Wakilii

Civil Liberties Organisation v Nigeria (Communication 151 of 1996)

African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights · [1999] ACHPR 5 · 1999 Violations Found AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Communication alleging human rights violations arising from trial of civilians before Special Military Tribunal
Decision
Violations found; Nigeria directed to provide civil re-trial and improve detention conditions

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The African Commission held that Nigeria violated Articles 5, 7(1)(a), 7(1)(c), 7(1)(d) and 26 of the African Charter. Ouster clauses removing jurisdiction from ordinary courts rendered local remedies non-existent. Trial before a Special Military Tribunal composed of military officers appointed by the executive, with no appeal, violated fair trial rights. Denial of access to chosen counsel and detention in dark cells with insufficient food, no medical care, and no family access constituted inhuman and degrading treatment.

Outcome

Violations found; Nigeria directed to provide civil re-trial and improve detention conditions

Facts

In March 1995, Nigeria's Federal Military Government arrested civilians and military personnel for an alleged coup plot. A Special Military Tribunal was established under decree, ousting ordinary court jurisdiction. The tribunal comprised five serving military officers headed by Major-General Aziza, used court-martial procedures, and allowed no appeal. Trials were conducted in secret. Suspects had no access to lawyers or families until trial, were not informed of charges beforehand, and were assigned military lawyers by the government. Thirteen civilians were convicted as accessories to treason and sentenced to life imprisonment, later reduced to 15 years. One person received 6 months. The accused were held in military detention in dark cells, given insufficient food, no medicine or medical attention, and denied access to lawyers and families.

Issues

  1. Whether the communication was admissible despite ouster clauses preventing access to ordinary courts.
  2. Whether trial before a Special Military Tribunal with no appeal to ordinary courts violated the right to fair trial.
  3. Whether the composition of the Special Military Tribunal with military officers violated the right to an independent and impartial tribunal.
  4. Whether denial of access to counsel of choice violated fair trial rights.
  5. Whether conditions of detention constituted inhuman and degrading treatment.

Orders

  • Communication declared admissible.
  • Violation of Articles 5, 7(1)(a), 7(1)(c), 7(1)(d) and 26 of the African Charter found.
  • Nigeria to permit the accused persons a civil re-trial with full access to lawyers of their choice.
  • Nigeria to improve conditions of detention of the accused persons.

Rules and key headnotes

Fair Trial Rights — Exhaustion of Local Remedies — Ouster Clauses
Where domestic legislation contains ouster clauses that preclude the jurisdiction of ordinary courts and prevent any appeal from decisions of special tribunals, local remedies are rendered non-existent, ineffective or illegal, and the requirement to exhaust local remedies under Article 56(5) of the African Charter does not apply.
Fair Trial Rights — Independence and Impartiality of Tribunal
A Special Military Tribunal whose judges are specially appointed for each case by the executive branch and which includes military or law enforcement officers on the panel violates the right to be tried by a competent and impartial tribunal under Articles 7(1)(d) and 26 of the African Charter.
Fair Trial Rights — Right of Appeal
A system of executive confirmation of tribunal decisions, as opposed to a right of appeal to an independent court, violates the right to appeal under Article 7(1)(a) of the African Charter.
Fair Trial Rights — Right to Counsel of Choice
Denial of the right to choose one's own counsel and the imposition of government-appointed military lawyers violates the right to defence under Article 7(1)(c) of the African Charter.
Conditions of Detention — Inhuman and Degrading Treatment
Detention in dark cells, provision of insufficient food, denial of medicine or medical care, deprivation of access to lawyers even after conviction, and denial of family visits constitute inhuman and degrading treatment in violation of Article 5 of the African Charter.
Special Tribunals — Parallel Justice Systems
The establishment of parallel systems of special tribunals to address court backlogs undermines the ordinary court system and creates the likelihood of unequal application of the laws; states should instead allocate more resources to the ordinary courts.

Legislation cited (11)

  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 5
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7(1)(a)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7(1)(c)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 7(1)(d)
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 26
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 56
  • African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Article 56(5)
  • Treason and Treasonable Offences (Special Military Tribunal) Decree
  • Constitution (Modification and Suspension) Decree
  • Political Parties (Dissolution) Decree
  • Legal Practitioners Decree

Cases cited (5)

  • Communication 60/91
  • Communication 87/93
  • Communication 101/93
  • Communication 129/94
  • communications 59/91, 60/91, 61/91, 87/93 and 101/93

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Civil Liberties Organisation v Nigeria (Communication 151 of 1996) [1999] ACHPR 5 (15 November 1999)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.