Consideration of reports, comments and information submitted by States parties under article 9 of the Convention (continued)
Tenth, eleventh and twelfth periodic reports of Nigeria
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS, COMMENTS AND INFORMATION SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 9 OF THE CONVENTION (agenda item 4) (continued)
Tenth, eleventh and twelfth periodic reports of Nigeria (CERD/C/226/Add.9)
1. At the invitation of the Chairman, Mr. Rimdap, Mr. Gwam and Mr. Oladeji (Nigeria) took places at the Committee table.
2. Mr. RIMDAP (Nigeria) said that his introduction intended to complement the twelfth periodic report before the Committee, which also embodied the tenth and eleventh reports. In view of the political situation in his country, experts from the Ministry of Justice were unable to attend the Committee's meeting, but he would forward to them any of the Committee's comments that required further clarification.
3. Nigeria was a Federal Republic, consisting of 30 States, a mayoralty (Federal Capital Territory, Abuja) and 543 local governments. With a population of over 88.5 million people, it was the most populous black country in the world. The predominant ethnic groups were the Hausa/Fulani, Yoruba and Ibo. Other major ethnic groups included the Edo, Ibibio, Isoko, Urhobo, Itsekiri, Kanemi, Nupe, Efik, Ijaw, Egbira, Idoma, Tiv, Kanuri, Chambe, Gwari and Ekoi, and there were over 200 smaller ethnic groups with their own culture and traditions. Those groups were spread across the country, with no concentration of any one group in a particular area. Despite their ethno-cultural and linguistic diversity, Nigerians exhibited a cohesiveness that was a product of centuries of trade, intermarriage and other contacts. English was the official language of government and business, while Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo could also be used in Parliament. The Kanuri, Edo, Tiv, Urhobo, Efik, Ibibio, Gwari, Chambe and Ijaw languages played a very important part in interpersonal and group relationships. A hybrid of English and local argot known as pidgin English was also widely used.
4. Over 70 per cent of the population resided in rural areas and were engaged in farming. The Government had encouraged rural development by setting up the Directorate for Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure (DFRRI), which provided basic facilities and coordinated the activities of other rural development agencies like the People's Bank and the Community Bank; its activities included granting loans to very small enterprises. Attainment of the economic, social and cultural rights of rural dwellers was also enhanced through the Government's Better Life Programme for Rural Dwellers, initially intended to mobilize rural women for national development but now also covering adult literacy, health care and the provision of simple tools for agriculture and small-scale manufacturing. The First Lady of Nigeria had played a pioneering role in the action taken on behalf of rural women. State governments had also set up rural development agencies in partnership with DFRRI or alone, and in recent years the budget allocations for rural development had been increased by over 50 per cent.
5. In order to bring government and development nearer to the people, decision-making had been devolved from the federal level to the States and local government areas. The assembly members of each of the three tiers of government were democratically elected. Resources were allocated on the basis of 48.5 per cent to the Federal Government, 24 per cent to States, 20 per cent to local governments and 7.5 per cent to the Special Fund, the latter being divided between the General Ecological Fund, the development of oil-producing and other mineral-producing areas, the Federal Capital Territory, the Stabilization Fund and the Derivation Fund.
6. The civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of all Nigerians, regardless of the race or minority to which they belonged, were ensured and protected by numerous institutions, foremost of which were the law courts, which were independent of governmental control, as was the Public Complaints Commissioner, whose office had been in existence for two decades and who handled complaints brought by individuals, groups and corporate bodies. The Code of Conduct Bureau had been established to complement the efforts of the Public Complaints Commissioner and ensured, in particular, the probity of senior public officers. The Nigerian Law Review Commission reviewed national laws from time to time to bring them into line with contemporary domestic issues and international legal instruments.
7. Nigeria had also recently established a Human Rights Monitoring Unit under the Federal Ministry of Justice. Its objective was to enhance the implementation of human rights instruments and to receive petitions and complaints on human rights violations. It regularly prepared reports, guidelines and codes of conduct which were widely circulated among government departments and law enforcement agencies. State governments had similar units in their justice ministries.
