BUSTED! 6- Months After Leaving Office, Amnesty International EXPOSES Gross Human Rights Violations, Silent Killings Under Buhari’s Govt
Six months after Muhammadu Buhari left office as the president of Nigeria, Amnesty International has released a damning report detailing the gross human rights violations committed by his administration. The report, titled ” Nigeria: A Legacy of Repression and Impunity” , documents the cases of unlawful killings, torture, arbitrary arrests, and crackdowns on peaceful protesters that occurred under Buhari’ s rule from 2015 to 2023.
According to the report, one of the most horrific incidents of human rights abuse under Buhari’ s administration was the mass slaughter of over 350 men, women and children by the Nigerian military in Zaria, Kaduna State, between 12 and 14 December 2015. The victims were members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN), a Shia Muslim group, who were protesting against the detention of their leader, Ibrahim El- Zakzaky.
The military claimed that the IMN members blocked the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai, and attempted to assassinate him. However, Amnesty International found no evidence to support this claim, and instead concluded that the military used excessive and disproportionate force against the unarmed protesters, who posed no threat to the soldiers or the public.
The report also revealed that the military burned some of the victims alive, dumped their bodies in mass graves, and destroyed evidence of the massacre. The Nigerian authorities have failed to hold anyone accountable for this atrocity, and have continued to detain El- Zakzaky and his wife, Zeenat, without trial.
