Commonwealth, UN condemn violence in Nigeria amid calls for dialogue

The Commonwealth Secretary General, Patricia Scotland, has condemned the violence in Nigeria and said those responsible for what she called ‘cowardly acts’ must be held accountable.

AU and UN similarly decried ‘cowardly acts’ against protesters

Lady Scotland said she has following with ‘deep concern’ reports of attacks on demonstrators in the commercial hub of Lagos and other parts of Nigeria.

Similarly, the British Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, has called for an end to violence in Nigeria where protests against police brutality have been taking place for two weeks.

Mr Raab said the Nigerian government ‘must urgently investigate reports of brutality at the hands of the security forces and hold those responsible to account’.

He said he was deeply concerned by the violence and alarmed by widespread reports of civilian deaths.

A petition calling for the UK government to sanction the Nigerian government and officials in Nigeria for human rights violations has almost reached 200,000 signatures.

Earlier, the Chairperson of the AU Commission, Moussa Faki, urged both ‘political and social actors’ to ‘respect human rights and the rule of law’.

He hailed the disbandment of the hated Special Anti-Robbery Squad (Sars) and encouraged investigations to ensure ‘perpetrators of acts of violence are held to account’.

The regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas), called for dialogue between the Nigerian government and the protesters.

Human rights group Amnesty International said at least 12 protesters were killed by the Nigerian army and police at two locations in the biggest city, Lagos, on Tuesday. The military has denied any involvement.