8. Mrs. SADIQ ALI, Country Rapporteur, said she hoped that Nigeria's cooperation with the Committee would be a regular feature of the Committee's work in the future. She was grateful for the information provided orally on ethnic groups and languages, which was crucial to the Committee's consideration of the report, and welcomed the establishment of the Human Rights Monitoring Unit and other institutional mechanisms. The report itself failed, however, to answer the many questions raised during the consideration of the ninth report, and to comply fully with the Committee's guidelines. For instance, the reference in paragraph 1 to the policy of encouraging multiracial organizations related not so much to foreign policy as to internal policies, and hence to article 2 (c) of the Convention. The laws relating to citizenship came under article 5(d)(iii), and those on education under article 5(e)(v). The reference in paragraph 6 to foreign nationals participating in the economy was not relevant to article 5(e).
9. It would be useful if the text of the constitutional provision referred to in paragraph 2 were furnished in the next report. Since the new Constitution was not yet in effect, the Committee would be unable to analyse it in depth. It was presumed, however, from information given during consideration of the ninth report, that sections 30 to 42 of the suspended 1979 Constitution, which dealt with fundamental rights, were incorporated in the new Constitution. Was it correct that the new Constitution prohibited a coup d'état and provided that all changes of government should be effected by democratic means?
10. She would refer to the political situation in Nigeria because the current crisis seemed to have ethnic causes. The presidential election held on 12 June 1993 had been annulled, pending a lawsuit by supporters of the military Government claiming that the balloting had been rigged. It was said that the candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Chief Moshood Abiola, a Yoruba Muslim businessman, had won the election over his presidential rival, Mr. Alhaji Bashir Tofa, of the National Republican Convention. Both parties had been installed by the military Government. Mr. Abiola had the support of human rights groups and owned several newspapers which had sometimes criticized the Government, five editors having been dismissed for that very reason. The Lagos-based Campaign for Democracy had reported Mr. Abiola as winning 19 of the 30 States. Meanwhile the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate had issued a joint statement demanding that the election results should be released. Mr. Abiola was a member of the Yoruba tribe and it was believed that Nigeria's generals, dominated by the Hausa, would not allow him to be sworn in. The two parties had agreed jointly on setting up an interim Government to take over from the present military Government of General Babangida on 27 August 1993. The interim Government would be wholly civilian but all elected bodies from ward to national level would be dissolved. Politically, Nigeria was in a state of flux.
11. It would have facilitated the Committee's task if racial discrimination had been defined in terms of article 1 of the Convention.
12. The report failed to supply demographic data and information on the pattern of ethnic diversity, making it difficult for the Committee to assess the situation fully. Since its independence, Nigeria had been striving to reconcile regional and religious tensions and to accommodate the interests of the diverse ethnic groups. Some information had now been provided orally about various groups and the lack of concentration of any group in a particular area. She wished to know, however, why the Ogoni had not been mentioned in the statement by the representative of Nigeria.
13. On the subject of Nigeria's demographic composition, the northern region, whose inhabitants were mainly Muslims, contained about half of Nigeria's total population and represented more than three-quarters of its physical territory. The adjustment of the boundaries of the country's constituent States, referred to in paragraphs 12 and 13 of the report, creating nine new States and renaming three in order to ensure that there was no overpowerful region and that smaller ethnic groups had their own political representation, was a step in the right direction. Were the regional units of roughly equal population? What were the names of the reconstituted States and what were the criteria on which the demarcation was based - linguistic or ethnic?
14. During the discussion of the ninth periodic report of Nigeria, the relevance of considering the Muslim/Christian division of Nigeria had been disputed by some Committee members, although it had been previously observed in previous reports to the General Assembly (A/36/18 and A/38/18) that religious and ethnic origins often overlapped and that it was within the competence of the Committee to discuss conflicts which were generally related to problems of ethnic or national considerations. The Muslim/Christian divide was a colonial legacy. The British had ruled Nigeria in effect as two countries, promoting Western education and religion and the English language in the south and administering the north through the Hausa language and preserving its social structure and institutions, effectively sealing off the north, especially the Muslim emirates, from Western influence. Southern Nigerians migrating to the north had been forced to live in segregated housing and educate their children in separate schools, and had been prevented from acquiring freehold title to land. The northerners had been taught to regard the southerners as "infidels". That policy had inhibited the development of a national identity and it was therefore not surprising that nationalism had developed in the form of separate ethnic nationalism. She requested some information on the current situation.
15. Against that background, it seemed fitting to raise the question of Muslim/Christian disturbances in northern Nigeria. In 1991 demonstrations by Muslims in the northern State of Katsina in protest against the publication of an article considered blasphemous had culminated in violence after the State governor had threatened to execute a local Muslim leader. In the same month more than 130 people had been killed in riots in Bauchi following an announcement that Christians were to slaughter pigs in an abattoir also used by Muslims. It had been later reported that some 120 Muslims had been killed by government troops sent to suppress the riots.
