United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) says no fewer than 35,000 people have been killed since the insurgency’s inception in the North-East from 2009 to August 2023.
Mrs Elsie Mills-Tetty, UNHCR’s Head of Adamawa Office, disclosed this at a training for military personnel on human rights, humanitarian principles and civilian protection in Yola on Wednesday.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) organized the training with UNHCR.
Umar Abdullahi, Assistant Protect Officer, represented Mills-Tetty and referenced the “Global Center for Responsibility to Protect” report of August 2023.
She emphasized that these acts have an undeniable impact on the economic and social development of Borno, Adamawa, Yobe, and Nigeria as a whole.
She added that in 2022, the NHRC reported investigating human rights complaints and assisting victims in seeking redress.
Mills-Tetty said: “Cumulatively, the commission received 2.314 complaints. Adamawa had 65,456 complaints, approximately three percent of the total complaints from the 36 federation states.
UNHRC Report
“The 2022 UNHRC report also indicated that incidences of Insurgency, banditry, kidnappings, farmers/herders clashes and attacks by gunmen continued to increase with the attendant number of internally displaced persons who face enormous human rights violations.”
She further called on the participants to take advantage of the training to boost their knowledge on human rights during their duties.
Mr. Tony Ojukwu, Executive Secretary of NHRC, stated that the training aimed to integrate human rights into the counter-insurgency efforts of the Nigerian troops in the North-East during his address.
His Special Assistant, Mr. Benedict Agu, praised the Nigerian military and other law enforcement agencies for their outstanding performance in containing insurgency on behalf of Ojukwu.
He further stated, “In partnership with UNHCR, the commission is here to train key military officers and personnel directly engaged in North-East counter-insurgency operations, aiming to sustain the progress achieved.”
“The justification for this training cannot be overemphasized as the war against insurgency is complicated by the asymmetric nature of the conflict.
“The insurgents live within us and there is hardly a clearly drawn battle-line between the insurgents and the civilians population,” he said.
Ojukwu urged the participants to ensure the implementation of the knowledge acquired while discharging their professional and private mandates
