ECOWAS court finds FG guilty of human rights abuses over #EndSARS protest
…Orders FG to pay N2m compensation to DJ Switch, others
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice has delivered a landmark judgement, finding the Federal Government of Nigeria guilty of human rights abuses during the #EndSARS protest in October 2020.
The court ruled that the government’s actions, particularly the disproportionate use of force at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos, violated several international human rights standards.
The court held that the government breached articles 1, 5, 6, 9, 10, and 11 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The judges mandated the Nigerian government to pay N2 million in compensation to each victim named in the suit.
The applicants, Obianuju Catherine Udeh (popularly known as DJ Switch), Perpetual Kamsi, and Dabiraoluwa Adeyinka, alleged several violations during the peaceful protests at the Lekki tollgate on October 20 and 21, 2020. DJ Switch claimed that soldiers shot protesters, resulting in deaths and injuries, which she live-streamed.
She also alleged receiving threatening phone calls that forced her into hiding and eventual asylum.
Perpetual Kamsi, responsible for the protesters’ welfare, testified that soldiers began shooting after a power cut, leading to her hospitalisation due to police tear gas.
The third applicant related how she barely escaped being shot, how soldiers refused to let an ambulance in, and how she later saw victims receive subpar treatment in the hospital.
The third candidate related how he barely avoided being shot, how soldiers refused to let an ambulance in, and how he later saw victims receive subpar treatment in the hospital.
She submitted that after taking over the victims’ care with her colleagues, she began to get threats and was constantly under surveillance by the respondent’s operatives.
The applicants asked the court to grant them declaratory relief as well as monetary damages for these infractions.
However, the respondent had denied all claims made by the applicants, asserting that the protesters unlawfully assembled at Lekki tollgate on October 20, 2020, under the guise of protesting against the now-defunct special anti-robbery squad (SARS) unit of the Nigeria police.
The respondent also maintained that its agents followed strict rules of engagement and did not shoot or kill protesters.
The respondent argued that DJ Switch incited the crowd by playing music and using her Instagram page to stir disaffection against law enforcement agents, who were targeting escapee members of Boko Haram and bandits.
The federal government legal team further contended that the second applicant’s provision of logistics and a welfare package to protesters indicated her support for the violent protest.
The team also noted that the Lagos state government managed the treatment and care of the injured. They added that the applicants failed to provide sufficient credible evidence to support their claims or the relief they sought.
Judge rapporteur Koroma Mohamed Sengu, delivering the judgement, stated that the court rejected the allegation that the right to life guaranteed under Article 4 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACPHR) was violated.
However, the court found the government responsible for violating the applicants’ rights to security of person, prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment, freedoms of expression, assembly, and association, duty to investigate human rights violations, and the right to effective remedy.
The court’s three-member panel directed the respondent to uphold its obligations under the ACPHR, prosecute those responsible for these violations, and report back to the court within six months on actions taken to implement the judgement.
The court has ruled that the Federal Government of Nigeria must pay N2 million each in compensation to three victims of human rights abuses during the #EndSARS protest in October 2020.
The victims, Obianuju Udeh (DJ Switch), Perpetual Kamsi, and Dabiraoluwa Adeyinka, had their rights violated by the government’s excessive use of force during the protests.