16. In October 1991, demonstrations by Muslims belonging to the Hausa ethnic group had taken place at Kano in protest against a tour of the State by a German Christian preacher following a decision by the authorities to refuse permission for a Muslim leader to visit the region. More than 300 people had been reported to have been killed in subsequent clashes between Muslims and Christians, which had been suppressed by the army. She asked whether the Committee established to investigate the cause of the riots had completed its work and, if so, whether the Committee could be provided with information on its findings, especially concerning the ethnic groups to which the two communities belonged.
17. It was further reported that on 16 May 1992, at Zangon Kataf in Kaduna State, a group of Muslim youths had vandalized the fields of Christian farmers of the Kataf tribe, who were poorer and more numerous than the Hausa/Fulani merchants in the town, following which 1,000 people had been killed, mainly Hausa/Fulani. The surviving Muslim population of 20,000 had fled to refugee camps, and violence had spread to other towns and villages, resulting in the declaration of a state of emergency. On 1 February 1993, Zamani Lekwot, a Roman Catholic, had been condemned to hang; on 3 March, human rights groups had obtained an injunction preventing his execution. Whatever the decision, it would inflame the situation. It might be necessary to strengthen the hand of the human rights groups by adding the Committee's voice to theirs to save Zamani Lekwot. Meanwhile, Christian fundamentalists were bent on ending Hausa/Fulani Muslim domination. She would be glad to know whether the information in her possession was correct.
18. Ethnic conflict had erupted in late 1991 in the eastern State of Taruba as a result of a long-standing dispute between the Tiv and Jukin ethnic groups. By March 1992 between 2,000 and 5,000 people were reported to have been killed. That conflicted with the statement in paragraph 12 of the report that the basic governmental structure of the Federal State had always taken care of the multi-ethnic issue. That statement also appeared to be contradicted by the attempted coup in April 1990 by junior army officers led by Major Gideon, claiming to represent Nigerians in the centre and the south of the country whom he maintained were under-represented in the Government and the armed forces. In July, a military tribunal had convicted more than 70 members of the armed forces on charges of conspiring to commit treason. Despite international criticism of the conduct of the trial and appeals for clemency, a total of 69 prisoners had been executed.
19. The situation of the Ogoni, a distinct ethnic group living in the Rivers State since before the fifteenth century, was a particular source of concern. Under the leadership of Ken Saro-Wiwa, chairperson of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), a non-violent struggle had been carried out since January 1993 against the environmental degradation of their homeland, one of the most densely populated areas of Nigeria, by the multinational oil companies Shell and Chevron in partnership with the Nigerian Government. Describing in detail the grievances of the Ogoni people -environmental degradation, destruction of the traditional economy, failure to employ the Ogoni people in the oil-based economy, lack of educational opportunity, neglect of their language and culture and non-representation in government - she said that the Ogoni were working for equity and peace and for the right to exercise reasonable control over their own affairs within the framework of the Republic. Since April 1993, Ken Saro-Wiwa had been repeatedly arrested and detained in harsh conditions, despite poor health. The Government's reaction had been extreme. It had issued a new law, the Treason and Treasonable Offences Decree 1993, on 5 May, defining those advocating ethnic autonomy or minimizing the sovereignty of Nigeria as traitors punishable by death. MOSOP was demanding that the Decree should be abrogated and intended to pursue its demand for self-determination within Nigeria. The clashes between the Ogoni people and the Nigerian army had led to scores of casualties, including one confirmed fatality. Following the most recent arrest of Mr. Saro-Wiwa, on his way to attend the Vienna World Conference on Human Rights, he had been detained without charge, denied access to his doctor and lawyer and remanded in custody until 20 September 1993. Amnesty International had issued a "fast-action" programme on 1 July 1993 to save his life, and she believed that the Committee should make a similar appeal.
20. Oil companies were coming under increasing pressure as other communities, too, pressed for benefits and compensation for the resources exploited from their lands.
21. In the light of such information, it would appear that article 2 (e) and article 7 of the Convention needed to be implemented more fully. In particular, there should be a more equitable distribution of jobs and benefits.
22. Referring to article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention, she asked whether Nigeria was trying to bring about a compromise between the principles of open competition and the maintenance of fair shares among States or local government areas. The absence of open competition caused frustration among people from States with high levels of educational achievement. Such grievances might perhaps be allayed by dividing admission, on a fifty-fifty basis, between open competition and a quota system. She requested information on present government policy in that regard and hoped that the next report would contain more information on action taken.
