Nigeria’s Military, rife with human torture, says Amnesty intn’l

Justine Nwankwo; one of the torture survivors

By Evelyn Okakwu

International Human rights group, Amnesty international has accused Nigeria’s military authorities of inflicting grave torture on innocent Nigerians in a bid to extort information from them

 Amnesty’s senior director of research Nicola Duckworth stated this yesterday in Abuja, while delivering the latest report by the agency titled “Welcome to hell fire”

Duckworth said; “Nigeria’s police and military routinely torture women, men, and children; some as young as 12, using a wide range of methods including beatings, shootings and rape.”

Speaking also at the event, the agency’s Africa research and advocacy director, Netsanet Belay stated that 5000 Nigerian have been abducted since the military began its battle with the Boko haram terrorist group. He said the report reveals how people are often detained in large dragnet operations and tortured as punishment, to extort money or to extract “confessions” from them.

 Also addressing journalists at the event was a survivor, Mbezuigwe Onyekachi, who said he was arrested for stealing a vehicle. “They came to my house on the 10^th of March and arrested me. They took me to a place where they tortured me to compliance, by stating that I had actually stolen the vehicle.”

Another survivor Justine Nwankwo said he was arrested in the hotel premises where he worked as a manger, and was stripped necked after the police headed to a particular room 102, following the directives of one of them, and found human skull. “They took us to a cell in Awkuzu SARS, Anambra state where they used robe to pull me by the neck. 2 officers stood at opposite points with the rope pooling it till it injured me on the neck, so they stopped and used a cloth round my neck before continuing. The torture went on till I was forced to sign a blank paper

He stated that the man who lodged in the controversial room, came to the hotel as John Obi, but investigations later revealed that his name was Olisah Ebuchiem; adding that no arrest has yet been made of the man by the police.

“Rather they have continued to threaten me to drop my case in court, because the case has been filed in court. In fact just last Wednesday, before I came to Abuja, this week an MTN number; 08034138116, called me threatening to waste me if we failed to drop the case”, he added