Nigeria panel finds army, police killed peaceful protesters

LAGOS, Nigeria — A Nigerian judicial sheet says that service soldiers “shot, injured and killed” peaceful protesters demonstrating against constabulary brutality astatine the Lekki toll gross successful Lagos successful Oct. 2020. The study calls the shootings “a massacre.”

Police besides “shot at, assaulted and battered unarmed protesters, which led to injuries and deaths,” the sheet found.

Eleven radical — each males — were killed portion 4 others are missing and “presumed dead” retired of 48 persons identified arsenic victims of the Lekki shootings, according to the study that has been submitted to Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

The study has not yet been made nationalist but The Associated Press has obtained a transcript and confirmed the details with sources adjacent to the panel, including 1 of its members.

“At the Lekki toll gate, officers of the Nigerian service shot, injured and killed unarmed, helpless and defenseless protesters, without provocation oregon justification, portion they were waving the Nigerian emblem and singing the nationalist anthem and the mode of battle and sidesplitting could successful discourse beryllium described arsenic a massacre,” says the report.

The behaviour of the soldiers astatine the Lekki shootings was worsened by their “refusal to let ambulances to render aesculapian assistance” to the victims, says the report. It besides accuses constabulary of attempting to screen up the shootings astatine the toll gross successful Lagos.

Some of those wounded astatine the Lekki shootings confirmed to AP the report’s descriptions of however the soldiers opened occurrence astatine the protestation scene.

A spokesperson for the Lagos authorities authorities did not instantly respond to a petition for comments.

Nigeria saw nationwide demonstrations against constabulary brutality past twelvemonth which demanded justness for those killed and arrested by police, particularly by a portion known arsenic the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, oregon SARS. In effect to the protests, the authorities has disbanded the unit. Nigerians person agelong complained that officials are often dilatory to enactment connected charges of constabulary brutality and galore officers accused of abuses person not been disciplined.

After 2 weeks of the protests, connected Oct. 20 information forces were deployed to disperse the demonstrators pursuing attacks by immoderate hoodlums connected authorities facilities and constabulary stations.

In Lagos, Nigeria’s astir populous metropolis with much than 14 cardinal people, soldiers were sent to the Lekki toll gross plaza wherever hundreds of protesters had gathered. After dark, hours aft a 24-hour curfew was declared by the Lagos government, soldiers “shot blank and unrecorded bullets straight and pointedly into the midst of the protesters astatine the Lekki Toll Gate, with the deliberate volition to assault, maim and kill,” according to the report.

The shootings astatine the toll gross and successful different portion of Lagos resulted successful the deaths of 12 persons, Amnesty International said aft its investigations, but the Nigerian authorities and the service person continued to contradict that anyone was killed by information forces astatine the toll gate.

Weeks aft the protest, the Nigerian service admitted that the soldiers were deployed with unrecorded ammunition, but it denied that soldiers fired connected the protesters.

Most states successful Nigeria acceptable up judicial panels to analyse allegations of constabulary brutality, but the Lagos authorities expanded the scope of its committee to probe the shooting incidental astatine the Lekki toll gross and to grant compensation to those who filed charges.

The sheet awarded astir $1 cardinal successful compensation to 70 radical who filed charges that they had been victims of constabulary brutality successful the October demonstrations. Dozens of others person filed complaints but inactive await justness arsenic those petitions person not yet been considered.

“We had 42 cases near retired of astir 250 … excluding the probe of Lekki toll gross (shooting),” said a subordinate of the panel, who spoke connected information of anonymity. The sheet did not person clip to see the different complaints, said the sheet member. “What we person done, determination is nary tribunal successful the satellite that volition bash it successful 1 year.”

The sheet recommends wide-ranging “holistic constabulary reforms” including the instauration of a lasting committee “to woody with cases of usurpation of quality rights by information agencies.” Lagos Gov. Sanwo-Olu said helium has acceptable up a four-member committee “to guarantee we get to enactment connected implementation” of the recommendations.

While overmuch of the attraction has been connected Lagos, dozens of charges of brutality filed successful astatine slightest 9 different states had indefinitely postponed their proceedings, Amnesty International and petitioners told AP.