23. Nigeria was to be congratulated on the steps taken to implement article 3 of the Convention. In view of its diversity, it must also undertake to prevent, prohibit and eradicate all practices of racial segregation in the territories under its jurisdiction.
24. With regard to article 4 of the Convention, she said that "class" could not be considered synonymous with "race", as implied in paragraph 16 of the report. That paragraph moreover outlined far too general an approach to article 4. The Committee required the relevant text of the Penal Code to ensure that measures adopted were fully in line with that article, which was mandatory. Did the Constitution prohibit the existence of racist organizations or ban participation in such organizations? She also requested information on the division of powers between the provincial and federal legislatures.
25. With reference to article 5(c) of the Convention, she wished to know, in connection with the local government elections held in December 1990, how many local governments there now were, and whether they corresponded to those listed in the first schedule of section 3, part I, of the former Constitution. What precautions had been taken to prevent interference from regional authorities? How did the system of allocating 10 per cent of total revenue to local governments through State Government function? Had any action been envisaged to prevent regional interference and prolonged dissolution of local government councils? She hoped for more detailed information than that provided orally by the representative of Nigeria. With reference to article 5(d)(vii), she asked whether the right to freedom of opinion and expression was guaranteed by law and, with reference to article 5(d)(ii), whether freedom of movement and residence was permitted within the borders of the State. With regard to article 5(e), she asked what the prospects were, given Nigeria's serious economic situation, for increased investment in employment, education and housing, and requested an outline of Government policy in that regard. Was the Government pursuing a policy of diversification to stimulate the country's economy and create employment rather than relying on oil as a major source of revenue? Some information had been given about rural areas, but further details were required, especially regarding employment, education and housing.
26. Finally, in connection with article 6 of the Convention, she asked whether victims of acts of racial discrimination had the right to compensation, whether Nigeria had an ombudsman, and what kind of complaints had been received and what action had been taken. Could human rights associations bring both civil and criminal actions? What role was played by such associations and to what extent were they heeded by the Government?
27. Mr. WOLFRUM congratulated the representative of Nigeria on his introduction. He welcomed the resumption of the country's dialogue with the Committee and trusted it would continue fruitfully in the future.
28. Nigeria was the most densely populated country in Africa, and also had the biggest population, consisting of a large number of ethnic groupings. It was therefore of great interest to the Committee. He would have like the report to contain fuller information on the composition of the population and on the distribution of ethnic groupings in relation to State and local authority boundaries.
29. Section 39 of the Constitution of Nigeria seemed fully to meet the requirements of article 4 of the Convention. The report did not, however, explain how its provisions were implemented. For example, it did not deal with the administrative and judicial measures and practices on which States parties were required to report under article 9 of the Convention.
30. He found the statement concerning national unity in paragraph 6 somewhat puzzling. It could be interpreted as reflecting an attempt to amalgamate ethnic groups or alternatively a determination to uphold the specific features of each ethnic group. He believed the latter was intended, but the point needed to be clarified.
31. Paragraph 8, on the question of dual citizenship, implied that a distinction was made between citizens of Nigeria by birth and other Nigerians. He would like fuller information on the meaning of section 26, subsection (1), of the Constitution (Suspension and Modification) (Amendment) (No. 3) Decree 1992, mentioned in that paragraph.
32. He noted from paragraph 9 that Nigeria encouraged the formation of integrationist multiracial organizations and movements. He assumed that there were a number of such organizations, and he would like the Committee to be provided with details.
33. His main observation concerned paragraph 12, which contained a very far-reaching statement which seemed to be contradicted by recent practice. According to reports, ethnic conflict between Tivs and Jukuns in Taraba State had resulted in an estimated 4,000 deaths and the displacement of 80,000 people. It had been claimed that Nigerian mobile police forces had assisted the Jukuns by burning Tiv villages. When, much later, Nigerian soldiers had taken charge of the area, they had played a useful role. The police had also been criticized for not intervening promptly, or for resorting to random shooting, indiscriminate use of tear-gas and arbitrary arrests in riots between Igbo and Yoruba traders in Lagos and other cities, and in the Kaduna riots, resulting from tensions between the Christian majority and Hausa/Fulani minority in the Zango Kataf district. He would like an explanation of the reported proscription by a Decree of 20 May 1992 of all ethnic, religious and regional associations that supported political candidates.
