Funded by the European Union, Agence Française de Développementand Netherlands Embassy

AVOCATS SANS FRONTIERESFrance

EUROPEAN UNION

LAWYERS WITHOUT BORDERS FRANCE

Final report on the death penalty in Nigeria (2011-2014)July 2014

SAVING LIVES project

2

3

Acknowledgements 4

Introduction 5

1. SALI presentation 5 1.1. ASF France 5 1.2. SALI project description 5

2. Background information on the death penalty 7 2.1. International context - legal framework and practice 7 2.2. Regional context - legal framework and practice 8 2.3. National context - the death penalty in Nigeria 8

Assessment of SALI’s achievements on the death penalty in Nigeria 10

1. SALI activity 1: Capacity building for lawyers 10 1.1. Initial training 10 1.2. Legal workshops 11

2. SALI activity 2: Providing free legal assistance to inmates 12 2.1. Legal aid and the network of support lawyers 12 2.2. Two symbolic cases: ECOWAS requests 13

3. SALI activity 3: Raising awareness for political and judicial stakeholders 14 3.1. Official SALI launch: kick-off meeting 14 3.2. Conferences raising awareness among stakeholders 15 3.3. Practical workshops 16

4. SALI activity 4: Strengthening advocacy and communication 17 4.1. Campaigns and media 17 4.2. Advocacy visits 18 4.3. Radio jingles 18 4.4. Website 19

Conclusion 20

Recommendations 21

Bibliography 22

Table of contents

4

Th is report was draft ed under the direction of: - Jean-Sébastien Mariez, Cécile Ostier (ASF France lawyers, Project Managers) - Elodie Soulard (ASF France, Nigeria Coordinator)

Acknowledgements

Avocats Sans Frontières France would like to thank the following: - Support-lawyers: Noah Ajare (Abuja), Mathew Idoko (Benue), Patricia Iyomon (Edo), Vincent Soligbo (Kaduna), Shafi Bara’u (Katsina), Dr. Abiodun Odusote (Lagos), Lydia Umar (Plateau)

- The National Human Rights Commission: Ben Angwe (Executive Secretary), Oti Ovrawah, Harry Obe, Morphy Okwa (focal persons); Zainab Gbobaniyi, Joshua Yyoyer, Osadolor Nicolars, Binta Inna (resource persons)

- The Nigerian Bar Association: Osita Okoro (Director), John Demide, Chinelo Agbala (focal persons); Mustapha Adekola, Sunday B. Onu, Muritala Kaseem, Biodun Olasupo, Ambrose Ikpa, Ayo Adewale and Oryane C. Akele (resource persons)

- Access to Justice: Joseph Otteh (Executive Director), Chinelo Chinweze (SALI focal person) - All participants of SALI workshops and conferences

With the contribution of: - Virginie Lefebvre; Marine Farshian; Jessica Lescs; Lalita Korzybska; Audrey Roelandt - Students of the Institut d’Etudes Politiques in Toulouse: Mathilde, Emilie, Alice and Constance

Th e SALI project was implemented by: - ASF Nigeria team: Angela Uwandu (Head of Office), Kolawole Ogunbiyi (SALI Legal Manager), Esther Akpa (Communications Officer)

- With the contribution of ASF Nigeria group’s volunteer lawyers

Donors: - European Union - Agence Française de Développement - Netherlands Embassy

5

ASF France is a French non-governmental organi-sation promoting and defending fundamental hu-man rights since 1998; working alongside global organisations, assisting lawyers in the defence of crucial cases and providing them with various trai-ning.Its mandate is to defend fundamental human rights by sustaining the development of the rule of law, access to justice, the fi ght against injustice and the right to a fair trial; through the defence work of independent and impartial lawyers. ASF France is a member of the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty (WCADP), giving it addi-tional support to implement activities.

WCADP is an alliance of more than 150 NGOs, bar associations, local authorities and unions, aiming to strengthen the international dimension of the fi ght against the death penalty. ASF France has been active in Nigeria since 2001 following its intervention in the famous Amina Lawal case. Subsequently, it began promoting the development of legal aid and providing assistance in the defence of human rights cases, especially in the fi ght against torture and other inhuman, cruel or degrading treatment. An ASF France offi ce was opened in Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria in 2009. ASF France is working with its local partners on two main issues: torture and death penalty abolition.

Introduction1.1. ASF France

Partners : - The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) - The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) - Access to Justice (AJ)

Target States : Abuja, Benue, Edo, Kaduna, Katsina, Lagos, Plateau 1

Objectives : Contribute to legal and legislative changes towards a restrictive pronouncement of capital punishment in Nigeria.

Four key activities : - Capacity-building for lawyers to improve their abilities on capital punishment cases

- Free legal aid for prisoners on death row and those charged with capital offences, awaiting trial

- Raising awareness on death penalty issues, fair trial and detention conditions

- Advocacy and communication on death penalty issues

Target groups : - Lawyers and other judicial stakeholders including Judges, Public Prosecutors and Ministries of Justice in the project States

- Prison staff - Police officers - Political stakeholders including members of Parliament and Governors

- Civil society actors including local - NGOs, grassroots organisations and community leaders

- MediaFinal benefi ciaries :

- Prisoners sentenced to death - Inmates awaiting trial and likely to incur the death penalty

Funding : - European Union - Agence Française de Développement - Netherlands Embassy

1.2. SALI project description

Strengthening the role of lawyers to fi ght against the death penalty

1 The project targeted three of the “Big Five Prisons” - Jos (Plateau), Kaduna, Lagos - which are the prisons where all the convicts sentenced to death are supposedly detained. It also targeted four States where most of the death sentences are pronounced : Abuja Federal Capital Territory, Benue, Edo and Katsina.

SAVING LIVES (SALI):

A project implemented by Avocats Sans Frontières France (ASF France) : 17 January 2011 – 16 July 2014

6

SALI’s main objective was to contribute to legal and legislative changes towards a restrictive pro-nouncement of capital punishment in Nigeria. This was achieved by strengthening the moratorium on executions and setting a new jurisprudence based on international standards – assuring legal guarantees for prisoners and the respect of their fundamental rights. It also aimed to reduce the nu-mber of people charged with capital off ences, and sentenced to death at trial; with the commitment of civil society, political and judicial stakeholders, especially lawyers.

