Global Rights, an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights capacity-building, has disclosed a shocking figure of over 20,431 individuals who lost their lives between 2019 and 2022. The revelation was made by Abiodun Baiyewu, the Executive Director of Global Rights, during the 2023 mass atrocities summit held in Abuja. The summit, themed “Remembering to Prevent: Enhancing Accountability for Mass Atrocities Through Effective Documentation,” was organized in collaboration with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
According to Abiodun Baiyewu, the Executive Director of an international human rights capacity-building non-governmental organization called Global Rights, the deaths that occurred over the past four years in Nigeria can be attributed to various factors. These include attacks by the Boko Haram/ISWAP, communal clashes, cult clashes, extrajudicial killings, herdsmen attacks, isolated attacks, mob attacks, political violence, ritual killings, and secessionist movements.
Baiyewu stated, “The double verified data that we have gathered tells us that over the past four years, at least 20,431 people were killed across Nigeria. Our country has witnessed various forms of mass atrocities that have resulted in killings.”
Out of these deaths, she highlighted that banditry alone accounted for over half of the killings, with 10,234 lives lost. Other factors also contributed to the loss of lives, including abductions, which escalated from 117 in 2019 to 5,149 in 2022.
Baiyewu expressed deep sorrow and raised questions about the nation’s path to sanity, emphasizing the need to take action as a nation to address these alarming trends. The Mass Atrocities report for 2022 revealed that at least 5,792 people became victims of mass atrocities in Nigeria, with 5,270 being civilians and a significant number of abductions affecting civilians.
“The drastic surge in abductions, skyrocketing from 117 cases in 2019 to an alarming 5,149 in 2022, is a matter of grave concern. No one in Nigeria sleeps with both eyes closed. You are aware that there is a chance that you may be kidnapped on the streets, at school or even in your own home. It does not matter if you are in the city or rural areas – the style of abduction would just be different.
“You may be rich or poor it doesn’t make you less vulnerable – even Almajiri children get kidnapped. Our children, particularly school children, have often fallen victim to these heinous acts, leading to widespread closures of educational institutions across the country due to fear of attacks.
“The safe schools initiative never took off. Nigeria, year after year continues to occupy the undisputed lead in the number of out-of-school children, with insecurity as one of our major factors.
“The situation is particularly dire in the North West region, where the highest number of killings and abductions in Nigeria has been recorded. Banditry has ravaged this region, contributing to over half of the mass atrocity-related killings in 2022.
“Tracking the atrocities in the Southeast and the South-South of the country is a herculean task. The media aren’t even risking their lives any more digging for stories. Even we at Global Rights are painfully aware that the number of killings that we are able to verify are low.”