34. He also wished to draw attention to the Ogonis, an ethnic group which had not been mentioned in the report and which lived in the Rivers State, where it was the victim of environmental pollution caused by oil exploitation. The Ogonis claimed that profits from the exploitation of oil resources were being redistributed by the Federal Government without any benefit being received by the people of the region. He asked the representative of Nigeria to comment on that claim.
35. Lastly, the Convention required States parties to assure effective protection and remedies to citizens against acts of racial discrimination. Little had been said in the report on the Nigerian judicial system. He would like to know how the court system was organized and how victims of discrimination could bring claims against the police and others. He would also like an explanation of the fact that members of the Government, such as the President and Vice-President, were declared immune. He did not believe that the system of special courts and military tribunals to deal with particular issues, such as recovery of public property, civil disobedience or certain other offences, was compatible with the protection of the rights set out in article 4 of the Convention.
36. Mr. de GOUTTES said the Committee had awaited Nigeria's twelfth report with interest, in view of the country's important place in Africa and the world. The report was, however, too legal in character and did not contain enough information about the actual situation in the country. In particular, it lacked a general background setting out the economic, political and social situation. He would like more information on internal conflicts and ethnic violence in relation to disputes over political power and economic resources, and also on the recent suspension of basic guarantees as a result of electoral frauds.
37. One of the report's most serious defects was the lack of an analysis of the demographic breakdown of the population, which was extremely diverse. Three dominant groups, the Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa/Fulani, controlled the country. There was no information on especially vulnerable groups, such as the Ogoni, who were suffering from the degradation and pollution of their environment as a result of oil exploitation, as well as from acts by the police and oil companies. Nor was there any information on the treatment of immigrants from Chad, who had been forced to return to their country after suffering ill-treatment.
38. He had two specific questions. Firstly, sections 17 and 39 of the Nigerian Constitution defined the rights of Nigerian citizens. What were the rights and guarantees of non-citizens under the Constitution? Secondly, paragraph 10 referred to a 1989 Decree, repealing the earlier indigenization Decree of 1977, whereby an alien might own a company in Nigeria provided the capitalization involved was not less than 20 million naira. Since that appeared to permit only very wealthy aliens to own companies, what was the purpose of the Decree?
39. Mr. DIACONU said that the Committee was naturally very interested in Nigeria, in view of the size of the country and its large and diverse population. Given the existence of ethnic conflicts in the country, and without implying any criticism of the Federal Government, he would like to know what that Government planned to do to resolve such conflicts and prevent them in the future. Various approaches could be taken. In some countries, dialogue at the local level was preferred. Others created parliamentary commissions with decision-making or advisory powers. In others there was dialogue between the Government and the local communities. He also wished to know how Nigeria intended to train officials to deal with ethnic conflicts.
40. Bearing in mind the problem of the Ogonis and their request for self-government, he wondered how the Government planned in general to take account of the concerns of minorities in managing their own economies and resources.
41. He was interested to note that section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution prohibited not only discrimination but also privileges or advantages. That seemed to be out of line with article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention, which provided that a State could take special measures, in the form of positive discrimination, in order to defend or promote the rights of minorities. He asked whether the Nigerian Government took such measures or planned to do so in the future.
42. He was not convinced by paragraph 16 of the report that Nigeria had met all the requirements of article 4 of the Convention, which were mandatory. He would like to see all the texts in question. His first impression was that the definition of "seditious intention" would not cover all the instances of racial discrimination contemplated in article 4.
43. Mr. BANTON said he wished to associate himself with the many questions already raised by other members of the Committee. With regard to paragraph 14 of the report, although Nigeria might be in the forefront in relation to article 3, it was very much in the rearguard in relation to article 5. The first sentence of paragraph 6, concerning the great importance attached to national unity, was belied by the realities, especially of racial attacks. Such attacks had led to the attempted secession of the former eastern region under the name of Biafra, followed by a long period of civil war. Fear of such attacks was still present. For example, there were reports that men working away from their home regions were sending their wives and children home as they feared for their safety. Indeed, the situation in the country was so delicate that the Committee should perhaps include further consideration of implementation of the Convention in Nigeria in the agenda of its next session, after requesting additional information on developments during the remainder of the current year.
44. He would like to know how the Human Rights Monitoring Unit operated in relation to racial attacks. In view of the fact that criminal statistics might record an attack due to racial discrimination simply as an assault rather than as a racially motivated assault, he wondered how the Unit would obtain appropriate information.
