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[JUST IN] EndSARS Protest: ECOWAS Court Finds FG Guilty Of Human Rights Violations

Published

1 year ago

July 10, 2024

Editor

…orders trial of security agents that attacked protesters at Lekki Toll Gate

The Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, on Wednesday, found the Federal Government guilty of violating the fundamental human rights of youths that participated in the October 2020, EndSARS protest.

The court, in a unanimous decision by a three-man panel of Justices, held that there was merit in a suit that three participants in the protest- Obianuju Catherine Udeh, Perpetual Kamsi and Dabiraoluwa Adeyinka- lodged before it.

Specifically, the court held that the Federal Republic of Nigeria, through its security agencies, violated Articles 1, 4, 6, 9, 10, and 11 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, ACPHR, pertaining to the right to life, security of person, freedom of expression, assembly and association, prohibition of torture, duty of the state to investigate, and the right to effective remedy.

The Applicants had in their suit, alleged that these violations occurred during peaceful protests they held at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos State on October 20 and 21, 2020.

The regional court, in its lead judgement that was delivered by the Judge Rapporteur, Justice Koroma Mohamed Sengu, dismissed the Applicants’ allegation that their right to life as guaranteed under Article 4 of the ACPHR, was violated.

However, it ordered FG to pay each of tje Applicants the sum of N2million as compensation for violations of their security of person, prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment, rights to freedom of expression, assembly, and association, duty to investigate human rights violations, and right to effective remedy.

Additionally, it held that FG must adhere to its obligations under the ACPHR, by investigating and prosecuting its agents responsible for the violations.

The court ordered FG to within the next six months, report to it, measures taken to implement the judgment.

The Applicants had alleged that during the peaceful protests against the SARS Unit of the Nigerian Police Force at Lekki Toll Gate, Lagos State, on October 20 and 21, 2020, the Respondent, committed several human rights violations.

Triggered by the alleged killing of one Daniel Chibuike, the protests were aimed to address police harassment and brutality.

In the suit, the 1st Applicant, among other things, told the court that soldiers shot life amunitions at protesters, resulting in deaths and injuries, which she live-streamed.

She told the court that subsequently, she started receiving threatening phone calls that forced her not not only go into hiding, but to also seek asylum.

Likewise, the 2nd Applicant, who said she was responsible for the welfare of the protesters, described how soldiers began shooting after a power cut, leading to her hospitalisation due to excessive tear gas she inhaled.

On her part, the 3rd Applicant, narrated how she narrowly escaped being shot and how soldiers refused to allow ambulance to enter the protest ground to help the injured participants.

She further told the court that she later witnessed how the victims were neglected without the provision of adequate healthcare for them at the hospital.

The 3rd Applicant told the court that with the held of her colleagues, she eventually took over and started taking care of the victims.

She alleged that she faced numerous threats and was placed on surveillance by security agents.

Consequently, all the Applicants prayed the cort to issue declaratory reliefs against FG and award compensation to them for the gross violations of their fundamental human rights.

Meanwhile, in processes it filed before the court, FG, through its team of lawyers, denied all the allegations and claims that were made by the Applicants.

It told the court that the protesters unlawfully assembled at Lekki Toll Gate on October 20, 2020, under the guise of protesting against SARS.

FG also maintained that its agents followed strict rules of engagement and did not shoot or kill protesters.

It argued that the 1st Applicant 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.

FG further contended that the 2nd Applicant’s provision of logistics and welfare packages indicated her support for the violent protest.

It claimed that soldiers were present to restore peace until the police arrived, denying any harm inflicted on protesters and the alleged refusal to access to the ambulance.

More so, FG denied that the 3rd Applicant’s presence was peaceful, asserting it was meant to escalate violence.

It argued that the treatment and care of the injured were managed by the Lagos State government, insisting that the Applicants failed to provide credible evidence to support their claims and the reliefs the sought from the court.

In its judgment on Wednesday, the court held that it could not establish that there was violation of the right to life as the Applicants failed to adduce any evidence to that effect.

Nevertheless, it held that several articles of the ACHPR were breached by the Respondent (FG), which occasioned fundamental breaches of human rights.

Furthermore, the Court said it was satisfied that the Applicants were denied the right to an effective remedy.

It ordered FG to make reparations to the Applicants for the violation of their fundamental human rights.

Other members of the panel that concurred with the lead judgement, were Justice Dupe Atoki who presided, and Justice Ricardo Claúdio Monteiro Gonçalves.
VANGUARD

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US Revokes Visas Of Foreigners Who Mocked Kirk’s Assassination

Published

22 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

The United States has revoked the visas of several foreign nationals who publicly mocked or celebrated the killing of American conservative activist Charlie Kirk, officials confirmed on Tuesday.

The State Department said the decision followed an internal review of social media posts deemed “offensive and contrary to U.S. values,” adding that the country “has no obligation to host foreigners who wish death on Americans.”

Kirk, 31, co-founder of the conservative youth group Turning Point USA and a strong ally of former President Donald Trump, was shot dead during a political rally on 10 September.