It should be noted that the implementation of acti-vities was mainly hindered by the security situa-tion experienced during the time of the project. The target States in the north were narrowed down to Kaduna, Katsina and Plateau as all activities in Borno became impossible in 2011 due to the security situation.

Abuja

Edo

Kaduna

Lagos

Plateau

Benue

Katsina

Th e SALI project took place in seven target States.Abuja, Benue, Edo, Kaduna, Katsina, Lagos and PlateauAmong them, three prisons are part of the “Big five prisons”: Jos, Kaduna, Lagos.

7

Capital punishment or the death penalty is a legal process whereby a person is put to death by the state as a punishment for a crime. The judicial de-cree that someone be punished in this manner is a death sentence, while the actual enforcement is an

execution. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offenses.

2. Background information on the death penalty

In 2013 Amnesty International recorded execu-tions in twenty-two countries, one more than in 2012 and a significant rise in the number of people executed during the year (seven hundred seventy-eight executions reported). Despite these recent worrying developments, the overall trend is still firmly towards abolition.

At the end of 2013, ninety-eight countries in the world had abolished the death penalty in law for all crimes and one hundred forty countries have abo-lished the death penalty in law or practice2.

2.1. International context – legal framework and practice

International Instruments Decision/ Impact Signed by Nigeria Ratified by Nigeria

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) (1976)

Art.6: restricts death penalty to the «most serious crimes» and forbids it to be used on children and pregnant women.Art.7: prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment.Art.14,15,16: procedural fairness in law.

Yes Yes

First Optional Protocol to the ICCPR (1976)

establishes an individual complaints mechanism.

No No

Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR (1991)

abolition of the death penalty No No

UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1987)

prevent torture and cruel, inhuman degrading treatment or punishment around the world

Yes Yes

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1990)

forbids capital punishment for children.

Yes Yes

Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)

Art.3: recognises each person’s right to life.Art.5: against torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment/ punishment.

- -

UN resolution 62-149 (2007) moratorium on the death penalty - -

UN resolution 2005/59 (2005) abolition of death penalty as the right to life and enhancement of human dignity and to the progressive development of human rights.

- -

2 Source: Amnesty International.

Several international human rights instruments adopted at the international level regulate the death penalty:

8

Regional Instruments Decision/ Impact Signed by NIgeria Ratified by Nigeria

African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (1999)

Art.5: abolishes the death penalty for children

Yes Yes

African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (1981)

Art.4&5: right to life, libertyArt.3&7: right to a fair trial

Yes Yes

Protocol to African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (2003)

Art.4: rights to life, integrity and security of the person

Yes Yes

Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Establishment of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights

establishment of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights

Yes Yes

Arab Charter on Human Rights (1994)

Art.5: right to life Art.12: pregnant women Art.13: torture Art.38.b: special protection for families, mothers, children and aged

Yes Yes

At the regional level, several human rights instruments are relevant to death penalty regulation:

In 1804 politico-religious leader Usman dan Fodio established a Muslim State where the application of legal principles, including the death penalty, was based on a strict conformity with Sharia law. This penal system plans the punishment of mur-ders and other types of offences in interperso-nal relations (theft, adultery) by executing the culprits. British colonisation harmonised the legal systems of the kingdoms of the north and the south which had been essentially based on the customs in force in each of these areas; and the legal unification of Nigeria became effective in 1914. During Nigeria’s British colonisation, the customary laws were gra-dually replaced by common law. British colonisers wanted to apply the death penalty essentially to pu-nish homicides thus greatly diminishing the number of crimes punishable by the death penalty under common law to two: intentional homicide and trea-son. This legal unification was hindered by Sharia law principles in northern States, which plan the application of the death penalty for certain crimes.

This coexistence of principles stemming from common law with customary laws for some States in the north constitutes one of the originalities of the penal system of independent Nigeria.Since 1960, Nigeria’s independence, the death penalty had been characterised both by intensifi-cation and extension of its application. Since its declaration of independence, Nigeria had been ruled by several military regimes under which the category of crimes liable to the death penalty was considerably widened, raising the number of people executed to several thousand per year, on average. The restoration of democracy in 1999 corresponds to a major decline in the number of people sen-tenced to death. In the last decade, the Nigerian legal system now based on British common law, Islamic law and tribal conventions, has seen the expansion of Sharia criminal law. States imple-menting Sharia law (ten northern States) extended the death penalty’s scope of application, among others to private-law actions.

2.3. National context - the death penalty in Nigeria History of the death penalty in Nigeria:

2.2. Regional context - legal framework and practice Nigeria is part of the Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS). Among all the fifteen states that compose the Community, Nigeria is the only member, along with Gambia and Liberia, which still applies the death sentence. Furthermore, Nigeria recognises the authority of

the ECOWAS Court of Justice, which has deve-loped a jurisdiction in the field of human rights since October 2008 , accepting the African Charter of Human and People’s Rights.

9

4 http://www.saving-lives.com.ng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=163&Itemid=79

National legal instruments against the death penalty

National Instruments Decision/ Impact

Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999)

s.46: right to bring an application before the high court where any of the rights guaranteed under chp.4 of the Constitution is being or is likely to be contraveneds.33: right to life, “save in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been found guilty in Nigeria”s.34, 35 & 36: outlaws torture, inhuman or degrading treatment, slavery, servitude, forced labour ; protects dignity of human person, personal liberty and fair hearing

Fundamental Rights Enforcement Procedure Rules (2009)

enforcement of violated rights

Nigeria constituted a national study group on the death penalty. However, on 24 June 2013, four in-mates were executed in Edo State, even though the appeal trials were still pending4. They sounded the death knell of the self-imposed moratorium on executions instituted by federal law in 2006. They also questioned the respect of the international duties of Nigeria regarding human rights and de-tention conditions. In April 2014, one thousand two hundred prisoners were on death row across all target States.

The death penalty in Nigeria is a central political issue, not only for the African continent (Nigeria is the most populous country), but also for members of the international community. This report will assess to what extent SALI project activities, implemented between 2011 and 2014, have contributed to legal and legislative changes towards a restrictive pronouncement of the capital punishment in Nigeria.