45. Finally, in situations of ethnic diversity, politicians had a very heavy responsibility and the way they discharged their duties was crucial in relation to prospects for national unity. He understood the choice of form of government, but noted that, according to a United Nations report, the ratio of soldiers to teachers in Nigeria of 24 to 1 was much lower than the average of 64 to 1 for developing countries as a whole, indicating that Nigeria attached priority to education.
46. The responsibility of the Government for maintaining good order and preventing racial discrimination would be judged by history and, in his view, probably harshly. In many countries of the world, "development racism", as a Japanese writer had described it, was becoming prevalent. It was the attitude and practice of a powerful elite making economic development the overriding priority, so that national interests suppressed the rights of minorities. That could be happening in Nigeria in relation to the oil regions. He hoped the next report would contain a full discussion of that issue. With regard to the last sentence of paragraph 16, he drew the attention of the representative of Nigeria to the fact that, under article 5 of the Convention, the State had an obligation to guarantee the rights of the whole population, not just of citizens. That point should be covered in the next report.
47. Mr. GARVALOV said that Nigeria's history immediately before and after independence was exceptional. Few countries had managed to overcome a civil war, involving an attempted secession, and to emerge as a single State. It was natural that national domestic policies should be designed to achieve national unity, and he could understand why the Nigerian Government attached so much importance to the careful handling of ethnic, religious and linguistic matters for that purpose. He would like to know, however, whether, given the history of the country, the policy of national unity was in full compliance with the letter and spirit of the Convention. What impact had the policy of national unity had on ethnic and religious minority groups in the States? How many of them sought minority rights or greater autonomy? He believed that the tense political situation in Nigeria was the result of many factors, not least the ethnic and religious difficulties which were surfacing and causing serious problems. He would like to believe that it was the fear that providing a breakdown of the ethnic groupings in the population might fuel regional conflicts that had prevented the Nigerian Government from providing such information in the report. Nevertheless, such information should be provided.
48. The Committee's attention was always aroused when a State reported that it was seeking national unity or national integration, since such a policy could be used to cover an assimilation of minorities, and hence discrimination against them. He could accept the formulation of paragraph 6 as the intention of the Federal Government of Nigeria, so long as it meant full compliance with the Convention, taking account of equal rights for all minorities.
49. Mr. YUTZIS said he, too, welcomed the resumption of a dialogue with Nigeria.
50. According to paragraph 21 of the report, there was no problem of segregation in Nigeria. The report provided virtually no detailed information to substantiate that claim, and it would appear to be contradicted by much of what had been stated by the Country Rapporteur, Mrs. Sadiq Ali, in her exhaustive report, based largely on information from other sources.
51. Paragraph 10 suggested that the Nigerian Enterprises Promotion Decree of 1989, repealing the indigenization Decree of 1977, had benefited free enterprise. In view of reports that members of the Ogoni tribe living in an oil-producing area had been dispossessed of their land, what would be the effects of the new decree in regard to the participation of local ethnic groups in the exploitation of natural resources? His question should not be interpreted as interference in the decisions of a sovereign State on how to dispose of its own resources, but rather as reflecting the Committee's legitimate concern that measures of the kind described might be harmful to the interests of certain ethnic groups.
52. It was stated in paragraph 16 that only persons who could be regarded as forming part of the population of Nigeria could be discriminated against on grounds of race. He took it that that statement was an interpretation of article 1, paragraph 2, of the Convention, which declared that the Convention was not applicable to distinctions made by a State party between citizens and non-citizens. Nigeria, at least at one time, had admitted large numbers of foreign workers: did the statement mean that the rights of such workers were not protected? Paragraph 24 mentioned a formula known as "Option A4", which was designed to enable every Nigerian to participate in the presidential elections. He would be interested to know how and when that formula had been put into effect, and what results it had achieved, particularly in regard to the participation of ethnic minority groups in the election process.
53. Mr. SHAHI said he joined in welcoming the resumption of Nigeria's dialogue with the Committee. The Nigerian representative had stated that there were a number of human rights institutions in his country, including an ombudsman to whom complaints could be brought. Could he give more information on the composition and function of those institutions, to what extent they were independent, and how far the Government responded to their recommendations? He had been very interested to note from paragraph 11 of the report, that special attention was being paid to nomadic education. The Government of Pakistan had not been very successful in its efforts to promote literacy among its nomads, and he would be glad to know how far Nigeria had succeeded in that regard.
