Abstract
The emergence of extreme Islamic ideology and terrorist groups anywhere often evokes a pretext for validating the aggressive pursuit of public order and national security, even if at the expense of human rights. In particular, the activities of several Islamic extremist groups especially the deadly terror group—Boko Haram—operating in North-eastern Nigeria, have elicited brutal and, sometimes, deadly reprisals from Nigeria’s security forces. This chapter examines the place of human rights in the fight against terrorism in Nigeria, and the ideal approach of security forces in this regard. Given the complexities associated with the war on terror, this chapter sought to utilise the unique context provided by Nigeria’s counter-terrorism efforts in confronting the dilemma in balancing between national security and human rights.
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Notes
- 1.
Martin Scheinin and Mathias Vermeulen, “Unilateral Exceptions to International Law: Systematic Legal Analysis and Critique of Doctrines That Seek to Deny or Reduce the Applicability of Human Rights Norms in the Fight Against Terrorism.” Essex Human Rights Review 8, no. 1 (2011): 20.
- 2.
Andrew Ashworth, “Security, Terrorism and the Value of Human Rights,” in Security and Human Rights, ed. Benjamin J. Goold and Liora Lazarus (Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2007), 203, 209 (“governments make great play of the extra security allegedly provided by new measures, without providing the necessary evidence”); Lucia Zedner, “Seeking Security by Eroding Rights: The Side-Stepping of Due Process,” in Security and Human Rights, ed. Benjamin J. Goold and Liora Lazarus (Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2007), 257–276; Trevor C.W. Farrow, “Security and Rights,” Review of Constitutional Studies 10, nos. 1 and 2 (2005): 94; and Philip B. Heymann, “Civil Liberties and Human Rights in the Aftermath of September 11,” Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy 25, no. 2 (2002): 441.
- 3.
Karl Maier, This House Has Fallen: Nigeria in Crisis (New York: Basic Books, 2002), 68; Itzhak Zamir, “Human Rights and National Security,” Israeli Law Review 23, nos. 2 and 3 (1989): 375; and Adda B. Bozeman, “Human Rights and National Security,” Yale Journal of World Public Order 9, no. 1 (1982): 40, 41.
- 4.
Andrea Booth, “Nigeria’s Boko Haram: Inside the World’s Second Deadliest Terrorist Organisation,” SBS News, August 24, 2017, accessed February 8, 2018, https://www.sbs.com.au/news/nigeria-s-boko-haram-inside-the-world-s-second-deadliest-terrorist-organisation.
- 5.
Constitutional Rights Project and Others v Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 227 (ACHPR 1999), para. 42 (where the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights held that “a limitation may not erode a right such that the right itself becomes illusory”). Also see Media Rights Agenda & Others v Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 200 (ACHPR 1998), para. 70, equally decided by the African Commission.
- 6.
Nkechi O. Anyadike, “Boko Haram and National Security Challenges in Nigeria: Causes and Solutions,” Journal of Economics and Sustainable Development 4, no. 5 (2013): 12, 13.
- 7.
Bozeman, “Human Rights,” 2.
- 8.
As above, 12.
- 9.
Edward Newman, “A Normatively Attractive but Analytically Weak Concept,” Security Dialogue 35 (2004): 358.
- 10.
United for Human Rights, “Human Rights Defined,” accessed June 19, 2017, http://www.humanrights.com/what-are-human-rights/.
- 11.
Kathryn J. Zoglin, “The National Security Doctrine and the State of Siege in Argentina: Human Rights Denied.” Suffolk Transnational Law Journal 12, no. 2 (1989): 265, 266.
- 12.
Jacob A. Dada, “Impediments to Human Rights Protection in Nigeria,” Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law 18, no. 1 (2012): 67, 77; Olusegun Fakoya, “Nigeria Police Force—A Legacy of Brutality,” last modified August 1, 2008, accessed February 10, 2018, www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/nigeria-police-force-–-a-legacy-of-brutality.html.
- 13.
Zamir, “Human Rights,” 376.
- 14.
Human Rights Watch, “Spiraling Violence: Boko Haram Attacks and Security Force Abuses in Nigeria,” 30, accessed December 17, 2017, https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/nigeria1012webwcover_0.pdf.
