Credible reports protesters shot dead in Nigeria
Amnesty International said late Tuesday there was
“credible but disturbing evidence” that security forces in the megacity of
Lagos had fatally shot protesters who were demonstrating against police
brutality despite a new curfew going into effect.
The Lagos state commissioner for information, Gbenga
Omotoso, said in a statement Tuesday night only that “there have been reports
of shooting at the Lekki Toll Plaza following the 24-hour curfew imposed on
Lagos."
“The state government has ordered an investigation
into the incident,” he said.
Video shown on Nigeria's Channels Television
appeared to capture audio of live rounds being fired at the scene.
“While we continue to investigate the killings,
Amnesty International wishes to remind the authorities that under international
law, security forces may only resort to the use of lethal force when strictly
unavoidable to protect against imminent threat of death or serious injury,”
Amnesty tweeted.
The development came just hours after Lagos state
Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu warned on Twitter that the growing protests against
police brutality in Nigeria had “degenerated into a monster that is threatening
the well-being of our society.”
A police statement also had warned that security
forces would now “exercise the full powers of the law to prevent any further
attempt on lives and property of citizens.”
The reports of fatal shootings in Lekki come after
two chaotic weeks of mounting protests leading to more widespread social
unrest. On Tuesday, authorities said nearly 2,000 inmates had broken out of
jail after crowds attacked two correctional facilities a day earlier.
The Inspector-General of Police said it was
deploying anti-riot police across Nigeria, which is Africa’s most populous
nation, and ordered forces to strengthen security around correctional
facilities.
The governor of Lagos state said the new curfew
would cover the entire city of some 14 million people and surrounding areas.
The announcement came after a police station was burned down in the city and
two people were shot dead by police.
“Lives and limbs have been lost as criminals and
miscreants are now hiding under the umbrella of these protests to unleash
mayhem on our state,” the governor said.
Lagos has been the epicenter of the protests, with
demonstrators at times blocking access to the airport and barricading roads
leading to the country's main ports.
A curfew also went into effect in Benin City after a
pair of attacks on correctional facilities that left 1,993 inmates missing.
Interior Ministry spokesman Mohammed Manga said large, armed crowds had
attacked the two prisons, subduing the guards on duty. It was unclear what the
prisons' exact populations had been before the attack.
“Most of the inmates held at the centers are
convicted criminals serving terms for various criminal offenses, awaiting
execution or standing trial for violent crimes,” he said in a statement.
The protests began two weeks ago after a video
circulated showing a man being beaten, apparently by police officers of the
Special Anti-Robbery Squad, known as SARS.
Young protesters marched in cities across Nigeria,
under the banner #EndSARS. In response, the government announced it would ban
the anti-robbery squad, which for several years human rights groups have blamed
for widespread abuses, including torture and killings.
The demonstrators have not been satisfied with the
disbandment of the SARS unit and are demanding an end to abuses and respect for
human rights in all parts of the police force. The protests have stopped
traffic in Lagos, the capital Abuja and many other large cities in Nigeria, a
country of 196 million people.
Protests continued Tuesday in many cities including
Abuja the capital, where troops have been deployed.
