NHRC says it received 752 rights abuse complaints in Plateau in 2023

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) says it received 752 complaints bordering on human rights abuses in Plateau between January and November 2023.

Speaking during an interview on Monday, Jennifer Abe, NHRC coordinator in the state, said the cases ranged from unlawful detention, extrajudicial killings, inhumane treatment, domestic violence and child abuse.

She added that other complaints included child abandonment, rape, denial of inheritance and forced marriage.

“A total of 752 cases of human rights abuse were reported in Plateau between January and November 2023. Most of these cases have been treated and concluded, while some are still ongoing,” the coordinator said.

“1,053 persons were affected, including 166 women and 463 children.”

Abe said all unresolved cases would be addressed soon, adding that the commission’s door is open to residents of the state.

Last year, Abe said 80 percent of cases of human rights violations in the state are a result of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.

“Mostly, what we get here has to do with issues of domestic violence, sexual and gender-based violence, issues of neglect and abandonment, exploitation and abuse of children. So, this constitutes about 80 percent of the violations,” NAN quoted Abe as saying.

“What we do is to do a lot of aggressive sensitisations on human rights issues because the commission has since discovered that most people do not know that they have rights and that when these rights are being trampled upon, they do not know where to go to seek for remedy and redress.