- 15.
As above, 10.
- 16.
John Campbell, “Boko Haram: Origins, Challenges and Responses,” NOREF Policy Brief (2014): 1.
- 17.
John Campbell, “U.S. Policy to Counter Nigeria’s Boko Haram,” Council of Foreign Relations Report, no. 70 (November 1, 2014): 16.
- 18.
Human Rights Watch, “Spiraling Violence,” 10.
- 19.
Morgan Winsor, “Nigeria Marks 3 Years Since 276 Chibok Schoolgirls Abducted by Boko Haram,” ABC News, last modified April 14, 2017, accessed February 10, 2018, http://abcnews.go.com/International/nigeria-marks-years-276-chibok-schoolgirls-abducted-boko/story?id=46774809; Kevin Sieff, “Boko Haram Kidnapped 276 Girls Two Years Ago: What Happened to Them?” Washington Post, April 14, 2016, accessed February 10, 2018, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/04/14/boko-haram-kidnapped-276-girls-two-years-ago-what-happened-to-them/?utm_term=.fe68fd4820b5.
- 20.
Amnesty International, “Nigeria: Deadliest Boko Haram Attack on Rann Leaves at Least 60 People Murdered,” February 1, 2019, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/02/nigeria-deadliest-boko-haram-attack-on-rann-leaves-at-least-60-people-murdered/; Brent Swails and David McKenzie, “Kidnapped to Kill: How Boko Haram Is Turning Girls into Weapons,” CNN, April 13, 2016, accessed June 12, 2019, https://edition.cnn.com/2016/04/12/africa/cameroon-boko-haram-child-bombers/index.html; Dionne Searcey, “Boko Haram Turns Female Captives into Terrorists,” New York Times, April 7, 2016, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/08/world/africa/boko-haram-suicide-bombers.html; and Mia Bloom and Hilary Matfess, “Women as Symbols and Swords in Boko Haram’s Terror,” PRISM 6, no. 1 (March 1, 2016), accessed June 12, 2019, https://cco.ndu.edu/PRISM/PRISM-volume-6-no1/Article/685093/women-as-symbols-and-swords-in-boko-harams-terror/.
- 21.
Amnesty International, “Nigeria: Satellite Imagery Shows Charred Remains of Rann After Boko Haram Attack,” January 18, 2019, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/01/nigeria-satellite-imagery-shows-charred-remains-of-rann-after-boko-haram-attack/; Amnesty International, “‘Our Job Is to Shoot, Slaughter and Kill’: Boko Haram’s Reign of Terror in North-East Nigeria,” April 2015, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AFR4413602015ENGLISH.PDF; and Kevin Uhrmacher and Mary B. Sheridan, “The Brutal Toll of Boko Haram’s Attacks on Civilians,” Washington Post, April 3, 2016, accessed December 17, 2017, https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/world/nigeria-boko-haram/.
- 22.
Basil Ugochukwu, “The State Security Service and Human Rights in Nigeria,” Third World Legal Studies 1996 (1996–1997): 71, 86.
- 23.
Adam Nossiter, “Nigerian Forces Kill Dozens in Night Assault, Fuelling Long Battle with Sect,” last modified November 2, 2012, accessed December 17, 2017, www.nytimes.com/2012/11/03/world/africa/nigeria-forces-kill-dozens-in-night-assault.html. Also see Daniel Agbiboa, “The Ongoing Campaign of Terror in Nigeria: Boko Haram Versus the State,” Stability: International Journal of Security and Development 2, no. 3 (2013): 111–113.
- 24.
Human Rights Watch, “Spiraling Violence,” 58; Daniel E. Agbiboa, “Peace at Daggers Drawn? Boko Haram and the State of Emergency in Nigeria,” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 37, no. 1 (2014): 41–67.
- 25.
Amnesty International, “Nigeria: War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity as Violence Escalates in North-East,” last modified March 31, 2014, accessed December 17, 2017, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2014/03/nigeria-war-crimes-and-crimes-against-humanity-violence-escalates-north-east/; British Broadcasting Corporation, “Boko Haram Giwa Barracks Attack: Nigerian Army ‘Killed Hundreds,’” last modified March 31, 2014, accessed December 17, 2017, www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26819965.
