Worried by incessant abuse of human rights and torture in the country, a coalition of civil society organisations has called for quick implementation of rules and regulations for the Anti-Torture Act in line with Section 12 of the Act.
Project Director, Access to Justice, Mr. Deji Ajare, who made the call in Abuja on behalf of the CSOs comprising of 30 members on the occasion of the United Nations Day in support of victims of torture said torture is the intentional infliction of severe mental and physical pains or sufferings, by or with the approval of state agents.
The CSOs also called on the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN) to design the rules and regulations to compel law enforcement and security agencies to handover their operatives who commit acts of torture over to appropriate authorities for prosecution.
Ajare said the preventive mechanisms set out in the Anti-Torture Act, like the monitoring of detention facilities, effective oversight and speedy justice delivery had not been fully deployed to facilitate the prevention of torture in the country.
He called on all heads of law enforcement and investigative agencies to establish special departments to conduct trainings for members, monitor compliance with the anti-torture Act, investigate alleged contraventions of the provision of the Act and refer cases to appropriate institutions for prosecution.
“We urge the federal government to provide the resources that will enable the National Committee Against Torture (NCAT) to function effectively. We regret that NCAT has not been able to discharge its functions as it ought to, due to lack of resources,” the CSOs noted.
CSOs to FG: End torture, rights violation now