10

Initial training for support-lawyers and lawyers from partner organisations was held in Abuja for three days from 20 – 22 July 2011. Two ASF France lawyers were in charge of this activity. The purpose of this training was to expose parti-cipants to national and international texts on the death penalty, with a view on how to improve the conditions of people on death row as well as in-crease public awareness on the issue. The parti-cipants were the seven support-lawyers, fourteen NBA lawyers and a representative of the Constitu-tional Rights Project (CRP). The training was designed as a practical and in-teractive session to provide knowledge, methods and tools which could be directly put into prac-tice. During this session, ASF France presented the project and its global methodology, as well as communication channels and its expectations towards support-lawyers.

Intensive and interactive sessions on issues related to the death penalty such as the rules of fair trial, the minimum standards of detention conditions and human rights in general as stated in the international instruments were included. The training also focused on national, regional and international legal instruments on the death penalty. Regarding laws and procedures at the national le-vel, the participants worked on the Constitution, Penal Code, Criminal Code, Sharia Penal Codes, remedies and jurisprudence linked to the death penalty in Nigeria. In order to prepare the training, a compilation of relevant legal texts, interesting articles and exer-cises had been assembled and distributed to the participants. This compilation was the fi rst step of the publication of a book on the rule of fair trial, conditions of detention and the death penalty; and the fi rst step of a booklet on national reme-

The fi rst type of activity included in the SALI project was to organise capacity-building activities in order to improve the abilities of support-lawyers and partner-lawyers on capital punishment cases. ASF France put a lot of emphasis on this activity because the sustainability of the action was based on the involvement of the target groups and the multiplier eff ects they would be able to initiate.At the end of the project, the objective was for the partner organisations to have at their dispo-

sal a pool of well trained lawyers with experience in defending capital punishment cases and able to conceive and lead training sessions / aware-ness-raising activities as well as draw up advocacy actions. As a result, these lawyers should be able to initiate multiplier eff ects within their institutions, the judiciary or civil society organisations through training or awareness-raising and advocacy acti-vities.

Assessment of SALI’s achievements on the death penalty in Nigeria 1. SALI activity 1: Capacity building for lawyers

1.1. Initial training for lawyers

Participants of the initial training in July 2011

11

dies and jurisprudence on the death penalty, which were distributed to legal and judicial stakeholders during practical workshops (see p. 16).The expectations of this training were to train sup-port-lawyers according to their mission and ex-pected results; to make NBA lawyers understand their roles as resource persons; for all trainees to learn about the main arguments in favour of abo-lition of the death penalty and to get to know the legal instruments to avoid the pronouncement of the death sentence or fight against a verdict of ca-pital punishment, to identify national and regional remedies on human rights issues, and to specify and consolidate the “strategic litigation” and “ad-vocacy” activities on the basis of trainees’ contri-butions. This training session allowed members of the team to get acquainted and to become familiar with the SALI project and the working methods of ASF France, as well as to improve their knowledge on death penalty issues. This initial training further broadened the support-lawyers’ knowledge on

human rights issues and practices particularly on the right to life. The initial training provided the opportunity to create a core team, to bring the support-lawyers together and to shape modalities to design a network in each of the target States.According to the evaluation sheets, the initial trai-ning activities were rated by most lawyers partici-pating as “very interesting”. Half of them judged the content provided as “excellent” and the other half as “good”. Most of the participants conside-red that the topics during the session were “very relevant” and interesting”, according to their ex-pectations (31% “excellent”, 53% “good”). To a large extent, they also considered that the objec-tives of the training had been achieved during the three-day session. 53% of the participants judged this training session had been “absolutely neces-sary in their work within the SALI project”; 42% judged it “very useful”. The positive feedback en-abled the project to reach one of its first objectives - to increase lawyers’ capacity-building.

Assessment of SALI’s achievements on the death penalty in Nigeria

1.2. Legal workshops for lawyersThe three-day initial training had been comple-mented by several one-day legal workshops organised in Abuja. The legal workshops provided continuous training on legal issues related to the death penalty. During the workshops led by the ASF Abuja office Legal Manager together with one NBA and one NHRC lawyer, the seven support-lawyers worked together on difficult cases familiar to each of them respectively; in order to share information, expe-rience and good practice. The participation of NBA and NHRC lawyers allowed for the reinforcement of their capacities in handling difficult cases. Mee-ting on a regular basis was also a way to continue building their knowledge and skills following the three-day initial training.These workshops were an opportunity to assess the support-lawyers’ needs and progress. Accor-ding to assessments made, the workshops fo-cused on a specific issue or theme and the content was adapted to fit the difficulties/challenges met by the support-lawyers at each workshop. The aim of these legal workshops was for them to be platforms for the exchange of ideas and expe-rience-sharing amongst support-lawyers; to proffer solutions to challenges faced by support-lawyers in the course of their duties, and to improve the efficiency and work delivery of support-lawyers through interactions.

The capacities of support-lawyers were in-deed strengthened with the organisation of legal workshops through which they had the oppor-tunity to exchange experiences, advice and to refine the judicial strategies to be implemented. Participants shared challenges experienced in each State and proposed recommendations. Each support-lawyer could make short presentations on his/her work focusing on the successes and challenges met. The workshop gave ASF France and its partners the opportunity to assess the work of each support-lawyer. Recommendations were made by other support-lawyers and SALI partners on how to tackle and overcome each challenge. Legal workshops were also an opportunity for ASF France project managers (Head of Office and Senior Lawyer) to remind support-lawyers as to their duties to implement legal aid activities, in particular regarding the identification of cases and reporting process (see Activity 2). For instance, in January 2014, support-lawyers were informed as to the follow-up of the two applications that had been filed before the ECOWAS Court (see p. 13). They were also reminded of their strategic role in maintaining and strengthening contact with local stakeholders in order to facilitate the implementa-tion of activities (prison staff, members of the Pre-rogative of Mercy Committees and legislators, in particular).

12

In order to put in place the free legal assistance ac-tivity, the SALI team recruited support-lawyers from diff erent target States. The network built for the project was composed by seven support-lawyers, the ASF Legal Manager, NHRC and NBA lawyers.After seven support-lawyers had been recruited, their fi rst mission was to identify local actors in the criminal justice system to facilitate the contact and the work. Then, they had to identify those who could benefi t from free legal assistance by up-dating a list of inmates on death row and those awaiting a trial which was likely to lead to a death sentence. The legal aid provided by the support-lawyers had diff erent aspects:

- Regular visits to the prison to identify the needs of the prisoners in all target States.