- 26.
Adam Nossiter, “Abuses by Nigeria’s Military Found to Be Rampant in War Against Boko Haram,” New York Times, last modified June 3, 2015, accessed December 17, 2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/04/world/africa/abuses-nigeria-military-boko-haram-war-report.html. Also see Human Rights Council, “Violations and Abuses Committed by Boko Haram and the Impact on Human Rights in the Countries Affected: Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights,” UN Doc. A/HRC/30/67, December 9, 2015, accessed January 7, 2019, https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/819031/files/A_HRC_30_67-EN.pdf.
- 27.
Charles Mwalimu, “Police, State Security Forces and Human Rights in Nigeria and Zambia: Dynamic Perspectives in Comparative Constitutionalism,” Third World Legal Studies 1990 (1990): 85, 95.
- 28.
Amnesty International, “Torture, the Way of Life for the Nigerian Security Forces,” accessed December 17, 2017, https://www.amnestyusa.org/torture-the-way-of-life-for-the-nigerian-security-forces/; Amnesty International, “Torture, Cruel Inhuman and Degrading Treatment of Detainees by Nigerian Security Forces: Amnesty International’s Written Statement to the 25th Session of the UN Human Rights Council (March 3–28, 2014),” 1–3, February 20, 2014, accessed December 17, 2017, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/4000/afr440012014en.pdf.
- 29.
Amnesty International, “Welcome to Hell Fire”: Torture and Other Ill-Treatment in Nigeria (London, UK: Amnesty International Publications, 2014), 24.
- 30.
Human Rights Watch, “‘Rest in Pieces’: Police Torture and Deaths in Custody in Nigeria,” Human Rights Watch 10, no. 11A (2005): 1.
- 31.
Amnesty International, “‘They Betrayed Us’: Women Who Survived Boko Haram Raped, Starved and Detained in Nigeria” (2018), accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AFR4484152018ENGLISH.PDF; Amnesty International, “Nigeria: Boko Haram Killing of Aid Worker Hauwa Liman Is a War Crime,” October 16, 2018, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/10/nigeria-boko-haram-killing-of-aid-worker-hauwa-liman-is-a-war-crime/; and International Committee of the Red Cross, “Nigeria: Health Worker Hauwa Mohammed Liman Executed in Captivity,” October 16, 2018, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.icrc.org/en/document/nigeria-health-worker-hauwa-mohammed-liman-executed-captivity.
- 32.
Amnesty International, “They Took Our Husbands and Forced Us to Be Their Girlfriends: Women in North-East Nigeria Starved and Raped by Those Claiming to Rescue Them,” September 2018, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AFR4491222018ENGLISH.PDF; Amnesty International, “Boko Haram Survivors Have Been Starved and Raped by Nigeria’s Military,” May 24, 2018, accessed June 12, 2019, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/05/boko-haram-survivors-have-been-starved-and-raped-by-nigerias-military/.
- 33.
Report of fact-finding committee on the allegation of ‘rape and child trafficking’ in internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps in the North-East of Nigeria, February 2015 cited in Amnesty International, “They Betrayed Us,” 61.
- 34.
Amnesty International, “They Betrayed Us,” 61–62.
- 35.
Constitution, §33–44.
- 36.
Christopher C. Joyner, “The United Nations and Terrorism: Rethinking Legal Tensions Between National Security, Human Rights, and Civil Liberties,” International Studies Perspectives 5, no. 3 (2004): 240–257.
- 37.
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, “Ratification Table: United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,” accessed December 17, 2017, http://www.achpr.org/instruments/uncat/ratification/.
- 38.
UN Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment 1988 principles 1 and 6. Also see Ouko v. Kenya (2000) AHRLR 135 (ACHPR 2000), para. 23–25; Huri-Laws v. Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 273 (ACHPR 2000), para. 40.
- 39.
Nigeria ratified the African Charter on 22 June 1983. Nigeria is also state party to the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa 2003, ratified on 28 April 2002; the African Youth Charter 2006, ratified on 21 April 2009.
