NHRC Records 354,997 Rights Complaints In July, Flags Child Sexual Violence

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has disclosed that it received 354,997 human rights complaints across Nigeria in July 2026, a figure it said underscored the persistent scale and complexity of rights violations confronting citizens.

The Commission also expressed concern over the increasing cases of sexual violence involving children, revealing that its Human Rights Observatory documented 25 cases involving children and minors during the month.

Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Dr. Tony Ojukwu, OFR, SAN, made the disclosure in Abuja on Tuesday while presenting the Commission’s July 2026 Human Rights Situation Dashboard and signing a Memorandum of Understanding with Hope Behind Bars Africa.

Ojukwu said the monthly dashboard was designed to provide an evidence-based assessment of the human rights situation in the country, highlighting areas with high concentrations of violations, emerging threats and issues requiring immediate intervention.

He said the reported cases of sexual violence against children were particularly disturbing because of their potential long-term consequences on the victims’ physical and psychological well-being.

“These are not just human rights violations but, if not managed, could have lasting impact on the health and mental well-being of the survivors,” he warned.

The NHRC also identified the digital environment as an increasingly important arena for human rights violations, citing online harassment, cyberbullying, data exploitation, digital surveillance, blackmail and technology-enabled extortion among emerging threats.

According to Ojukwu, the deliberate use of social media and other digital platforms to spread hatred and incite violence has evolved from an emerging concern into a documented human rights challenge.

He expressed particular concern over the growing use of hate speech and divisive rhetoric as Nigeria moves towards the 2027 general elections, urging political leaders, religious figures and traditional rulers to exercise restraint.

The NHRC boss referred to recent inflammatory statements by some political actors ahead of the concluded Osun State run-off elections, as well as what he described as divisive and hateful comments attributed to Sheikh Jingir in Kano.

He said the Commission had condemned such developments and was advocating appropriate prosecution, stressing the need for a national ethos that promotes unity, peaceful coexistence and respect for fundamental rights.

Ojukwu further warned that the rapid growth of social media and artificial intelligence was creating new challenges for human rights protection, requiring citizens and institutions to better understand how freedom of expression, dignity, privacy and other fundamental rights apply in the digital space.

In response, the NHRC announced a partnership with Hope Behind Bars Africa under the Justice Tech-Node initiative, aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s capacity to prevent and respond to technology-enabled human rights abuses.

Ojukwu said the initiative would adopt an integrated approach to technology-related harm and contribute to the development of a wider technology justice ecosystem, with particular attention to young people and marginalised groups vulnerable to digital abuse.

He stressed that prevention must be given equal priority with documentation and redress.

“A human rights commission that only counts violations after they occur is doing half of its job,” he said, insisting that the Commission must also anticipate emerging threats and work to prevent abuses before they escalate.

He said the Justice Tech-Node initiative would therefore focus on identifying and addressing technology-enabled abuses at an early stage, while the MoU with Hope Behind Bars Africa would strengthen an existing relationship between the two organisations.

According to him, the partnership is expected to produce measurable interventions for Nigerians, particularly vulnerable citizens whose rights are threatened both offline and in the rapidly expanding digital environment.

The July dashboard and the Justice Tech-Node initiative come amid heightened concerns over human rights protection as Nigeria approaches the 2027 elections and technology continues to reshape how citizens communicate, organise, access information and participate in public life.