54. It had been reported that some of the rights defined under the 1979 Constitution had been suspended: he would like to know whether they included the right to habeas corpus. The report claimed that the Government paid great regard to the ethnic composition of the Nigerian population and to minority rights: he hoped that the next report would give details of how the Government was addressing the grievances of the Ogoni people, and what steps it was taking to prevent further despoliation of the environment.
55. It was his understanding that section 14 of the 1989 Constitution required employment in Government services to reflect the "federal character" of the country, and that ethnic and regional hiring quotas were observed in public sector employment. Some information as to how demographic composition was reflected in such hiring quotas would be of great interest. He would also like to know what the scenario would be in the weeks leading up to 27 August 1993, when an interim civilian regime was to be established. How were the members of that regime to be chosen, how long would it govern the country before a new president was elected, taking into account the fact that members of the Senate and Lower House would be unable to fulfil their functions until a president was in office?
56. He was aware of the enormous difficulties facing any government in holding together a country comprising some 250 different races and groups, and dominated by three main groups competing for power and influence, while at the same time coping with problems of underdevelopment. He assured the Nigerian representative that the Committee's questions were not inspired by any adversarial attitude, and that it was bringing much sympathy, understanding and goodwill to the consideration of his country's report.
57. Mr. SONG Shuhua noted that, according to paragraph 6 of the report, the Government had carefully handled ethnic, religious and linguistic matters in efforts to achieve national unity. What were the specific measures adopted to achieve that end? In view of the existence of some 250 ethnic groups in the country, three of which were dominant, what was done to ensure fair and equitable representation of all groups in Parliament, and what concrete steps had been taken to achieve national reconciliation? According to some reports, abuse of power by the military and police was a serious problem in Nigeria. Since that problem had a direct bearing on the relationship between the Government and the population, he would appreciate a reply from the Nigerian representative.
58. Mr. ABOUL-NASR supported Mr. Banton's proposal that the Committee should keep Nigeria's report under review and take it up again at the next session. The Nigerian delegation would obviously have some difficulty in responding to questions at the current session due to the absence of its experts. The situation in the country was one of transition, and changes were taking place rapidly. The situation should be monitored further before final conclusions on the report were drawn: the Committee should not make the same mistake as it had in the case of another country with a number of different ethnic groups, races and religions, namely Yugoslavia. In that case, the Committee had declared the report to be satisfactory, only to find its conclusion overtaken by events. He reserved the right to comment on the report, as well as on the remarks made by members of the Committee, at a later stage.
59. Mr. FERRERO COSTA also supported Mr. Banton's proposal. He agreed that the report was very abstract, and gave few concrete details. The ethnic situation in Nigeria was highly complex, and the Committee would need more time to study it. However, that would not prevent the Nigerian delegation from responding as far as it was able at the current session to questions raised.
60. The CHAIRMAN, speaking in his personal capacity, also supported Mr. Banton's proposal. Among the points that would need to be clarified was the statement in paragraph 8, which seemed to differentiate between Nigerians who were citizens by birth and Nigerians who had acquired citizenship by other means. The Committee would also need more details about discrepancies between the 1989 Constitution, which was about to enter into force, and the previous Constitution of 1979.
61. Mr. RIMDAP (Nigeria) thanked members of the Committee for their comments. His delegation would do its best to provide the information requested.
62. The suggestion that one of the reasons for the election was that the Nigerian military, dominated by the Hausas, refused to relinquish power, was not correct. Not only in the Nigerian army, but in all spheres of Nigerian life, the federal concept predominated. Each State had its own assembly, as well as its own separate administration. The President and the Vice-President each came from different ethnic groups, and the background of other members of the Government likewise reflected the diversity of the Federation.
63. The report did not contain data on the demographic composition of Nigeria because such figures were not available. The population census carried out two years previously had not provided for the collection of information on ethnic group or religion in order to prevent States from inflating the figures in order to increase their revenue from the Federal Government, as had happened in the past. A map, which had been made available to members of the Committee, showing the distribution of languages and dialects in Nigeria gave clear evidence of the complex ethnic make-up of the country. There were over 200 linguistic groups in the country as a whole and some States contained over 50 ethnic groups. It was to be noted that the large settled population of Fulani in northern Nigeria spoke only Hausa by their own choice. Only those still pursuing a nomadic way of life, crossing the borders of several countries, still spoke Fulani.
64. The creation of nine new States within the Federation had been in response to demands for a greater share in decision-making. The principle had been to ensure that each State would have a population of between 2 and 3 million inhabitants for ease in the provision of infrastructure and facilities and would share equally in government because of their similar size. The Federal Government consisted of a Senate and a House of Representatives. Each State sent three senators to the Senate and about five representatives to the House of Representatives, the electoral areas depending on population. The composition of the Cabinet also gave equitable representation to the States. In the same way, the State assemblies represented their local administrative divisions, and local government represented its component districts.