- 40.
Cap A9 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
- 41.
Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Fair Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa 2003 clause R.
- 42.
Nigeria Police Act P19, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and the Nigeria Police (Amendment) Act 2012; also see the Nigerian Police Regulations 53 of 1968; Code of Conduct for the Nigerian Police 2013.
- 43.
Nigerian Security and Civil Defence (Amendment) Act 6 of 2007.
- 44.
Nigerian Armed Forces Act A20, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
- 45.
National Security Agencies Act 19 of 1986.
- 46.
Constitution, §14(2)(b).
- 47.
Police Act, §4.
- 48.
Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011, §1(3).
- 49.
Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011, §9(1)(i) and (iii).
- 50.
Scheinin and Vermeulen, fn. 1 above, 56.
- 51.
David Luban, “The War on Terrorism and the End of Human Rights,” Philosophy and Public Policy Quarterly 22 (2002): 9, 13.
- 52.
Helsinki Accords of 1975; Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann, “Human Security: Understanding Human Rights,” Human Rights Quarterly 34, no. 1 (2012): 88, 89.
- 53.
Martin Schienin, “Document No. 18: Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms While Countering Terrorism 16 August 2006,” in Terrorism: Commentary on Security Documents Volume 122: U. N. Response to Al Qaeda—Developments Through 2011, ed. Kristen E. Boon et al. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012), 435.
- 54.
Schienin and Vermeulen, “Unilateral Exceptions,” 28.
- 55.
Joan Fitzpatrick, “Speaking Law to Power: The War Against Terrorism and Human Rights,” European Journal of International Law 14, no. 2 (2003): 241, 243.
- 56.
Constitution, §39; Zamir, “Human Rights,” 376.
- 57.
Constitution, §33(1) and (2).
- 58.
Constitution, § 35(1)(a)–(e).
- 59.
Constitution, §35(4)(a)(b) and (5).
- 60.
Rules for guidance in the use of firearms by the police.
- 61.
Marcus A. Araromi and Sunday A. Oke, “A Critical Review of the Regulatory Frameworks for Police Accountability in the Nigeria’s Justice System,” Nigerian Law Journal 17 (2014): 187, 205.
- 62.
Media Rights Agenda case, fn. 5 above, para. 67.
- 63.
Also see Constitutional Rights Project and Others v. Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 227 (ACHPR 1999), para. 38; Constitutional Rights Project and Others v. Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 227 (ACHPR 1999), para. 41. On findings of violations of the provisions of the African Charter pertaining to the life, dignity and security of individuals in the brutal preservation of state security, see Article 19 v. Eritrea (2007) AHRLR 73 (ACHPR 2007), paras. 98–101; Doebbler v. Sudan (2003) AHRLR 153 (ACHPR 2003), para. 42; Zegveld v. Eritrea (2003) AHRLR 84 (ACHPR 2003), paras. 55–56; International Pen & Others (on behalf of Saro-Wiwa) v. Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 212 (ACHPR 1998), paras. 104, 111–113, 116; Media Rights Agenda Case, fn. 5 above, paras. 83–88.
- 64.
332/57, 14 November 1960.
- 65.
ICJ (July 8, 1996), paras. 24–25; Advisory Opinion on Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory ICJ (July 9, 2004), paras. 102, 105.
- 66.
Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties 1969, art. 27.
References
Books
Amnesty International. “Welcome to Hell Fire”: Torture and Other Ill-Treatment in Nigeria. London, UK: Amnesty International Publications, 2014.
Ashworth, Andrew. “Security, Terrorism and the Value of Human Rights.” In Security and Human Rights, edited by Benjamin J. Goold and Liora Lazarus, 203–226. Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2007.
Maier, Karl. This House Has Fallen: Nigeria in Crisis. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2002.
Schienin, Martin. “Document No 18: Report of the Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms While Countering Terrorism 16 August 2006.” In Terrorism: Commentary on Security Documents Volume 122: U.N. Response to Al Qaeda—Developments Through 2011, edited by Kristen E. Boon et al. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012.
