The ECOWAS Court of Justice has ruled that the Nigeria government is accountable for the unlawful detention and mistreatment of Nigerian student Glory Okolie, even as the court awarded N10 million in compensation.
The Court gave this ruling on Thursday 21 November 2024 and issued directives to safeguard human rights of the student, a statement issued by the Communication Division of the court, said.
The case arose from the detention of Glory Okolie on 13 June 2021, by Nigerian police authorities without judicial authorization. According to the Applicants, Okolie, along with One Love Foundation and Incorporated Trustees of Behind Bars Human Rights Foundation, was denied access to legal counsel, subjected to forced labor, and physically abused during her detention.
The Applicants argued that these actions breached several human rights instruments, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the Revised ECOWAS Treaty, seeking declarations, reparations, and a cessation of Nigeria’s unlawful conduct.
The Nigerian government however, refuted the claims, citing Okolie’s alleged connection to the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), a proscribed group linked to terrorist activities. The Respondent justified her detention as a matter of national security.
In the Judgment delivered by Honourable Justice Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves, the Judge Rapporteur, the Court found that Okolie’s prolonged detention without judicial authorization contravened Article 7 of the African Charter, violating her right to a fair trial. The Court also found that her deprivation of liberty, absent legal justification, breached Article 6 of the African Charter.
Therefore, it ordered the Federal Republic of Nigeria to compensate Glory Okolie by paying her ₦10 million for the violations she suffered. It also ordered the Federal Republic of Nigeria to cease the harassment, ensuring non-repetition of such acts.
Meanwhile, The Court dismissed the claims of the co-applicant NGOs for procedural reasons.
The three-member panel of the Court were Honourable Justice Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves (presiding judge and judge rapporteur), Honourable Justice Sengu Mohamed Koroma (panel member), and Honourable Justice Edward Amoako Asante (Panel member).