- Individual follow-ups. - Investigating the existence of a committee of prerogative of mercy who advises and recommends to his Excellency the Governor who deserves this privilege. Such a committee exists in each State however they are not all functional.

The missions of the support-lawyers on a day-to-day basis aimed at preparing court cases/applica-tions, compiling appeals, being present at hearings.

The SALI project team ran one of the biggest and most effi cient free legal aid program in Nigeria through a network of pro bono lawyers which rendered free legal assistance to victims of hu-man rights abuses. The success of this legal aid program is obvious as it established new juris-prudence and set precedents in human rights en-forcement. As of May 2014, the lawyers identifi ed one hundred forty-nine cases in the seven target States and all these people benefi ted from free legal service throughout the duration of the SALI project. In Lagos State for instance, seven inmates were released on court order, in Kaduna six priso-ners charged with capital off ences were also re-leased on court order. In total, thirty-fi ve inmates were released during the project and eighty-eight cases are still ongoing before the diff erent courts.The team also succeeded in the request of pre-rogative of mercy by the governor in the target States. Out of nineteen requests, seven preroga-tives of mercy were granted. The partnership went very well, especially with the NRHC whose action facilitated the work of the support-lawyers on the ground and in arranging contacts with the authorities.

2. SALI activity 2: Providing free legal assistance to inmatesA key SALI activity aimed at providing judicial assistance to prisoners on death row as well as inmates awaiting their trial, through the pro bono action of seven support-lawyers in target States. Indeed, prisoners facing the death penalty should

have access to justice and their rights should be respected. These inmates must know their rights and must be given the opportunity to be assisted for free by a lawyer.

2.1. Legal aid and the network of support-lawyers

- Send letters of prerogative of mercy to the governors pending when appeals will be filed in approved cases.

- Since funds are not required to file appeal cases for pro bono, support-lawyers should endeavour to approach the Court of Appeal for cases where they have already obtained records of proceedings.

- Regularly visit and update stakeholders in their States on their SALI activities.

- Collaborate with colleagues and partners in other States when preparing Court cases within the SALI project.

- Always notify the rest of the support-lawyers, ASF France and partners whenever coming across new legal authority in favour of SALI project applications.

Examples of the recommendations made to the support-lawyers:

In the opinion of the support-lawyers and partners, the legal workshops were a good initiative. It was an avenue for lawyers working on the project to

brainstorm together, share their challenges and successes recorded in order to motivate each other and learn from each other’s experience.

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The fi rst case presented to the Court was Mr Thankgod Ehbos’ case5. He had been on death row in Edo State since 1995, after being sentenced to death by a military tribunal. He faced imminent death having been alongside four other inmates who were executed in June 2013; breaking off the seven year-long moratorium. The ASF team in Ni-geria was concerned by his potential transfer to a diff erent prison for execution, so it instituted an action against the State and federal governments at the ECOWAS Court of Justice; seeking an in-junction to prevent respondents from executing Mr.Thankgod while his case was still before the Court. The ECOWAS Court of Justice established

a proof of desire to appeal, rendering any move to enforce Mr. Thankgod’s death sentence a viola-tion of article (4) of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights. This made the execution of Mr. Thankgod an “arbitrary deprivation of theright of life”. This fi rst success at the ECOWAS Court in January 20146 had a major impact on the pro-ject, illustrating its credibility. In its fi nal judgment in June 2014, the court ordered the Nigerian go-vernment to remove Thankgod’s name from death row as any attempt to execute him while his appeal was still pending in the Court of Appeal would be a gross violation of his right to appeal as contained in section 6 subsection 4 of ICCPR8.

However, one of the major challenges faced by the support-lawyers was that access was often denied by the prison offi cials for “security reasons” in the case of inmates sentenced to death.

Feedback is expected from the former inmates who received help from support-lawyers. Their ex-perience could enhance the project’s impact.

Case of Mr Th ankgod Ehbos

Case of Maimuna Abdulmini

The second case fi led before the ECOWAS Court by ASF France was Maimuna Abdulmumini’s case. She was sentenced to death in 2012 by a Katsina High Court, for a crime she committed while she was allegedly a minor. The court regarded this case as urgent and in February 2014, granted stay of execution to protect Maimuna from any action that could violate the principles of a fair hearing7. The court even alluded to the practice where prisoners on death row are executed while their appeal is still pending before the national court, a clear violation of the principles of a fair hearing. Thus the need for urgency was determined and an accelerated hearing was granted. In its fi nal judgment in June 2014, the presiding judge, declared that pronoun-cing the death sentence on Maimuna for an off ence

she committed as a minor was a breach of article 6 subsection 5 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The court awarded Maimuna N5 million in damages and N500,000 to cover trial costs8. This case underlines the thorny situation of fundamental human rights in Nigeria, such as the imposition of the death sentence on inmates below the age of eighteen. Such an exe-cution is a clear contravention of the principles of international human rights laws, which prohibit the imposition of the death sentence on off enders un-der the age of eighteen. The case’s successful out-come will impact the situation of many detainees not only in Nigeria but also in other countries.

5 SALI press release: http://www.saving-lives.com.ng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=174&Itemid=796 ASF France press release: http://www.saving-lives.com.ng/doc/ECOWAS.pdf7 EU press release: http://www.saving-lives.com.ng/doc/ASFFP.pdf8 ASF France press release: EU press release: http://www.saving-lives.com.ng/doc/ASFFJUNE14.pdf

2.2. Two symbolic cases: ECOWAS requestsASF France in Nigeria successfully presented two requests to the Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS) Court of Justice on cases of extremely serious and intolerable human rights abuse.

The decisions of the regional court gave credit and international support to ASF France’s battle and its partners to strengthen the role of lawyers fi ghting against the death penalty and to participate in le-gal and legislative changes to the criminal justice system in Nigeria.

14

9 Angela Uwandu, ASF France Head of Office in Nigeria10 EU press release: http://www.saving-lives.com.ng/doc/ASFFJUNE14.pdf

“By its judgment, the ECOWAS court has shown commitment to ensuring strict adherence to due process and the right to defence as it relates to detainees on death row. In the wake of the exe-cutions in Edo last year, this Judgment cements a step in the move to firmly establish respect for fundamental human rights in the Nigerian legal system” 9.

