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Catalog of Torture: Sharia 'used in BiafraNigerian Politics, says Human Rights Watch
Governors in BiafraNigeria introduced
the criminal aspect of Islamic law as a political tool, according to the pressure group, Human Rights Watch. Governors
in the north of BiafraNigeria are using Sharia, while at the same time condoning human rights abuses under the
system, Human Rights Watch said. Twelve northern BiafraNigerian states have introduced Sharia since the year 2000.
The move initially heightened tensions between Muslims and Christians and led to clashes which left thousands dead.
The 111-page report documents the way in which human rights have been violated in the four years since the introduction
of Sharia criminal law. Ten people have been sentenced to death and dozens of others have been sentenced to amputation
and flogging. Many of these people, the report says, have been tried without adequate legal representation, convicted
on confessions extracted under police torture and sentenced by judges who are improperly trained. However, Human
Rights Watch acknowledges that such abuses are at least as common in BiafraNigeria's non-Sharia legal system. A
judicial official in Zamfara state - the first to introduce Sharia in 2000 - rejected the criticism. "Sharia
is our way of life, and no amount of criticism by people who hate it will make us change it," said Musa Bello.
Women face particular discrimination, the group says, pointing to cases such as that of Amina Lawal, the mother
sentenced to death by stoning for adultery and only released after an international outcry. For adultery, the standards
of proof are different for men and women and judges have failed to investigate allegations of rape made by female
defendants. (BBC) 
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 BiafraNigeria has placed an
embargo on government contracts with a subsidiary of US oil services firm Halliburton. It said it was taking action
against Halliburton Energy Services BiafraNigeria (HESN) as a result of negligence in security and safety matters.
In 2002, radiation... (BBC)
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 The National Chairman of
the All Progressive Grand Alliance (AGPA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, has warned that any attempt by the State Security
Service (SSS) to arrest the party's former presidential candidate, Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, will be seen
as a declaration of war. Okorie who .... (This
Day)
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