Zedner, Lucia. “Seeking Security by Eroding Rights: The Side-Stepping of Due Process.” In Security and Human Rights, edited by Benjamin J. Goold and Liora Lazarus, 257–276. Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2007.
Journal Articles
Agbiboa, Daniel E. “Peace at Daggers Drawn? Boko Haram and the State of Emergency in Nigeria.” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 37, no. 1 (2014): 41–67.
Agbiboa, Daniel. “The Ongoing Campaign of Terror in Nigeria: Boko Haram Versus the State.” Stability: International Journal of Security and Development 2, no. 3 (2013): 1–18.
Anyadike, Nkechi O. “Boko Haram and National Security Challenges in Nigeria: Causes and Solutions.” Journal of Economics and Sustainable Development 4, no. 5 (2013): 12.
Araromi, Marcus A., and Sunday A. Oke. “A Critical Review of the Regulatory Frameworks for Police Accountability in the Nigeria’s Justice System.” Nigerian Law Journal 17 (2014): 187, 205.
Bloom, Mia, and Hilary Matfess. “Women as Symbols and Swords in Boko Haram’s Terror.” PRISM 6, no. 1 (2016, March 1). Accessed June 12, 2019. https://cco.ndu.edu/PRISM/PRISM-volume-6-no1/Article/685093/women-as-symbols-and-swords-in-boko-harams-terror/.
Bozeman, Adda B. “Human Rights and National Security.” Yale Journal of World Public Order 9, no. 1 (1982): 40, 41.
Campbell, John. “Boko Haram: Origins, Challenges and Responses.” NOREF Policy Brief (2014): 1.
Campbell, John. “U.S. Policy to Counter Nigeria’s Boko Haram.” Council of Foreign Relations Report, no. 70 (November 1, 2014): 16.
Dada, Jacob A. “Impediments to Human Rights Protection in Nigeria.” Annual Survey of International & Comparative Law 18, no. 1 (2012): 67
Farrow, Trevor C.W. “Security and Rights.” Review of Constitutional Studies 10, nos. 1 and 2 (2005): 94.
Fitzpatrick, Joan. “Speaking Law to Power: The War Against Terrorism and Human Rights.” European Journal of International Law 14, no. 2 (2003): 241, 243.
Heymann, Philip B. “Civil Liberties and Human Rights in the Aftermath of September 11.” Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy 25, no. 2 (2002): 441.
Howard-Hassmann, Rhoda E. “Human Security: Understanding Human Rights.” Human Rights Quarterly 34, no. 1 (2012): 88.
Human Rights Watch. “‘Rest in Pieces’: Police Torture and Deaths in Custody in Nigeria.” Human Rights Watch 10, no. 11A (2005): 1.
Joyner, Christopher C. “The United Nations and Terrorism: Rethinking Legal Tensions Between National Security, Human Rights, and Civil Liberties.” International Studies Perspectives 5, no. 3 (2004): 240–257.
Luban, David. “The War on Terrorism and the End of Human Rights.” Philosophy and Public Policy Quarterly 22 (2002): 9.
Mwalimu, Charles. “Police, State Security Forces and Human Rights in Nigeria and Zambia: Dynamic Perspectives in Comparative Constitutionalism.” Third World Legal Studies 1990 (1990): 85, 95.
Newman, Edward. “A Normatively Attractive but Analytically Weak Concept.” Security Dialogue 35 (2004): 358.
Scheinin, Martin, and Mathias Vermeulen. “Unilateral Exceptions to International Law: Systematic Legal Analysis and Critique of Doctrines That Seek to Deny or Reduce the Applicability of Human Rights Norms in the Fight Against Terrorism.” Essex Human Rights Review 8, no. 1 (2011): 20.
Ugochukwu, Basil. “The State Security Service and Human Rights in Nigeria.” Third World Legal Studies 1996 (1996–1997): 71, 86.
Zamir, Itzhak. “Human Rights and National Security.” Israeli Law Review 23, nos. 2 and 3 (1989): 375.
Zoglin, Kathryn J. “The National Security Doctrine and the State of Siege in Argentina: Human Rights Denied.” Suffolk Transnational Law Journal 12, no. 2 (1989): 265.
