At least 1,650,000 Nigerians have become homeless as a result of the troubles fomented by the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram, the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Mohammed Adoke has revealed.
Adoke made the revelation on Tuesday while speaking at the high-level segment of the 28th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, held in Geneva, Switzerland.
Breaking down the figure, Adoke said 650,000 Nigerians have been internally displaced in the North Eastern part of Nigeria, while 1 million are now refugees in neighbouring countries of Cameroun, Chad and Niger.
“This situation has posed grave humanitarian situations in the affected areas including the neighbouring countries,” he said.
Adoke used the opportunity to thank the multi-national force now working with the Nigerian troops to flush out the insurgents form the country.
He pointed out the increasing use of child soldiers and under-aged female suicide bombers in the perpetration of heinous crimes against civilian populations by Boko Haram as another disturbing trend that requires urgent attention.
He further revealed that he has issued an advisory to the Boko Haram terrorist group and all those involved in the conflict on the legal consequences of the unlawful use of children in armed conflict and Government’s determination to hold accountable, all those found culpable for the crime and other crimes such as abduction, rape, maiming, forced displacements and sexual slavery, in line with the treaty obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its optional Protocols.
Adoke pointed to the successes achieved by Nigeria over the years through international collaboration within the United Nations system regarding human trafficking, migration issues, prosecution of war crimes and crimes against humanity, and the protection of the environment among others.
“We are convinced that there is a need to intensify current initiatives in these and other fields and pledge our support to the Council in this direction,” he said.
Adoke further assured the council that the country at its federal level is doing everything to remain as good example in respecting the rights of its citizens and the rule of law, while also promoting a healthy polity by collaborating with several civil rights organisations.
“I assure this Council that as Nigeria prepares for the General Elections scheduled to commence on 28th March 2015, we are convinced that entrenching democratic governance in Nigeria remains the best guarantee for peace and stability in our region and beyond,” he added.
“The Electoral Body rescheduled the election dates to enable adequate security to be provided and ensure that about 24 million potential voters who had not received their permanent voters’ cards were not disenfranchised.”
