Amnesty International has called on President Bola Tinubu to give utmost priority to the protection of human rights in all its ramifications.

Mr Isa Sanusi, Country Director, Amnesty International, Nigeria, said this at the launch of its Human Rights Agenda 2023, a report showcasing the recommendations of measures that would ensure that human rights were better respected, protected, promoted, and fulfilled in Nigeria in Abuja on Wednesday.

Sanusi said that the Nigerian Constitution made provisions for human rights, and Nigeria had ratified several international and regional human rights treaties.

He, however, said that the country had been plagued with decades of human rights violations and abuses perpetrated by state and non-state actors.

“Amnesty International has documented many and various forms of human rights violations, the victims of which continue to lack redress.

“As the new administration kicks off its programme, Amnesty International is recommending some concrete measures to ensure that human rights are better respected, protected, promoted, and fulfilled in Nigeria.

“In this regard, Amnesty International calls on the new administration to: guarantee freedom of expression; end all forms of violence against women and girls; protect the rights of children; and secure economic, social, and cultural rights.

“There is a need to also end torture, enforce disappearances and extrajudicial executions, end killing by security forces and non-state actors, and end communal violence and killings by bandits in Zamfara,” he said.

Sanusi added that there was a need to end deadly attacks in southern Kaduna, South-east, Plateau, and Benue, as well as deadly communal clashes among others in the country.

He said that there was a need to investigate the counter-insurgency operations carried out in the northeast since 2009 as well as the implementation of the findings of the EndSars investigation.

“The human rights agenda we just launched is a project we have been doing whenever a new government comes in; we have presented the human rights agenda to the current government of President Bola Tinubu.

“We raised human rights issues and gave recommendations on how the government can go about making sure that every person enjoys his human rights in this country.

“We have pointed out that there is no way we can just be moving on without addressing various areas of injustice happening across this country that require the investigation of previous human rights violations.

“This is that there will be justice for victims; we want to also use the agenda to bring the attention of Nigerians to their responsibility as well to make sure that they play their role and to ensure that Nigeria is peaceful and prosperous,” he said.

Mr Auwal Rafsanjani, Board Chairman, Amnesty International, said that the organisation was independent of government and had no political ideology, economic interest, or religious affiliation.

Rafsanjani said that there was a need to uphold the rights of citizens to protest, adding that there was a need to fast-forward the effort toward the release of those in captivity, especially the Chibok girls.

He said the kidnapping of people, especially girls, had increased the number of out-of-school children because most girls had stopped going to school due to fear of kidnapping.

“It is also important that we create a justice system that works for all; even security officials need protection too because when we talk of human rights, it covers everyone.

“Amnesty International is not anti-government; we are not partisan or trying to do the work of security; we support human rights to complement the government,” he said.

Rafsanjani called on the government to put measures in place to ameliorate the plight of the people and grant them their rights to housing, among others.

The Inspector-General of Police, Mr Kayode Egbetokun, who was represented by CP Kunle Olasokan, said the police was committed to human rights protection, contrary to popular belief among Nigerians.

“We know that the protection of human rights is very important; there are a lot of questions about why the police abuse human rights when they are supposed to protect them.

“We have bad ones in the force, we know, but if you meet the good ones, you will love the police; we are not so bad,” he said.

Olasokan assured that very soon Nigerians would see a different police force because things had started to change.

Dr Tony Ojukwu, the Executive Secretary, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), said the amnesty agenda was a welcome development because it was important to have a human rights agenda.

Ojukwu said that every country should have a human rights agenda, and it was timely for this administration to have a human rights agenda so they could put into plan what Nigerians expect in terms of their rights.

“We are not asking for too much; we are asking for freedom of expression, we are asking for protection of children, and we are asking for an end to torture and the violence that is going on in several parts of the country.

“In the southeast, you see unknown gunmen there; you see Boko Haram in the north-east; you see herders and farmers clashing in the north-central; you see bandits in the northwest.

“All we are saying by this human rights agenda is that the government must try to fulfil the constitutional provision by giving people security and providing for their welfare,” he said.