Website References
African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. “Ratification Table: United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.” Accessed December 17, 2017. http://www.achpr.org/instruments/uncat/ratification/.
Amnesty International. “Boko Haram Survivors have been Starved and Raped by Nigeria’s military,” May 24, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/05/boko-haram-survivors-have-been-starved-and-raped-by-nigerias-military/.
Amnesty International. “Nigeria: Boko Haram Killing of Aid Worker Hauwa Liman is a War Crime,” October 16, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/10/nigeria-boko-haram-killing-of-aid-worker-hauwa-liman-is-a-war-crime/.
Amnesty International. “Nigeria: Deadliest Boko Haram Attack on Rann Leaves at Least 60 People Murdered,” February 1, 2019. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/02/nigeria-deadliest-boko-haram-attack-on-rann-leaves-at-least-60-people-murdered/.
Amnesty International. “Nigeria: Satellite Imagery Shows Charred Remains of Rann after Boko Haram Attack,” January 18, 2019. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/01/nigeria-satellite-imagery-shows-charred-remains-of-rann-after-boko-haram-attack/.
Amnesty International. “Nigeria: War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity as Violence Escalates in North-East.” Last modified March 31, 2014. Accessed December 17, 2017. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2014/03/nigeria-war-crimes-and-crimes-against-humanity-violence-escalates-north-east/
Amnesty International. “‘Our Job is to Shoot, Slaughter and Kill’: Boko Haram’s Reign of Terror in North-East Nigeria,” April 2015. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AFR4413602015ENGLISH.PDF.
Amnesty International. “‘They Betrayed us’: Women Who Survived Boko Haram Raped, Starved and Detained in Nigeria,” 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AFR4484152018ENGLISH.PDF.
Amnesty International. “They Took Our Husbands and Forced Us to Be Their Girlfriends: Women in North-east Nigeria Starved and Raped by Those Claiming to Rescue Them,” September, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/AFR4491222018ENGLISH.PDF.
Amnesty International. “Torture, Cruel Inhuman and Degrading Treatment of Detainees by Nigerian Security Forces: Amnesty International’s Written Statement to the 25th Session of the UN Human Rights Council (3–28 March 2014).” 1–3. Last modified February 20, 2014. Accessed December 17, 2017. https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/4000/afr440012014en.pdf.
Amnesty International. “Torture, the Way of Life for the Nigerian Security Forces.” Accessed December 17, 2017. https://www.amnestyusa.org/torture-the-way-of-life-for-the-nigerian-security-forces/.
“Boko Haram Giwa Barracks Attack: Nigerian Army ‘Killed Hundreds.’” British Broadcasting Corporation, March 31, 2014. Accessed December 17, 2017. www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26819965.
Booth, Andrea. “Nigeria’s Boko Haram: Inside the World’s Second Deadliest Terrorist Organisation.” SBS News, August 24, 2017. Accessed February 8, 2018. https://www.sbs.com.au/news/nigeria-s-boko-haram-inside-the-world-s-second-deadliest-terrorist-organisation.
Fakoya, Olusegun. “Nigeria Police Force—A Legacy of Brutality.” Last modified August 1, 2008. Accessed February 10, 2018. www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/nigeria-police-force-–-a-legacy-of-brutality.html.
Human Rights Council. “Violations and Abuses Committed by Boko Haram and the Impact on Human Rights in the Countries Affected: Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.” UN Doc. A/HRC/30/67, December 9, 2015. Accessed January 7, 2019. https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/819031/files/A_HRC_30_67-EN.pdf.
Human Rights Watch. “Spiraling Violence: Boko Haram Attacks and Security Force Abuses in Nigeria.” 30. Accessed December 17, 2017. https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/nigeria1012webwcover_0.pdf.
International Committee of the Red Cross. “Nigeria: Health Worker Hauwa Mohammed Liman Executed in Captivity,” October 16, 2018. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.icrc.org/en/document/nigeria-health-worker-hauwa-mohammed-liman-executed-captivity.
