The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has announced findings dismissing claims of forced and illegal abortions allegedly conducted by the Nigerian military on women and girls in the North-East.
This announcement comes after an extensive 18-month investigation by a seven-member panel headed by retired Supreme Court Justice Abdul Aboki.
Justice Aboki, while presenting the panel’s findings, stated that there was no proof to support the allegations that surfaced in a report by Reuters, which claimed that the Nigerian military carried out a covert program to terminate at least 10,000 pregnancies in conflict-affected regions of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe states.
“The Panel finds that: There is no evidence that the Nigerian military conducted a secret, systematic, and illegal abortion program in the North-East,” Justice Aboki declared.
The panel, established by the NHRC in response to the allegations, visited numerous locations across the affected states and collected testimonies from nearly 200 witnesses.
Its findings, based on interviews with 57 medical practitioners, showed no link between the military and forced abortions, contradicting the claims made in the Reuters report from December 2022.
The NHRC panel reviewed data from hospitals in Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe and found no indication of a military-driven abortion program.
The panel stated, “There is no evidence from the field investigations and documents that the panel considered to confirm that women and girls died in the North-East from illegal and forced abortions performed by the Nigerian military.”
The controversial Reuters report alleged that the Nigerian military ran a secret abortion program that led to thousands of illegal terminations over several years as part of its counter-insurgency operations against Boko Haram.
Reacting to the report last year, then Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, demanded an investigation to clear the military’s name, prompting the NHRC to establish the panel.
Justice Aboki’s panel concluded that the reported doses of Oxytocin and Misoprostol administered in the region were part of standard medical care and not part of a military-led abortion scheme.
While the panel cleared the military of forced abortions, it uncovered evidence of other human rights abuses.
Among these was an incident in 2016 involving the alleged killing of civilians in Abisare, a community in Borno State’s Marte Local Government Area.
The panel found the military responsible for extra-judicial killings in Abisare, recommending both compensation for victims and prosecution for the soldiers involved.
“The Panel recommends to the Federal Government of Nigeria, the payment of compensation to the victims of the killings in Abisare in Marte Local Government,” the report stated.
It urged that this compensation be provided within 90 days, while the NHRC should determine a compensation amount within 30 days.
Justice Aboki’s panel also called for the Nigerian Armed Forces to set up a Court Martial to prosecute those responsible, particularly officers and personnel of the now-defunct 8 Task Force Division, Monguno, who were deployed in Abisare at the time.
The panel stated, “The leadership of the Nigerian Armed Forces should establish a system for investigating and addressing human rights violations. This system should be independent, impartial, and transparent.”
They also recommended the establishment of a dedicated human rights unit within the military to address human rights concerns and prevent abuses, calling it essential to safeguarding detainees’ and suspects’ rights.
The panel advised the NHRC to develop guidelines within six months to ensure that terror suspects and detainees are treated in accordance with international human rights standards.
The report further stressed that human rights violations must be addressed promptly and publicly to promote transparency and accountability within the military.
Accepting the panel’s report, NHRC Executive Secretary, Mr. Tony Ojukwu, SAN, expressed gratitude to the panel and emphasized that the report would be forwarded to relevant authorities for implementation.
“This report will be forwarded to appropriate bodies for immediate action on the recommendations provided,” Mr. Ojukwu said.
