenge and prevent further crimes and human rights abuses by inviting the spectator to face past crimes; form solidarity with victims; be vigilant about state crimes; take action against injustice.

INTRODUCTION Industrial and export processing zones are considered magnets for direct foreign investment and attractive for foreign enterprises and subsidiaries of transnational corporations in Vietnam. Despite fuelling domestic economic growth by industrial development and job creation, industrial zones’ performance has caused a series of actual and potential human rights violations within workplaces and in surrounding communities. Working conditions in industrial zones in Vietnam revealed a breadth of human rights abuses such as low wages, excessive overtime, temporary contracts, deteriorated working conditions, and environmental pollution which affected not only workers and their families but also people living in the surrounding areas. The 2011 United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (the Guiding Principles) provide a practical guidance to identify and address human rights impacts, emphasising the state duty to protect against human rights abuses, the corporate responsibility to respect human rights, and the need for greater access to victims to effective remedy. Despite numerous endorsements, the Guiding Principles face some scepticism regarding their practicability, which depends on the context of specific countries, and an inherent voluntarism on part of the enterprises’ adherence to the principles. Surya Deva argues that ‘[e] ven if the Guiding Principles are implemented by states and embraced by the business community, they might not make a significant difference in preventing and remedying corporate human rights abuses, especially in situations where there are governance gaps or companies are reluctant to be guided by the Guiding Principles’. In fact, in developing countries whose aim is to attract foreign investment for development, governments are often unwilling to intervene in companies’ activities for fear of impairing their competitiveness. Weak states lacking the requisite governance capacity are also less able to control effectively the activities of foreign enterprises. Likewise, in authoritarian or undemocratic states where rampant corruption is common place, enterprises often lobby ruling elites to ignore their wrongdoings and disrupt the legal enforcement of human rights. At the same time, for enterprises, for the sake of profit maximisation and in the absence of a legally binding regulatory framework, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is often regarded as an added cost. This in turn undermines enterprises’ propensity to voluntarily incorporate CSR.

Protecting business and human rights in Nigeria is challenging in view of the national insecurity and violence. The study undertook an overview the United Nations’ Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. It examined the legal regime of business and human rights under Nigerian domestic laws. It also identified and appraised challenges to the implication of the UNBHR in Nigeria. The study adopted a doctrinal method, adopting primary and secondary sources of information. The primary source comprised the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, Arbitration Act 2004; Nigeria Export Import Promotion Act 2004, Labour Act 2004, Trade Disputes Act 2004 to mention a few and the case law. The secondary source included textbooks, journal articles, conference proceedings, newspapers, and the internet. The study found that the UNGP are comprehensive and protect business and human rights of persons, corporate bodies, and the government. Findings further revealed that the domestic laws in Nigeria handshake the UNBHR because their provisions are adequate and suficient to protect business and human rights. There are legal and institutional challenges to the full implementation of UNBHR due to weak implementation of domestic laws, rule of law, pervasive corruption, ignorance, unemployment, and poverty. The paper concluded with a recommendation that for business and human rights to be protected, sustainable battles must be fought against corruption, poverty and insecurity to promote good governance. Dhaka University Law Journal Vol.35, Issue.2, December 2024 P. 249-270

Papua's Special Autonomy provides a legal basis for addressing conflicts and human rights violations through non-judicial mechanisms that are more inclusive and in accordance with the sociocultural context of the local community.  In its fourth report covering the period April 2013 to December 2014, the International Coalition for Papua (1CP) documented 653 arrests resulting from 46 separate incidents. The human rights situation in Papua is worsening, as human rights violations and abuses continue to occur. Many organisations advocate for the protection of human rights in Papua; however, these efforts to defend and promote human rights are often unrecognised or poorly received. The research method used in this research is normative legal research method, using statutory approach, conceptual approach, and comparative approach.This study discusses the ratio legis of the Papua Special Autonomy Law regarding the establishment of a TRC (Truth and Reconciliation Commission) based on several main reasons: first, the TRC allows for a more comprehensive and fair settlement compared to formal legal channels; second, the TRC respects local wisdom in the reconciliation process; third, this institution plays an important role in rebuilding trust between the Papuan people and the central government; and fourth, the TRC is expected to prevent the recurrence of human rights violations in the future and support long-term peace in Papua. In addition, the TRC is an important step towards respecting the rights of the Papuan people, improving relations between conflicting parties, and strengthening the implementation of a fair and inclusive Special Autonomy. The problems of resolving human rights violations in Papua from the perspective of Special Autonomy reflect complex challenges that require comprehensive attention. Although the Papua Special Autonomy Law provides a legal basis for dealing with human rights violations in an inclusive and peaceful manner, its implementation is far from optimal. This is due to several factors, such as slow implementation, overlapping authority between the central and local governments, and counterproductive militaristic approaches. The Papuan people's lack of trust in the government, both central and local, as well as victims' limited access to justice and redress, exacerbate this problem. Keywords: TRC, special autonomy, Human Rights

Human rights can be understood as formal norms related to existing legislations as well as the result of public reasoning, when claims of validity coming from the bottom up are politically juridified. Yet, where does the “significance” of human rights come from? Does the “feeling” toward the violation of human dignity rise only from the mobilization of radical spheres in the public space, or does it have origin in other places, like in the intimacy of the household? In order to understand ex negativo the genealogy of the “sense” of the violation of human rights as a counter-factual allegation that immanently refers to daily life experiences, this article considers the interaction between sentiment of fear and pretense of human rights, comparing images and imaginaries of modern political theory with the stories of traditional folk/fairy tales. Namely, philosophical representations of terror and literary narratives of monsters have a common “private” genealogy, as it shines through the hidden relationship existing between imagination, imaginary, and fantasy. Therefore, the character of the “wolf,” as politically conceptualized by Thomas Hobbes and fictionally represented in fairy tales, will be taken as a conceptual and figurative medium, able to underline the semantics of violence. My thesis is that fantastic narratives implicitly evoke forms of violation of human rights that political philosophy has denied for centuries because of the incapacity to conceptualize unspeakable offenses. Fairy tales tell the truth, albeit under camouflaged “bodies”: they are a disguised reminder of the perdurance of domestic violence in the household, seamlessly perpetuated against women and children over centuries. Any criticism toward the abuse of human rights should not forget the heuristic significance of fairy tales and the place where they seem to be peacefully narrated to children: within the domestic space of the family.