RIGHT TO THE DIGNITY OF OUR HUMAN PERSON

It is quite sickening when I watch
videos, see pictures or read stories of people who are victimized for one
reason or the other by members of the public on the pretext that such people
have been accused of committing crimes. 
It is more troubling when such acts are carried out without referring
the accused to a court of justice or at least to the police because most times,
the allegations are usually false.  A case
in point is the Aluu4 tragedy where four students were falsely accused of being
thieves by a debtor who was trying to avoid paying his debt and the community
gathered a mob who beat, set ablaze and killed the four promising youths in
cold blood or the woman accused of stealing in a popular Lagos market and was
stripped naked, beating, sexually assaulted and paraded by the hoodlums in the market.
It’s funny how most Nigerians look away or join the fun rather than fight to
protect the rights of the Nigerian being breached and probably save them from
the violent implications of mob justice.   

Security agencies are also not
absolved from inflicting acts of inhuman and degrading treatment on accused
persons held being bars, it’s not unusual to see policemen beating, slapping
and man-handling citizens because they refuse to follow the policeman’s orders.
It’s a rule of thumb that you wouldn’t want to cross a solder or you may as
well be ready for maximum shishi a torrent of blows and cracks from a
horse whip. It sickens me when I come across instances where Nigerians are
treated like second-class citizens in their country by the very agents employed
to protect them. This is an act that cannot continue with impunity, the
provisions of the Constitution cannot continue to be trampled on. 

Every individual according to
Section 34 of the Constitution is entitled to respect for the dignity of his
person and no person shall be subject to torture or inhuman or degrading
treatment; neither shall any person be held in slavery or servitude; and no
person shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labour. Mob justice is
a violation of this right, so also is torture by the Nigerian police or any
other member of the armed forces that use such ineffective tactics of
investigation. 

It is important to note that, any
labour required in consequence of the sentence or order of a court or any labour
required of members of the armed forces or the police force in pursuance of
their duties do not come under this rule. Neither does any communal service,
civic obligation to a community or act of compulsory National service come
under this rule. 

The National Human Right
Commission is saddled with the responsibility of protecting the rights of
Nigerians and investigating/prosecuting cases of inhuman and degrading
treatment against Nigerians.  Lawyers
also have a duty to protect the sanctity of the law and the promotion of the
Rule of Law in the country by standing up for the rights of the common Nigerian.
We need to do more as a people and as a Nation to promote the fundamental human
rights of everyone.

Do you know any instances where
people have been subjected to degrading treatment, lets here it in the comment
box. 

Adedunmade Onibokun, Esq.

@adedunmade

Adedunmade is a legal practitioner
in Lagos, Nigeria. He holds a Masters degree in International Business Law from the University of Bradford and
publishes the Legalnaija law blog.