A civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has, once more, canvassed the unconditional release of the Leader of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, from detention and an end to his persecution.

“We believe that those who should rather undergo prosecution as terrorists are those who abducted Nnamdi Kanu forcefully and subjected him to illegal rendition and rounds of torture before being flown into Nigeria and not the very same victim of kidnapping who was flown against his will to Nigeria without compliance to international best practices and international humanitarian law. It is known that Nnamdi Kanu was forced to run for dear life after attempts were made to kill him whilst he was on bail from a court of law.

Those who use armed security forces to attack him in Umuahia, leading to the slaughter of scores of members of IPOB were instrumental to the decision of Nnamdi Kanu to run for his dear life, thereby staying away from those premeditated attackers sent to kill him. Those were actually the real terrorists who should be prosecuted for attempting to kill a man granted bail by a competent court of law. This persecution of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is irregular and unconstitutional. He has not committed any offence known to law to be prosecuted for terrorism," HURIWA said in a statement on Tuesday.

“We are asking President Muhammadu Buhari, in the spirit of fairness and for the accelerated end to the social upheavals in the South East of Nigeria, to bring to an end the mistrial of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu as a terrorist in a secret tribunal devoid of media coverage and transparency.”

"Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s agitation for self-determination is backed up by Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which states that “All peoples have the right to self-determination.”

HURIWA expressed the opinion that what the Federal government ought to do was to engage the members of IPOB in a healthy debate on the rationality of remaining a part of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and back up this assertion with superior arguments and not to try to suppress those who agitate democratically for self-determination allowed by international law.

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