The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sent a complaint to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention over the detention of a human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, and four other activists for protesting on New Year’s Eve.
It was reported on Monday that Omoyele Sowore, Juwon Sanyaolu, Peter Williams, Emmanuel Bulus and Damilare Adenola were ordered by a Magistrates’ Court in Wuse Zone 2, Abuja to be remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre pending the consideration of their bail applications which would be filed on Tuesday January 5, 2021.
Recall that the activists were arrested on New Year’s Eve for holding a protest against bad governance.
In a statement by the SERAP deputy director, Kolawole Oluwadare, he said the complaint was taken to the UN body on Monday, January 4, 2021 demanding the release of the detained activists and probe into their arrest and detention.
According to the statement it reads, “The detention of Omoyele Sowore and four other activists constitutes an arbitrary deprivation of their liberty because it does not have any legal justification. The detention also does not meet minimum international standards of due process.
“The arrest, continued detention and torture and ill-treatment of Mr Sowore and four other activists solely for peacefully exercising their human rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly is a flagrant violation of the Nigerian Constitution, 1999 (as amended) and international human rights law. They are now facing bogus charges simply for exercising their human rights.
“We urge the Working Group to request the Nigerian government to investigate and hold accountable all police officers and security agents suspected to be responsible for the unlawful arrest, continued detention, and torture and other ill-treatment of Mr Sowore and four other activists.”
SERAP also wants the Federal Government to compensate Sowore and the four other activists “for the violations they suffered as a result of their unlawful arrest, arbitrary detention, torture, and other ill-treatment.”