Indeed, Article 15(4) of the ECOWAS Treaty makes the Judgment of the Court binding on member States, including Nigeria. The finality and enfor-ceability of the Court’s decisions is also provided for in the 1991 Protocol. Article 24 of the Supple-mentary Protocol of the Court and Article 77 of the ECOWAS Treaty empowers the Court to sanction non compliance with judgments made.10

3. SALI activity 3: Raising awareness for political and judicial stakeholdersAwareness-raising activities were organised on death penalty issues, fair trial and detention condi-tions for civil society, political and judicial stakehol-ders in the seven target States of the project. This activity’s aim was to thoroughly acquaint the principal decision and opinion makers from the

judicial and political circles of the seven target States with the project, and give them an overview of the death penalty issues at stake; creating a dy-namic avenue for more qualitative interaction and cross fertilisation of ideas among stakeholders.

The kick-off meeting

3.1. Official SALI launch: kick-off meeting This one-day kick-off meeting (27 March 2012 in Abuja) presented the platform for stakeholders in the criminal justice system to re-launch the debate on the death penalty issue in Nigeria. The confe-rence had in attendance the representatives of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, the Attorney General of Federation/ Minister of Justice of Nigeria, the Chairman Senate Committee on Judiciary and Le-gal Matters, Representative of the Ambassador of the European Union Delegation to Nigeria, High Commissioners, members of the diplomatic corps, Attorneys General from the project’s target States, parliamentarians, prison officials, key stakeholders in the criminal justice system from the project’s target States and the Federal Capital Territory,

representatives of the international cooperation, civil society organisations and media.Discussions involved the global trend leaning towar-ds the abolition of the death penalty as it has been described as inhuman and degrading treatment by a majority of lawyers as well as ineffective as a deterrent to crime. International perspectives on the abolition of the death penalty were brought up, outlining the challenges faced in Uganda in aboli-shing the death penalty and the strategies adopted in achieving a successful campaign, as an interes-ting comparison to Nigeria. National perspectives suggested regarded roles that could be played by different stakeholders in the fight against death penalty issues, emphasising the need to engage

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One awareness-raising conference was initially planned to take place in each target State; howe-ver, due to security matters, a strategic change had to be made: three conferences were cancelled in the northern States of Katsina, Kaduna and Plateau. A more discrete approach was adopted in those States, being more relevant and safer for the team. The goal of the conferences was to raise aware-ness on issues such as the death penalty, fair trials and detention conditions. Civil society groups, political and judicial stakeholders as well as po-lice and prison staff were invited to participate. Four awareness-raising conferences took place in four different States, with a total of one hundred twenty-eight people attending and approximately three hundred twenty leaflets given to participants.The goals and the agenda of the conferences were the same, as was the quality of the participants: re-presentatives of the State Judiciary, Executive and Legislative as well as civil society organisations and the media. Some of the key stakeholders and their representatives who were present each time were the Attorney General, Controller of Prisons, Speaker of the State House Assembly and Director of Public Prosecution and the Commissioner of Police. Some of these key stakeholders appeared to be in favour of the abolition of the death penalty.The four SALI awareness conferences took place in 2012 in the States of Benue, Edo and Lagos and in 2013 in Abuja. At each conference, a consensus was reached among participants: the criminal sys-tem should be reformed in Nigeria by abolishing the death penalty for crimes where the loss of life has not occurred.

Benue Sate: thirty-four participants – 11 June 2012: In addition to the resolution already presented, the participants also agreed on some of the following points: the NBA should drive a synergy between the criminal justice system stakeholders in order for them to cooperate; the media should be more involved in reporting unfair trials cases. Edo State: twenty-nine participants – 13 June 2012: In addition to the general consensus already men-tioned, the stakeholders agreed on elements that are interesting to mention: the abolition of the death sentence in Nigeria should be carried out as a gradual process, since in others parts of the world where it had been abolished mentalities still took more time to change; the need to create awareness on this issue in civil society (hoping that the same stakeholders participating in the aware-ness-raising conference would participate in this as well); the legislative body, at both State and Federal level, must be better informed on alterna-tive punishments to the death sentence.Lagos State: thirty participants – 15 June 2012: Listed below are a few resolutions made that are different from the ones already mentioned: trials should be faster for all criminal cases; the police should ensure that people have access to lawyers at all stages; aid lawyers should have guaranteed funds; the Nigerian Police Force should also have adequate funding; the office of the Director of Pu-blic Prosecution should be involved at the investi-gative stage.Abuja: thirty-five participants – 10 October 2013: This conference was slightly different from the others as members from ASF France were present in order to mark the World Day Against the Death Penalty 2013. All SALI partners attended (NHRC, NBA and Access to Justice) as did representatives of the justice, civil society organisations and the media, who widely reported the event over the next several days.

and educate prosecutors and the Judiciary on the questions at stake and highlighting the challenges brought on by the mandatory nature of the death sentence for offences in Nigeria.These sessions gave the different stakeholders in the criminal justice system the opportunity to address the death penalty issue from their pers-pectives and to debate on them. During this meeting, flyers on the project were distributed to the participants.

Organised to launch the project, the conference received extensive coverage by national media. Furthermore, there were ninety stakeholders atten-ding the meeting in Abuja, including the Federal Authorities who were well represented. This suc-cess was very motivating for the rest of the pro-ject’s duration.

3.2. Conferences raising awareness among stakeholders

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All participants reached the general consensus that the campaign for the moratorium should continue as such, should be sustained. More statements were made: key stakeholders (law makers, police, judges etc.) should have general roundtables; tra-ditional rulers and religious leaders should be en-gaged to gain their support in the fight to abolish the death penalty, the bill of the administration of criminal justice pending at the National Assembly should be replicated by the States.On the whole, a few remarks can be made. The lack of forensic evidence in criminal investigations was underlined, meaning that death sentences are based solely on confessions and not on evidences (the case of 95% of the investigations).

This issue brings on the problem of confessions obtained with the use of torture, an act ASF France is engaged in combating in Nigeria with its other project ProCAT (“Promoting the United Nations Convention against Torture”). From a more socio-logical aspect, some participants stated that the question of poverty is a core issue, as only impo-verished people are being sentenced to death. It could be suggested that a change within the men-talities of civil society will be correlated to an aug-mentation of education and a significant decrease of poverty.

