By Admin
Avocats Sans Frontières France (ASF France), also known as Lawyers Without Borders France, has called on the Federal Government to end the culture of impunity surrounding torture by fully implementing the Anti-Torture Act and ensuring justice for victims.
The appeal came on Thursday as the organisation marked the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, using the occasion to renew its demand for greater accountability, stronger protection for survivors and urgent measures to help them rebuild their lives.
According to ASF France, although the Anti-Torture Act was signed into law in 2017, it remains largely unenforced more than eight years later. The organisation said the continued delay has denied many survivors the protection, compensation and rehabilitation guaranteed under the legislation.
Since beginning its anti-torture work in Nigeria in 2009, ASF France said it has supported the fight against torture through legal aid, documentation, advocacy and survivor assistance. It added that more than 1,000 torture victims have received direct legal support, with many securing redress before Nigerian courts and regional human rights bodies.
While expressing concern over the slow pace of implementation, the organisation welcomed the Federal Ministry of Justice's announcement that the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) for the Anti-Torture Act have reached the gazetting stage.
ASF France described the development as encouraging but stressed that gazetting the regulations must quickly be followed by full implementation if investigations, prosecutions and support mechanisms for victims are to function effectively.
"Perpetrators of torture must be held accountable if Nigeria is to break the cycle of impunity," said Angela Uwandu Uzoma-Iwuchukwu, Country Director of ASF France in Nigeria.
"Gazetting the IRR must be followed immediately with training for law enforcement, funding for rehabilitation, and visible prosecutions. Survivors cannot wait any longer for justice," she said.
The organisation urged the Federal Government to expedite the gazetting and enforcement of the Anti-Torture Act's Implementing Rules and Regulations, ensure independent investigations and prosecution of alleged perpetrators, and establish adequately funded medical, psychosocial and legal support services that are accessible to survivors.
ASF France maintained that torture is a crime under both Nigerian and international law, insisting that genuine support for survivors must go beyond legislation alone.
"Honouring survivors means moving from law on paper to justice in practice," the organisation said.
ASF France is an international non-governmental organisation dedicated to promoting human rights and expanding access to justice. In Nigeria, it implements the eRIGHTS and anti-torture programmes, providing free legal assistance to victims of torture and other human rights violations.
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