65. The conflicts mentioned that were apparently of religious origin, such as the Tiv-Jukun and Zango Kataf conflicts, had in fact been triggered by economic factors. Twenty years previously there had been little pressure on land, but explosive population growth had created a strong demand for it with resultant tensions. The problem would be solved by dealing with the land question.
66. Mention had been made of the 1992 coup attempt and it had been suggested that it was due to a feeling by minority groups and southerners that the Government was dominated by the Hausa and Fulani. That was not the case; the President himself was not from the north but from a middle-belt State. The probable reason was thus not ethnic discontent but, as was the case in most coups in Nigeria since 1966, a general desire for change.
67. As for the deprivation of resources and environmental damage resulting from oil production, the system of centralizing revenue had existed before the discovery of oil and funds were returned to areas from which resources were derived. The Ogoni were thus not being deprived of revenues; they were also represented in local government. Furthermore, only 15 per cent of Nigerian oil production came from their area. Mr. Gwam had a more detailed knowledge of the situation and would provide the Committee with fuller information.
68. With regard to article 4 of the Nigerian Constitution, the reason for the desire to discourage people from forming political parties based on religious or ethnic criteria was that such criteria necessarily implied the exclusion of certain sections of the population. Any such party gaining power would be unrepresentative of the whole nation it was ruling. However, associations not based on the above criteria were permissible and were registered.
69. On the matter of regional interference in local government, the past practice of States in depriving local governments of the funds allocated to them by the Federal Government had been eliminated by the direct transfer of 10 per cent to local governments. The post of commissioner for local government at State level had been abolished, since the commissioners had frequently interfered with the running of local governments, which now were autonomous. Local government was also the level at which minority rights were taken care of.
70. In reply to Mr. Wolfrum, he said he hoped that Nigeria could now maintain a continuing dialogue with the Committee. Every effort would be made to keep the reports as up to date as possible.
71. The concept of national unity was not at variance with the existence of many ethnic groups. It was part of the aspiration to forge a single nation so that all citizens would consider themselves Nigerians and put Nigeria first. It by no means implied prohibition of the culture and language of different groups. The difficulty in education was that, in some areas, as many as 15 ethnic groups could be represented in one school class. It was thus obviously impossible to provide schooling through all the relevant languages and it tended to be given through the dominant language of an area. In areas with nomadic populations, mobile schools were provided that moved with the herds.
72. In northern Nigeria, the land that had formerly been in the hands of the emirs and chiefs had been taken into government ownership. However, in order to promote private ownership, a decree had been enacted to enable all who wanted land to acquire it. Any restrictions were merely intended to prevent large accumulations of land from falling into the hands of a single person.
73. The difficulties between Ibos and Yorubas in Lagos were a direct result of economic deprivation. Mr. Gwam would provide the Committee with further information on the subject.
74. The Nigerian legal system was such that there was no reason to prevent any person considering himself to have suffered racial discrimination from seeking remedies through the courts. Nigeria was thus in compliance with the provisions of article 6. There were three levels of courts - magistrates' courts, high courts and a supreme court. Some States also had customary courts, such as Shariah courts, for dealing with problems of custom and practice specific to certain areas. Questions with regard to military and other tribunals would be answered by a legal expert later.
75. With regard to the rights of citizens and non-citizens, Nigeria was at present encouraging the private ownership of property and both citizens and non-citizens were allowed to acquire it. Many concessions had been made in the matter and the figures for foreign-owned property had been completely revised.
76. The way to control ethnic conflicts was by tackling the underlying cause, the underdevelopment of the country. Improvement of the infrastructure, roads, schools and other facilities would go a long way to improve matters. No group in the country was denied access to any available facilities. The racial strife that had led to the war in Biafra was unlikely to recur, since society had since become much more intermixed, particularly in the larger cities. In addition, efforts were made by the authorities to broaden the individual's understanding and experience of the different groups and areas of the country; for instance, by placing graduates in a State not their own for a certain time after graduation and by introducing "unity schools" in which the pupils came from different States.
77. As stated in paragraph 21 of the report, no segregation existed in Nigeria. The only example of exclusion was in the case of places of worship, which were reserved for the exclusive use without interference, for example by the police, of the ethnic group or congregation concerned.