3.3. Practical workshopsThe aim of these practical workshops was to engage with judicial actors in each State on the challenges of the use of capital punishment. The target groups were drawn from major stakeholders in the criminal justice system: Ju-diciary, Ministry of Justice, NBA, Police, LACON and prison services. The goal was to hold regu-lar practical workshops during the whole project with a quantitative objective of twenty participants per session, a number that was met on average. The SALI Senior Lawyer and co-trainers from the local offices of partner organisations implemented the workshops. The practical workshops took on the form of one-day workshops, with relevant do-cumentation given to participants such as books on fair trial and booklets on national remedies. The first round of practical workshops was held between April and October 2013. Participants worked on specific cases and were given the op-portunity to solve practical and technical cases involving the death penalty, encouraged to adopt mechanisms and resolutions which enhance the right to a fair trial and avoid the pronouncement of the death penalty. Working groups and presen-tations were adopted to improve the coordination among judicial actors. The workshops consisted mainly of cases involving prisoners awaiting trial who are at risk of being sentenced to death as well as those sentenced to death at the first ins-tance. Emphasis was laid on specific issues re-garding due process, minors, women, pre-trial detainees and the rights of detainees on death row. Issues about pre-trial detention and me-thods of execution were also discussed in details. The pinnacle point of the workshop was the orga-nisation of a moot court by the participants. The judgement of the “Supreme Court” was an op-portunity to reemphasise due process, a violation which negates rule of law principles.

The second round of practical workshops was held between November 2013 and March 2014. The aim of these practical workshops was to follow-up the first practical workshop for the judicial actors, on the challenges in the use of the death penalty. The same set of participants who attended the first workshop came back for this second phase; and where this was not possible, new participants joined the workshops. Participants were introduced to a manual on the best practices for the defence of persons facing the death penalty. The workshop also extensively covered issues of fair trial. Parti-cipants were also introduced to the regional rights enforcement mechanism at the ECOWAS Court. ASF France drew from its experience of having two ongoing proceedings before the ECOWAS Court to explain the procedure to the participants. Addi-tionally a moot trial was played out by participants at the end of the workshop. For the workshops held in 2014, the participants were given a copy of the press release entitled “Four executions in Edo State, the end of the moratorium» produced by ASF France, followed by a discussion with stakeholders with strong differences of opinions. On the one side, some participants thought that the President took the right action by demanding the return of executions; on the other side, some participants felt it was a sign of disrespect of basic rights, because of the appeals still pending. It was discussed that because nothing was done during the moratorium to find alternative measures to the death penalty, it resulted in the Edo governor si-gning warrants of executions because of the hel-plessness of the situation. The third round of practical workshops was held from April to May 2014. These practical workshops had four aims: consolidate on the already created platform with the judicial stakeholders as to the method to be adopted in addressing concrete

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cases on the death penalty with the aim of pro-viding solutions to them; broaden the knowledge of stakeholders on human rights issues with par-ticular reference to capital punishment; share ex-periences from other jurisdictions on reforms in the criminal justice system; create a platform for engaging the Prerogative of Mercy Committee and the law makers in addressing the death sen-tence issue in Nigeria and its possible alternatives. Participants took part in brain storming sessions involving general discussions on ECOWAS’ court rules and procedures on fundamental rights appli-cations. The essence of this session was to de-monstrate the place of the regional court in the hierarchy of the legal system. Q&A feedback de-monstrated that a satisfying level of understanding had been attained by the participants concerning the issues. Case study group work was also car-ried out in which participants worked on cases, identifying human rights violations and laws that were broken in the process of legal action, determi-ning relevant instruments and adequate remedies for the violations. Cases were compared as well, aiming to point out human rights violations within the court system, and the routes which would be most open to favourable consideration of applica-tions once there is evidence of violations. Mate-rials were given to the participants to help enhance their knowledge of human rights jurisprudence. ASF France also shared their experience based on the ongoing cases at ECOWAS Court.The fourth round of practical workshops was held in June 2014. This workshop aimed to expand participants’ knowledge base of both national

and regional legal instruments to conduct advo-cacy with relevant authorities with regards to the death penalty, and enhance their work in practi-cal terms with the aid of materials distributed. The workshop helped in improving their work in terms of advocacy and appeals. Indeed, the importance of the ECOWAS court in the appeal processes was highlighted and later referred to by many lawyers admitting eagerness to refer back to cases which had seemed hopeless to them, with the aim of ta-king them before the ECOWAS court for the enfor-cement of the rights of their clients. Lawyers’ fee-dback was very positive. This workshop not only improved the quality of their profession and prac-tice as they had learned new things in the course of their work but it also enabled participants to pay more attention to details related to the respect for human rights from the point of arrest to the point of sentencing. The workshop helped many to treat clients more fairly and with more dignity. The knowledge they gained was used to impact on subordinates in the office and they reported a paradigm shift in their offices on the stance of the death penalty. Many testified to a change in attitude with regards to adhering to due process regardless of the crime committed by the detainee. The workshop was able to demonstrate the flaws in the legal system and furthermore demonstrate that innocent per-sons could be charged with crimes they did not commit.

4. SALI activity 4: Strengthening advocacy and communication 4.1. Campaigns and media Press conferences were organised, and a news-letter and press releases were developed and cir-culated to the press and stakeholders during the project. The objective was to alert the stakehol-ders, the general public and the media to some particularly illustrative and unfair cases of priso-ners sentenced to death; put pressure on judicial and political stakeholders so that they respect and apply the fundamental rights of inmates sentenced to death and to sensitise them on capital punish-ment issues.Press releases had been issued to inform the general public about the different activities led during the project, such as the kick-off mee-ting, awareness-raising conferences and prac-tical workshops. Press statements had also been circulated during important events like

World Day Against the Death Penalty, which was the occasion to sensitise the public on this issue. Finally, campaigns had also been scheduled in line with the progress of case follow-ups. For instance, press releases allowed following the cases of Thankgod Ebhos and Maimuna Abdulmumini be-fore the ECOWAS Court. ASF France also reacted to the end of the moratorium via press releases, before and after the four executions in June 2013, striving to alert public opinion.Key actors from the project State and national assemblies, State executive and the judiciary, as well as members of civil society were sensitised on the death penalty issue through various advocacy campaigns and initiatives, and other media related activities.

