Amnesty demands probe into alleged killings, disappearances, police abuses in South-East

Amnesty demands probe into alleged killings, disappearances, police abuses in South-East

UMUAHIA, Abia State — Amnesty International has called for urgent investigations into alleged unlawful killings, enforced disappearances, torture, arbitrary arrests and other human rights violations in South-East Nigeria, urging security agencies to account for people allegedly taken into custody.

The rights organisation made the call in Umuahia during the presentation and campaign launch of its report, A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in South-East Nigeria.

Amnesty said families across the region had continued to live with uncertainty over the fate of relatives who allegedly disappeared following encounters with security personnel, while some others were reportedly found dead.

The organisation urged security agencies to either charge detainees to court or release them, stressing that prolonged detention without trial violates fundamental rights and undermines the rule of law.

Amnesty researcher Maurice Chukwu said the organisation had received accounts of young people from the South-East who were allegedly being held in police detention facilities without trial.

He said families had shared what he described as disturbing accounts of relatives who allegedly disappeared after being arrested by security operatives and whose whereabouts remained unknown for years.

Chukwu also raised concerns about alleged abuses involving the police tactical unit popularly known as Tiger Base, including allegations of extortion, intimidation, torture and unlawful detention.

Amnesty’s concerns over Tiger Base follow a separate 2026 investigation in which the organisation alleged that officers attached to the unit in Imo State were involved in serious human rights violations, including arbitrary detention, torture, extortion, enforced disappearances and deaths in custody.

Amnesty called for independent and impartial investigations into the allegations and urged authorities to ensure that anyone found responsible is held accountable.

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The organisation’s broader report on the South-East documented the scale of violence in the region and stated that at least 1,844 people were killed between January 2021 and June 2023.

The report attributed violence to a range of actors, including security forces, armed groups, criminal gangs, vigilantes and other non-state actors. Amnesty stressed that accountability should apply to all perpetrators, regardless of whether they are state or non-state actors.

At the Umuahia event, Amnesty campaigner Samson Abobarin said the organisation was submitting a petition signed by concerned residents to governors in the South-East.

According to him, the petition calls on the governors to put pressure on security agencies to provide information about people allegedly taken away during security operations.

Representing the Abia State Attorney-General, Director of the Citizens’ Rights Department in the Ministry of Justice, Chinoyerem Patience Onyemenam, said the state government had zero tolerance for human rights abuses and injustice.

She acknowledged that while many police officers remained committed to their duties, concerns had been raised about some operational practices. She assured participants that the issues presented at the event would be investigated.

A representative of the Abia State Commissioner for Tertiary Education, Nkechi Okoji, also supported the campaign and recounted the alleged arrest and extortion of a medical student from Aba.

She alleged that the student was arrested by police officers, taken to a location far from where he was picked up and subsequently extorted.

The campaign also featured emotional testimonies from relatives who said their husbands, brothers and sons had disappeared or died following encounters with security operatives.

Esther Chilem alleged that her husband, Godspower Chilem, was arrested at the premises of Life Gate Church in Aba on June 23, 2022.

She said she was subsequently informed that he had been taken to the Rapid Response Squad but that repeated efforts to locate him at police detention facilities were unsuccessful.

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Another petitioner, Carolina Chukwuma, alleged that her husband, Chukwuma Mwaokike, was arrested by the Department of State Services at St Paul Junction, Aba, on April 26, 2021.

She said she later received information that he had been transferred to the Central Police Station in Aba and appealed to authorities to establish his whereabouts or secure his release.

Cecilia Anonorachi said her husband, Christian Ifeanyi, was arrested in Aba in 2023 and had not been seen since.

She appealed to Abia State Governor Alex Otti to intervene and assist families whose relatives were allegedly missing after encounters with security agencies.

Another petitioner, Nicholas Egekwu, alleged that police officers attached to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Umuahia took several young people away following an attack by unknown gunmen.

He said his two sons, Obinna and Onyebuchi, were among those taken away and that he later discovered their bodies at a mortuary in Umuahia.

“It remains the saddest day of my life,” Egekwu said, according to his testimony at the event.

A human rights activist trained by Amnesty International, Samuel Agwu, also called for an independent investigation into alleged disappearances and security operations in the region.

Agwu alleged that many families were afraid to speak publicly about missing relatives because of concerns about possible reprisals.

He further alleged that some young people arrested during security operations were being held for prolonged periods without trial, including people allegedly taken into custody during operations in Obigbo, Rivers State.

Amnesty’s campaign comes amid a complex security situation in the South-East, where authorities have been battling attacks blamed on armed separatist groups, criminal networks and other armed actors.

The organisation’s research has emphasised that the violence cannot be attributed to a single group. Its report documented alleged abuses involving both security agencies and non-state actors, including IPOB/ESN, unknown gunmen, cult groups, vigilantes and Ebube Agu.

Amnesty has therefore called for accountability across the board, insisting that violations committed by security personnel should be investigated just as abuses allegedly committed by armed and criminal groups must also be addressed.

The organisation’s separate investigation into Tiger Base alleged that detainees were subjected to beatings and other forms of torture, while some were allegedly held in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions.

Amnesty also documented allegations of extortion and deaths in custody and called for an independent investigation into the conduct of officers attached to the unit.

The organisation has said authorities must ensure that victims and their families have access to justice, effective remedies and appropriate reparations where violations are established.

The campaign also comes after Nigerian authorities announced changes concerning the Tiger Base operational structure following widespread concerns over alleged abuses. Amnesty said it would continue monitoring the implementation of the measures.

For families whose relatives remain missing, however, the demand remains straightforward: they want authorities to establish what happened to their loved ones and provide official answers.

Amnesty said security operations must comply with Nigerian law and international human rights standards, stressing that efforts to combat insecurity should not come at the expense of fundamental rights.

The organisation maintained that lasting peace and stability in the South-East would require not only effective security measures but also accountability, justice, transparency and respect for the rule of law.

Amnesty demands probe into alleged killings, disappearances, police abuses in South-East