His killing drew widespread condemnation across the political spectrum, with many describing the act as a targeted attack on free speech.

According to U.S. authorities, at least six individuals from Argentina, South Africa, Brazil, Paraguay, Mexico, and Germany had their visas revoked after making comments online that celebrated Kirk’s murder or insulted his supporters.

Examples cited by officials included posts calling Kirk a racist who deserved it, and messages mocking grieving Americans.

“We will not tolerate foreigners who promote or celebrate acts of violence against U.S. citizens,” a State Department spokesperson said.

The move underscores Washington’s growing use of immigration powers to respond to online behaviour perceived as threatening or disrespectful towards the country.

The Department said it continues to monitor social media content for evidence of incitement or endorsement of violence.
Civil liberties advocates, however, have questioned the decision, arguing that revoking visas for social media comments could set a worrying precedent.

Officials maintained that the visa cancellations were lawful, limited in scope, and aimed at protecting national integrity.

“Freedom of speech does not extend to foreigners seeking the privilege of entry while glorifying violence,” the spokesperson added.

The United States has increased visa scrutiny in recent years, requiring applicants to disclose social media handles and online activity.

The policy, officials say, is designed to prevent extremist sympathisers or those expressing hostility towards the country from entering its borders

Headline

Israeli PM Netanyahu Back In Court For Graft Trial

Published

24 hours ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was back in a Tel Aviv court on Wednesday for the latest hearing in his long-running corruption trial, which opened in May 2020.

The prime minister kept a smiling face as he and his entourage of several ministers from his conservative Likud party were heckled by protesters en route to the tribunal.

It comes after US President Donald Trump suggested on Monday that the Israeli premier should be pardoned in his three separate corruption cases.

His latest appearance at the Tel Aviv court also follows the return of the hostages taken by Hamas as part of Trump’s US-brokered plan to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

In one case, Netanyahu and his wife, Sara, are accused of accepting more than $260,000 worth of luxury goods, including champagne, cigars and jewellery, from billionaires in exchange for political favours.

In two other instances, Netanyahu is also charged with attempting to negotiate better press coverage from two Israeli media outlets. He has denied any wrongdoing, claiming to be the victim of a political plot.

During his current term, which started in late 2022, Netanyahu has proposed far-reaching judicial reforms that critics say sought to weaken the courts.

Those prompted massive protests that only abated after the onset of the Gaza war, sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

In an address on Monday to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, Trump told the chamber that Netanyahu should receive a pardon in the graft cases.

“Cigars and champagne, who the hell cares about that?” Trump joked, before asking his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog: “Why don’t you give him a pardon?”

The Israeli premier is also subject to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on suspicion of ordering war crimes in his government’s assault on Hamas militants in Gaza.

Netanyahu holds the record for the most years spent at the head of Israel’s government, having served 18 years in several stints as premier since 1996.

AFP

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FULL LIST: US Set To Carry Out Four Executions This Week

Published

1 day ago

October 15, 2025

Editor

A Florida man convicted of murdering two women he hired for sex was put to death by lethal injection on Tuesday, one of four executions to be carried out in the United States this week.

Samuel Smithers, 72, was sentenced to death in 1999 for the 1996 killings of Christy Cowan and Denise Roach in Tampa. They had been beaten and strangled and their bodies were found in a pond.

Smithers was executed at a Florida state prison at 6:15 pm (2215 GMT), the 14th execution in the southern state this year.

Another convicted murderer was also put to death by lethal injection in the midwestern state of Missouri on Tuesday.

The execution of Lance Shockley, 48, was carried out at 6:13 pm (2313 GMT) for the 2005 murder of a police sergeant, Carl Graham.

Graham was gunned down in an ambush at his home. The officer had been investigating a fatal car accident involving Shockley at the time.

Shockley maintained his innocence but his appeals were rejected by numerous courts, including the Supreme Court. Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe rejected his clemency request on Monday.

Two other executions are scheduled this week.

Charles Crawford, 59, is to be put to death by lethal injection in Mississippi on Wednesday for the 1994 rape and murder of Kristy Ray, a 20-year-old college student.

Richard Djerf, 55, is to be executed by lethal injection in Arizona on Friday for the brutal 1993 murders of four members of a Phoenix family.

In a letter last month apologizing for the crime, Djerf said he was ready to die and would not seek clemency.

“If I can’t find reason to spare my life, what reason would anyone else have?” he wrote.

There have been 37 executions in the United States this year, the most since 2013, when 39 inmates were put to death.

Florida has carried out the most executions with 14, followed by Texas with five and South Carolina and Alabama with four.

Thirty-one of this year’s executions have been carried out by lethal injection, two by firing squad and four by nitrogen hypoxia, which involves pumping nitrogen gas into a face mask, causing the prisoner to suffocate.

The use of nitrogen gas as a method of capital punishment has been denounced by United Nations experts as cruel and inhumane.

The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others — California, Oregon and Pennsylvania — have moratoriums in place.

President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment and, on his first day in office, called for an expansion of its use “for the vilest crimes.”