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4.3. Radio jingles Radio jingles were designed and spread across all target States. Access to Justice was involved in the conceptualisation. The objective was to sensi-tise the general public on the death penalty issues.The jingles were produced in Hausa, English, Ibo, Pidgin and Yoruba to make them understandable by most Nigerians in target States. The predomi-nant language spoken in each State determined the version of the jingles that was aired in that State. Radio-jingles were aired regularly during

missions in project target States; during important events; and on national radios, to have a stronger impact on society. By the end of 2013 (the third year of the project), seventy-two slots with a duration of about one minute were aired. The airing of the SALI jingles helped to sensitise Nigerians on death penalty issues. The jingles also served as a real tool for changing the people’s perception on the use of the death penalty.

The advocacy pillar was gradually strengthened throughout the duration of the project. The initial project did not plan specific activities under this fourth pillar. The team and partners suggested or-ganising two specific advocacy visits in each target State with the following activities: visit to members of State legislative assemblies, round-table mee-tings with the Prerogative of Mercy Committees and dialogues with the Attorney-General.Governors, members of the National Assem-bly and State assemblies, as well as members of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy and other judicial stakehol-ders were lobbied right from the kick-off meeting. ASF France missions (practical workshops) were used as an opportunity to organise advocacy vi-sits to political stakeholders. These visits aimed to strengthen the already existing collaboration with the stakeholders by updating them on activities of the SALI project and also to solicit their coopera-tion for the organisation of future roundtables with the Prerogative of Mercy Committees.The different roundtrips led by the SALI Legal Ma-nager gave the opportunity to meet key stakehol-ders and assess their positions over the death penalty issue in Nigeria. Stakeholders in favour of the abolition were identified, thus permitting to fo-cus more advocacy meetings on them. The team also tried to precisely identify the members of the Committees for Prerogative of Mercy, and could then start the advocacy work regarding the death penalty.Three roundtrips were undertaken by the Legal Manager in some target States in 2012. He met stakeholders from the Judiciary, the Executive (es-pecially from the Ministry of Justice), the prisons, the media and civil society organisations. He also visited key stakeholders in northern States regar-ding the February 2013 project. At the end of 2013, the SALI team held meetings with the Attorney Ge-nerals of Benue, Lagos, Katsina, Edo and Plateau

States, in preparation for roundtable meetings with the Prerogative of Mercy Committees in their various States.In each meeting with the Attorney Generals and their representatives, ASF France primarily intro-duced the project and its activities, highlighted challenges in the implementation of capital punish-ment, and called for reform of the criminal justice system to ensure strict adherence to due process. The team also used this opportunity to indicate the interest of ASF France and partners in having a roundtable session with members of the Com-mittee on Prerogative of Mercy. Attorney Generals thanked ASF France and partners for choosing their State as part of the target States of the pro-ject and pledged their support and collaboration in the organisation of the roundtable sessions with the Committees.The team also visited the Controller of Prisons to provide updates on the provision of legal aid in the prisons on the platform of the SALI project. In 2014, advocacy visits to legislators began in the seven target States, with twenty-eight people at-tending. The roundtable meetings with Prerogative of Mercy Committee had also been scheduled and started in March 2014 in Benue, Lagos, Katsina and Edo States. Visits by the SALI team and support-lawyers on the ground to key stakeholders provided an op-portunity to sensitise key stakeholders on death penalty issues and to provide data on the subject. During the second and the third year of the project (2012 and 2013), eighty-two stakeholders from the Judiciary, the Executive, the media and civil so-ciety organisations were met. Initially, only forty key actors were targeted. Roundtable meetings with members of the Committee on Prerogative of Mercy were finally organised, so far allowing the ASF team to meet forty-two people to discuss the issue.

4.2. Advocacy visits and roundtables with the Prerogative of Mercy Committees

19

11 www.saving-lives.com.ng

4.4. Website A website was created with a part for public infor-mation and a part dedicated to an online forum for the project support-lawyers to work and share do-cuments. The objective was to become a source of information for the general public, and allow the support-lawyers (and the ASF Legal Manager) to work as part of a network, by sharing information and experiences via the forum.The SALI website11 was officially launched in December 2012. The data produced and gathered on death penalty issues, both on legal (such as statistics, case-law) and advocacy matters, as well as the publications produced during the project, have been made available on the website.

Lawyers can use these publications and docu-ments, which provide information as a continuing and participating training tool. The SALI website is online with several documents about the SALI project as well as the death penalty in a more generally. It has been updated regularly by the webmaster, with announcements on new releases and achievements of the legal aid aspect of the project. The forum is currently active and the lawyers working on the project are gradually becoming accustomed to using the platform for engagement.

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SALI’s main objective was to contribute to legal and legislative changes towards a restrictive pronouncement of capital punishment in Nigeria; by strengthening the moratorium on executions and setting a new jurisprudence based on international standards – assuring legal guarantees for prisoners and the respect of their fundamental rights; reducing the number of people charged with capital off ences, and sentenced to death at trial – with the commitment of civil society, political and judicial stakeholders, especially lawyers.First of all legal workshops strengthened lawyers’ capacities in handling diffi cult cases through the exchange of ideas, experience and advice in workshops; meeting on a regular basis, developing their knowledge and skills. Additionally, providing free legal assistance to inmates, SALI lawyers identifi ed one hundred forty-nine cases in the seven target States and all these people benefi ted from free legal service throughout the duration of the SALI project. In total, thirty-fi ve inmates were released during the project and eighty-eight cases are still ongoing before the diff erent courts. The team also succeeded in the request of prerogative of mercy by the governor in the target States. The project successfully ap-proved thirty two cases for inmates on death row and ninety eight for inmates awaiting trial. Two key ECOWAS Court human rights abuse cases were presented and won, cementing a step in the move to fi rmly establish respect for human rights in the Nigerian legal system. Furthermore, four awareness-raising conferences took place in Benue, Edo, Lago and Abuja with a total of one hundred twenty-eight participants, key stakeholders being law makers, police, judges etc. A general consensus was reached on the im-portance of the continuation of the moratorium. Participants noted the lack of forensic evidence in criminal investigations as a major issue; from a so-ciological standpoint the question of poverty was also raised. Four rounds of practical workshops were held, where key judicial actors in each State engaged together on the challenged of the use of capital punishment. These workshops informed stakeholders on the issues of capital punishment and judicial recourse and sensitised them on human rights.Lastly, in order to strengthen advocacy and com-munication, press conferences were organised, newsletters and press releases developed and circulated, sensitising the public on death penalty issues as well as pressuring judicial and political stakeholders to respect and apply fundamental human rights. Key moments were during events such as the World Day Against the Death Penalty

