The ECOWAS Community Court of Justice has awarded N20 million in damages to a Nigerian man, Mr. Moses Abiodun, after being held in detention for 16 years without trial.
The court on Thursday also ordered the Nigerian Government to release Mr Abiodun.
Abiodun sued the Federal Government of Nigeria before the ECOWAS Court for alleged violations of his rights to liberty, freedom of movement, and a fair trial.
The applicant, through his counsel, Chigozie Uzodinma, said Abiodun was arrested in November 2008 by officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and detained for several months.
He said on March 23, 2009, he was remanded by a magistrate court in Lagos on provisional charges of conspiracy and armed robbery, and since then, he has neither been formally charged nor taken to trial.
The applicant alleged violations of his rights to liberty, freedom of movement, fair trial, and protection from cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment, as enshrined in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and other international human rights instruments to which Nigeria is a party.
The respondent denied knowledge of the SARS unit and questioned the authenticity of the remand warrant provided by the applicant.
But the court admitted a certified true copy of the remand order submitted by Mr. Abiodun and dismissed the claims of forgery.
The ECOWAS court affirmed its jurisdiction based on Article 9(4) of its Rules, recognised the applicant’s victim status, and ruled that the case was not statute-barred.
The court further cited that the time limitations do not apply in cases of human rights violations.
On the merits, the court found Nigeria liable on all four counts: Violation of the right to liberty, Violation of the right to freedom of movement, Violation of the right to a fair trial within a reasonable time, Violation of the right to freedom from cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
The court held that 16 years of detention without trial was unjustifiable, inhumane, and a clear breach of International Human Rights obligations.
The court therefore dismissed the respondent’s claim, affirmed the applicant’s case, and awarded N20 million in compensation to Abiodun.
