Nigeria @55
By Simon Ateba/Lagos @simonateba
At least 1,600 civilians have been killed by Boko Haram since Muhammadu Buhari was sworn into office in May and the Nigerian President has failed to address human rights violations by the military, Amnesty International said in a statement on Wednesday.
Although the 1600 deaths since the beginning of June this year include those killed in Cameroon, Chad and Niger, the majority of the victims were from Nigeria where bomb blasts killed at least 14 people in Maiduguri, Borno, and attackers slaughtered five in a village in Adamawa on Thursday as Nigeria was celebrating its 55th year of independence from the United Kingdom.
By Simon Ateba/Lagos @simonateba
At least 1,600 civilians have been killed by Boko Haram since Muhammadu Buhari was sworn into office in May and the Nigerian President has failed to address human rights violations by the military, Amnesty International said in a statement on Wednesday.
Although the 1600 deaths since the beginning of June this year include those killed in Cameroon, Chad and Niger, the majority of the victims were from Nigeria where bomb blasts killed at least 14 people in Maiduguri, Borno, and attackers slaughtered five in a village in Adamawa on Thursday as Nigeria was celebrating its 55th year of independence from the United Kingdom.
Shekau Boko Haram
In all, Boko Haram has killed more than 3500 people this year alone.
“The number of people killed so far this year is truly shocking with more than 3,500 civilian fatalities in less than 300 days,” said Netsanet Belay, Amnesty International’s Africa Director for Research and Advocacy.
“Governments in affected countries must take all necessary legal measures to ensure the security of civilians in affected areas,” she said.
Following the publication of an Amnesty International report on 3 June, Buhari pledged to investigate evidence that Nigerian military forces have committed serious human rights violations, war crimes and acts which may constitute crimes against humanity. To date, no investigation has been conducted, Amnesty lamented.
“It is nearly four months to the day since President Buhari vowed to investigate the serious crimes under international law which Amnesty International highlighted in its report,” said Netsanet Belay.
“Thousands of victims are still waiting for justice. President Buhari and his new cabinet must take urgent action to rigorously investigate all crimes under international law committed by both Boko Haram and Nigerian security forces.”
In neighbouring Cameroon, almost 400 civilians and dozens of security personnel have been killed by Boko Haram since January 2014
“Similarly, in Cameroon crimes under international law and human rights violations have been committed by both Boko Haram and the state security forces. Such crimes have not been investigated effectively,” Amnesty said.
“Amnesty International calls on the government of Cameroon to urgently initiate thorough, independent, impartial and transparent investigations into crimes under international law committed by all parties to the conflict in Cameroon.”
Buhari who addressed the nation in a broadcast on Thursday did not mention abuses by the military nor did he talk about the 2.3 million displaced people in the region.
Rather, he said Boko Haram was being “scattered and are on the run”.
No comments:
Post a Comment