Nossiter, Adam. “Abuses by Nigeria’s Military Found to Be Rampant in War Against Boko Haram.” New York Times, June 3, 2015. Accessed December 17, 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/04/world/africa/abuses-nigeria-military-boko-haram-war-report.html.
Nossiter, Adam. “Nigerian Forces Kill Dozens in Night Assault, Fuelling Long Battle with Sect.” Last modified November 2, 2012. Accessed December 17, 2017. www.nytimes.com/2012/11/03/world/africa/nigeria-forces-kill-dozens-in-night-assault.html.
Searcey, Dionne. “Boko Haram Turns Female Captives Into Terrorists.” New York Times, April 7, 2016. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/08/world/africa/boko-haram-suicide-bombers.html.
Sieff, Kevin. “Boko Haram Kidnapped 276 Girls Two Years Ago: What Happened to Them?” Washington Post, April 14, 2016. Accessed February 10, 2018. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/04/14/boko-haram-kidnapped-276-girls-two-years-ago-what-happened-to-them/?utm_term=.fe68fd4820b5.
Swails, Brent, and David McKenzie. “Kidnapped to Kill: How Boko Haram is Turning Girls Into Weapons.” CNN, April 13, 2016. Accessed June 12, 2019. https://edition.cnn.com/2016/04/12/africa/cameroon-boko-haram-child-bombers/index.html.
Uhrmacher, Kevin, and Mary B. Sheridan. “The Brutal Toll of Boko Haram’s Attacks on Civilians.” Washington Post, April 3, 2016. Accessed December 17, 2017. https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/world/nigeria-boko-haram/.
United for Human Rights. “Human Rights Defined.” Accessed June 19, 2017. http://www.humanrights.com/what-are-human-rights/.
Winsor, Morgan. “Nigeria Marks 3 Years Since 276 Chibok Schoolgirls Abducted by Boko Haram.” ABC News, April 14, 2017. Accessed February 10, 2018. http://abcnews.go.com/International/nigeria-marks-years-276-chibok-schoolgirls-abducted-boko/story?id=46774809.
Treaties
African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights 1981.
African Youth Charter 2006.
Helsinki Accords of 1975.
Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Fair Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa 2003 clause R.
Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa 2003.
UN Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment 1988.
Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties 1969.
International Cases
Advisory Opinion on Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory ICJ (9 July 2004).
Lawless v. Ireland 332/57, 14 November 1960.
Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons ICJ (8 July 1996).
Regional Cases
Article 19 v. Eritrea (2007) AHRLR 73 (ACHPR 2007).
Constitutional Rights Project and Others v Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 227 (ACHPR 1999).
Doebbler v. Sudan (2003) AHRLR 153 (ACHPR 2003).
Huri-Laws v. Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 273 (ACHPR 2000).
International Pen & Others (on behalf of Saro-Wiwa) v. Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 212 (ACHPR 1998).
Media Rights Agenda & Others v Nigeria (2000) AHRLR 200 (ACHPR 1998).
Ouko v. Kenya (2000) AHRLR 135 (ACHPR 2000).
Zegveld v. Eritrea (2003) AHRLR 84 (ACHPR 2003).
Constitution and Statutes
African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Cap A9, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
Code of Conduct for the Nigerian Police 2013.
Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999.
National Security Agencies Act 19 of 1986.
Nigeria Police (Amendment) Act 2012.
Nigerian Armed Forces Act A20, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
Nigerian Police Regulations 53 of 1968.
Nigerian Security and Civil Defence (Amendment) Act 6 of 2007.
Police Act P19, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.
Rules for guidance in the use of firearms by the police.
Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011.
Acknowledgements
LLD Candidate & DAAD Scholar, Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, South Africa. This chapter was developed from a paper submitted for a postgraduate diploma received from the Institute for Human Rights, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland in 2017. Due acknowledgment is, therefore, given to the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs which sponsored the author’s participation in the Intensive Course on Contemporary Challenges to International Human Rights Law in Finland.
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Okoloise, C. (2020). Balancing National Security and Human Rights in the Fight Against Boko Haram in Nigeria. In: Addaney, M., Nyarko, M.G., Boshoff, E. (eds) Governance, Human Rights, and Political Transformation in Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-27049-0_12
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