Global Rights, a not-for-profit organization, has called for an investigation and accountability regarding the alleged killing of over 246 Nigerians during the #EndSARS protests in 2020. The group expressed its concern that only a few states have made efforts to implement the recommendations of the panels of inquiry set up to investigate the alleged human rights abuses during the protests. Global Rights also noted that bank accounts of individuals and organizations that had made financial donations to the #EndSARS movement were unjustly frozen by the government.
The group called for accountability for the lives lost during the #EndSARS protests and urged the Nigerian government to fulfill its responsibility to ensure the health and independence of its civic space. The #EndSARS protests began as a response to police brutality, with demonstrators demanding justice, the release of arrested protesters, and compensation for victims’ families, among other demands. The protests took a tragic turn when armed forces shot at unarmed protesters, leading to the loss of numerous lives and injuries.
Global Rights noted that three years later, accountability for the events of October 20, 2020, remains elusive. Frustration with the slow pace of justice has given way to despondency, and law enforcement brutality and extrajudicial killings continue without accountability. The group also raised concerns about the secretive burial of bodies identified as “EndSARS victims” and the lack of political will to implement recommendations from the panels of inquiry.