Advocates warn against selective human rights defence

Human rights advocates in Nigeria have called for an end to selective defence of fundamental rights, urging activists, government institutions and citizens to uphold justice impartially, strengthen accountability and promote human rights education across the country.

They made the call recently in Lagos, at the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights public lecture themed “Understanding Human Rights Beyond Emotion and Personal Interests”,  where speakers, including a University of Lagos professor, Tunde Babawale, and the President of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights, Debo Adeniran, warned that emotional reactions, political loyalties and personal interests were undermining the credibility of rights advocacy.

Babawale, who delivered the lead presentation titled “Understanding Human Rights Beyond Emotion and Formalism: Towards a Principled, Institutional and Cultural Approach”, said activists must defend the rights of everyone, irrespective of their political, ethnic or religious affiliations.

He noted, “We have substituted principles for personality, and we have substituted institutions for the individual. We defend rights, as Prof. Chidi Odinkalu put it, only when our interests are affected. And we rationalise violations when it favours our political, ethnic or religious interests.”

The don stressed that sympathy for victims should not replace evidence or due process, adding that accused persons’ rights must also be protected.

“Public anger does not establish guilt,” he said, warning that emotional responses should not determine responsibility or justify violating fundamental rights.

Babawale identified corruption as a major obstacle to human rights protection, arguing that diverting public resources undermined access to justice, education, healthcare and other essential services.

“Corruption is the single greatest violator of human rights in Nigeria,” he claimed.

He called for greater attention to economic, social and cultural rights, noting that children denied education because of poverty and patients unable to afford medicines also suffered violations requiring the attention of government and civil society.

He also urged activists to apply human rights principles consistently, regardless of those involved.

“Defend the right of the policeman as you would defend the right of the protester.

“Defend the rights of herdsmen as you would defend the right of the farmer. That is how you rise above emotions and personal interest,” he added.

Babawale called for human rights education in primary schools and community spaces, including motor parks, and urged activists to prioritise evidence-based campaigns and institutional accountability over publicity.

“Government is not a person to be loved or hated. Government is an institution to be held accountable,” he stated.

In his welcome address, Adeniran warned that some activists defended rights based on personal sympathies rather than established legal principles.

“In many instances, people tend to portray human rights according to what is liked rather than what is right. They vigorously defend what favours them while condemning the same principles when those principles do not serve their interests,” he said.

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The CDHR president stressed that defending a person’s fundamental rights did not mean endorsing all their opinions, decisions or conduct.

“We must also appreciate the difference between defending a person’s fundamental right and endorsing every opinion, decision, conduct or demand that that person makes,” he highlighted.

He cited the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Nigerian Constitution as important frameworks for understanding and protecting fundamental rights.

Adeniran urged activists to acquire the knowledge and integrity required for effective advocacy, while calling on civil society groups, educators, community leaders and the media to intensify public enlightenment.

The Chairman of the Governing Board of the National Universities Commission and former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, also called for stronger institutional commitment to protecting fundamental rights and promoting equality.

Delivering a keynote address titled “Human Rights Advocacy in Nigeria: Challenges and Imperatives for Justice and Equality”, Ogundipe said rights were universal entitlements that should be protected regardless of a person’s status or affiliations.

“Fundamental rights belong to every individual by virtue of being human,” he added.

He urged the judiciary to uphold impartiality and the rule of law, while calling on government agencies to demonstrate greater transparency and accountability. He also advocated including human rights education in school curricula and community programmes.

A lawyer and Executive Director of C21st in Lagos, Nigeria, Titilope Akosa, urged activists to adapt their methods to democratic governance, arguing that strategies developed during military rule needed to evolve.

“During military rule, yes, there’s a whole lot of things we did to make sure the military left. But by the time we are now having civil rule, now democracy, our actions, our plans, and the way we address governance issues also need to be different,” she said.

Akosa noted that activists should consider participating in government and policymaking rather than relying solely on confrontation.

“A lot of us never thought that fighting for rights could also mean being part of the government. We lost that ground,” she said.

She also called for human rights education beyond formal school curricula, stressing the importance of reaching ordinary citizens in their communities and helping them understand both their rights and applicable legal limits.

“It is also about going into communities, teaching it. Let ordinary citizens, who are even not lettered, understand what human rights is all about and how they can protect their own rights,” she said.

Akosa further advocated evidence-based advocacy, warning that influence and visibility should not overshadow sound arguments and credible information.

The speakers called for collective action by government, civil society, the judiciary, the media and citizens to strengthen institutions, improve public understanding of fundamental rights and ensure that justice is pursued without prejudice.