as well as during the two key ECOWAS Court cases. The SALI team met key stakeholders from the judiciary, the Executive, prisons, media and civil society organisations, highlighting challen-ges in the implementation of capital punishment, and calling for reform of the criminal justice sys-tem to ensure strict adherence to due process. Meetings with Prerogative of Mercy Committees have started since March 2014 so far allowing the ASF team to meet forty-two people to discuss the issues at hand. Radio jingles were created and aired across all target States in several languages rendering them accessible to all, enhancing their impact on Nigerian society’s perception on the use of the death penalty. A website was created and now serves as a source of information for the pu-blic; and an active platform for lawyers to network and share information. ln conclusion, athough the project was faced with security issues, with the removal of a target State, the SALI team succeeded in implementing its four main activities and to reach its goals in Nigeria. Indeed, the key stakeholders are now more com-mitted to a restrictive pronouncement of the death sentence, lawyers’ competences are improved to defend capital punishment cases, and prisoners sentenced to death or awaiting trial for capital off ences are provided with free legal assistance. Many lawyers, judicial and political stakeholders, as well as some parts of civil society and the me-dia, are now sensitised on the issue of the death penalty. A considerable obstacle during the project was wi-thout doubt the end of the moratorium, which oc-curred in June 2013. The moratorium was and still is defended by ASF France, and has been a source of hope, allowing discussions in a more favourable context. Even if the team eff orts could not fi nally prevent the four executions in Edo State, it was a new argument to continue the advocacy campaign, sensitising key stakeholders and the general pu-blic on the issue of abolition of the death penalty. The cases before the ECOWAS Court of Justice also enhanced the fi nal aim. After numerous debates with diff erent stakeholders on this issue, an important idea made consensus: the necessity to abolish the death penalty for mi-nor crimes, where the loss of life has not occurred. All the key Nigerian actors also agreed on the ne-cessity, before any attempt to abolish the death penalty, to reform the criminal and judicial system in Nigeria. That is inevitably the fi rst step out of many in reducing the number of prisoners sen-tenced to death or those awaiting trial.

Conclusion

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Recommendations

State authorities should: - Develop a proper mechanism for generating accurate statistics of the number of death sentence convictions in each State.

- Draft a reform to match or complete Sharia law in the northern States.

- Amend local law in the aim of death penalty abolition.

- Draft a possible project of laws regarding the criminal system on the state level, with a strict limitation of the death penalty for crimes where life has been taken, using the material and comments made during sessions with stakeholders (both awareness-raising conferences and practical workshops).

Civil society should: - Extend free legal aid to detainees in all prisons in all Nigerian States.

- Extend practical workshops to incorporate more security agencies other than the police.

- Extend intervention to States in Nigeria poorly covered at this time, especially to the south-eastern part of Nigeria.

- Target civil society and other community based organisations during awareness sessions on the death penalty so that they in turn can champion the course at the grassroot level.

- Intensify advocacy meetings with lawmakers at the State level.

National authorities should: - Draft a possible project of laws regarding the criminal system on a national level, with a strict limitation of the death penalty for crimes where a life has been taken, using the material and comments made during sessions with stakeholders (both awareness-raising conferences and practical workshops).

- Increase judicial activism at national courts. - Comply with the two major decisions of the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice (case of Mr Thankgod Ehbos and Maimuna Abdulmini).

- Work towards the signature followed by the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR aiming to abolish the death penalty; following the global trend towards the abolition of the death penalty and bound by its international obligations.

- Align Nigeria with international death penalty standards – no vulnerable persons, not mandatory, only for most serious crimes.

- Reinstate the moratorium on the death penalty in the aim of abolition of the death penalty.

Civil society should: - Properly document cases which were successfully concluded within their and circulate them amongst defence lawyers and other civil society organisations to encourage similar actions.

- Upload all resources used during projects (eg. in workshop sessions) on their websites for easy access to interested persons.

- Organise more awareness activities to increase visibility and attain more objectives.

- Intensify advocacy meetings with lawmakers at the national level.

Media personnel should: - Be trained on the issues around the death penalty to ensure accurate and informed reporting on the issue.

- Lawyers should bring actions before regional courts in order to enforce fundamental rights to challenge/avoid death penalty rulings and/or executions through the right to a fair trial,

due process, proper detention conditions, abolition of forced confessions.

National level

State level

Regional level

- The international community should advocate for the implementation of international standards to be abided by Nigeria

International level

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BibliographyLegal resources:

- ECOWAS Justice Court: http://www.courtecowas.org/

- African Commission on Human and People’s rights http://www.achpr.org/ - International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights - Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights http://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx

Academic journals: - E. Peiffer, “The Death Penalty in Traditional Islamic Law and as Interpreted in Saudi Arabia and Nigeria”, 11 Wm & Mary J.Women & L.507 (2005)

- Chinwe Chinemerem Onuoha, “The quality of Justice is strained: the death penalty in Nigeria”, Bocconi Legal Papers: http://bocconilegalpapers.org

Reports: - Mémoire d’Amnesty International soumis à la CEDEAO concernant la compétence de la Cour Index: AFR 27/008/2013 Amnesty International - septembre 2013 http://amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AFR27/008/2013/en/bad12f78-2925-4bf9-9ba2-a4bfea6feb60/afr270082013fr.pdf

- Rapport d’Amnesty International : Nigeria: Trapped in the cycle of violence http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/AFR44/043/2012/en/04ab8b67-8969-4c86-bdea-0f82059dff28/afr440432012en.pdf

- “Study on the Question of Death Penalty in Africa”, African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights: http://www.achpr.org/news/2012/04/d46/

Websites: - The 5th World Congress against the Death Penalty: http://congres.abolition.fr/?lang=en

- The African Court on Human and People’s Rights Website: http://www.african-court.org/en/

- The British Institute of International and Comparative Law: http://www.biicl.org/

- The Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS/CEDEAO): http://www.courtecowas.org

- The Death Penalty Worldwide, Nigeria section: http://www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org/country-search-post.cfm?country=Nigeria

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In partnership withThe National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), The Nigerian Bar Association and Access to Justice

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