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divided into smaller units, known as area commands, police divisions—with a divisional police headquarters headed by a divisional police officer (DPO)—and police stations and posts. Each state governor is the chief security officer in the respective state and chairs the state’s Security Council. Nigeria’s Constitution provides that state governors can direct the police commissioners regarding “public safety and public order within the state,” but it permits police commissioners to request that any such order be referred to the president for the president’s directions. Many state governments also contribute considerable financial resources to the police within their states, and state governors often wield considerable influence over the police. 459 The police force and a handful of specialized federal agencies are the only entities in Nigeria empowered to investigate criminal offenses. 460 The task of investigating crimes falls primarily on the police’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at each state command (often referred to as “State CID”) and at Force Headquarters in Abuja (often referred to as “Force CID”). Federal and State Attorneys General Nigeria’s Constitution provides that the attorney general of the federation, who is appointed by the president and also serves as the federal minister of justice, has the power to “institute and undertake,” “take over and continue,” and “discontinue” criminal proceedings in respect to any federal offense established by the National Assembly. 461 Under the constitution, each state’s attorney general, who also serves as the state’s “commissioner for justice,” has similar prosecutorial powers with regard to state offenses established by the state’s House of Assembly. 462 A director of public prosecutors is directly responsible for criminal prosecutions in the respective federal or state attorney general’s offices. inspector general of police in the respective zone, though in practice the commissioners of police often reports directly to the inspector general of police. 459 Many state governments subsidize the salaries of police personnel in the state and provide the police additional vehicles and equipment. State governors can also disburse their “security vote,” a budget line item meant to allow the governor to respond quickly to threats to peace and security in the state. Security vote funds, however, are notoriously opaque with little or no oversight on how they are dispersed. State governors have used the security vote to foment political violence and co-opt political opponents—or the funds have been lost to graft and patronage. See, for example, Human Rights Watch, Criminal Politics: Violence, “Godfathers” and Corruption in Nigeria, vol. 19, no. 16(A), October 2007, http://www.hrw.org/reports/2007/10/11/criminal-politics, p. 39. 460 In addition to the Nigeria Police Force, there are a number of other federal law enforcement agencies tasked to investigate crimes including Nigeria’s internal intelligence agency, the State Security Service (SSS), and specialized law enforcement agencies such as the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the country’s two main anti-corruption bodies—the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). 461 See Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, sec. 174. 462 See ibid., sec. 211. “LEAVE EVERYTHING TO GOD” 120
The Nigeria Police Force has also been granted power to prosecute criminal offenses in state and federal courts, although the federal and respective state attorneys general have the power to take over or discontinue these cases. Federal and state attorneys general can also give “fiat” to other legal practitioners to prosecute criminal cases in the respective federal and state courts. Federal and State Courts Nigeria’s judiciary comprises both federal and state courts. The federal judiciary consists of the Federal High Court, Court of Appeal, and Supreme Court. The Federal High Court, which, as of 2009, was divided into 24 geographical divisions, including courts located in Jos and Kaduna, has jurisdiction over federal criminal offenses, such as terrorism or illegal possession of firearms. Each state’s judiciary consists of magistrates’ courts and the state High Court. Chief magistrates’ courts have jurisdiction over criminal offenses that have maximum sentences of not more than 10 years in prison, which include offenses such as rioting, unlawful assembly, and disturbance of the public peace. Cases involving criminal offenses with a maximum sentence of more than 10 years— such as culpable homicide, voluntarily causing grievous hurt, mischief by fire resulting in the destruction of houses, shops, or places of worship—must be tried by the state High Court. 463 Decisions of the High Court can be appealed to the Federal Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. 464 Criminal Prosecutions: From Arrest to Judgment Nigeria’s Constitution provides that when the police arrest a person on “reasonable suspicion” that the person has committed a criminal offense, the police must charge the suspect to court within a “reasonable time,” generally defined as 24 or 48 hours, depending on the distance to a court with component jurisdiction. 465 The police will generally charge the suspect before a magistrate’s court, regardless of the severity of the offense, with a “first information report” (FIR), a form which often lists little more than the suspect’s name and the name of the alleged offense. The magistrate “takes cognizance” of the suspect and then will generally remand the suspect to prison custody to allow the police to complete their investigation. 466 The suspect can apply for bail, either before the magistrate’s court of the High Court, depending on the severity of the charges. 463 See, for example, Criminal Procedure Code, sec. 13(2)(a). 464 See Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, sec. 240. Decisions by the chief magistrates’ courts can be appealed to the state High Court. See Criminal Procedure Code, sec. 279. 465 Nigeria’s Constitution provides that where there is a court within 40 kilometers, a “reasonable time” is a period of 24 hours. In all other cases, a “reasonable period is 48 hours or such longer period as in the in the circumstances may be considered by the court to be reasonable.” See Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, sec. 35(4) and (5). 466 The magistrate can also release the suspect on bail, discharge the case, or if the suspect pleads guilty to an offense that is triable before the magistrate’s court, summarily convict and sentence the accused person. Human Rights Watch interview with a chief magistrate, Kaduna, August 18, 2011. 121 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | DECEMBER 2013
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H U M A N R I G H T S W A T C H “
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Copyright © 2013 Human Rights Watc
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Renewed Violence in Kaduna State, 2
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“Leave Everything to God” Accou
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On a sunny day in January 2010, in
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A mosque burned by mobs on April 18
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(above) A man stands in the rubble
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Photograph allegedly taken of a mob
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A mass grave for the victims of the
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RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE GOVERNMENT O
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RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE PLATEAU STAT
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financial incentives or promise any
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Non-indigenes are often denied acce
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“peculiar attitudes” and will
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The conflict over indigene rights h
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II. Inter-Communal Violence in Plat
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curfew, which was widely ignored, a
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speech to the Nigerian Senate in Oc
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the police to investigate them. 78
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In the pre-dawn hours of January 19
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Satellite image of Kuru Karama 21 m
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communities. 102 When the Muslim le
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didn’t want to see the children [
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ut “[s]he was not able to reach m
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On January 20, some of the Muslim r
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Sabon Gidan Kanar Witnesses said th
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eeders association in Plateau State
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The March 2010 Dogo Nahawa Massacre
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mass grave: 16 men, 16 women, and 3
Page 59 and 60: man who survived the attack told Hu
Page 61 and 62: finish.” He continued, “Fightin
Page 63 and 64: IV. Impunity for the 2010-2013 Viol
Page 65 and 66: charge them with. Federal prosecuto
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Page 69 and 70: know us. They are still there in th
Page 71 and 72: provided Human Rights Watch with in
Page 73 and 74: Kafanchan Special Judicial Tribunal
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Page 77 and 78: 2000 “Sharia Riots” In February
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Page 89 and 90: men divided the Muslim men and wome
Page 91 and 92: Another Muslim man, whose 19-year-o
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Page 97 and 98: The man said he later went back to
Page 99 and 100: the house. There were 10 men and 12
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Page 105 and 106: about living their normal lives,”
Page 107 and 108: VIII. The Legal Framework Internati
Page 109: houses, shops, or places of worship
Page 113 and 114: IX. The Anatomy of Impunity The fai
Page 115 and 116: arrest those they find at the scene
Page 117 and 118: advice, they refused to do that; [w
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Page 121 and 122: justice. For example, a Hausa woman
Page 123 and 124: villages in Plateau State, and from
Page 125 and 126: emaining cases. 523 The federal tri
Page 127 and 128: We asked the people who have been a
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Page 131 and 132: violence to book,” he told Human
Page 133 and 134: Political Compromises That Reinforc
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Page 137: Plateau and Kaduna—two states in
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