Paul Arhewe, Online/Foreign Editor (With agency report)
LAST YEAR when the report came that some Nigerians in their scores were awaiting the hangman’s noose in Libya, while a responsible government would have made good efforts at intervening for stay of execution or embark on plea bargain for lesser punishment, the Nigerian Foreign Affairs Ministry under the ex-minister Chief Ojo Maduekwe was busy faulting the report, claiming no Nigerian was on death row in the North Africa country. The chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora Affairs, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa told Sunday Independent last week that the Federal Government through its foreign ministry had earlier denied that there were Nigerians on death row in Libya. Her words: “When we raised the alarm the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was not true”.
Last week executions of 18 condemned inmates in Libya, consisting of 10 Nigerians and other eight foreigners from Chad and Egypt confirmed the fact that Nigerian government had not only put up a bland show to safeguard its own, but showed how irresponsible many of our public office holders are to the plight of the ordinary Nigerians, especially those abroad. It is not as if one is asking government to protect those of her citizens convicted for criminal acts in another country or encourage them to break the laws of other countries, but any responsible government with information of unfair hearing that led to the condemnation of some of her citizens would have acted, and ensured Libyan government mete out fair judgement on those on death row. Over 200 people are awaiting executions in Libya, with large number of them foreigners, a Libyan newspaper, Cerene, reported.
In reaction to the incident, Amnesty International’s Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Malcolm Smart said “In Libya we fear that death sentences were handed down after proceedings which fail to satisfy international standards for fair trial.” The rights group further argued that Libya is known to have unreasonably executed large number of foreigners, even with the flimsiest reasons. The Arabian country’s legal system often doesn’t give foreigners access to lawyers and its trial processes are done in Arabic language where foreigners are left in a lost paradise only to find themselves in gallows awaiting the executioner’s noose.
Prior to its ‘Great Revolution’, Libya like other Arabian countries adopted the Egyptian civil law. In the 1970s, the country adopted a new approach to government, which led to great reform in its legal system. Ironically, the People’s Republic ‘Jamahiriya’ that the Libyan government fashioned to open its country’s to the new era of global relations is one that is grossly unfair to foreigners where hundreds are executed at the flimsiest reasons. The current Libyan law stipulates that execution or pardon for an accused lies on the wish of the relatives of the victim of the crime.
While reports have it that more Nigerians are still awaiting the hangman’s noose in Libya, it then behoves on Nigeria government to act now and dispatch a strong team to negotiate their release and fair judgement. As Dabiri-Erewa rightly stated, the execution is expected to take place in batches. Then a quick action from our government will not only safe the lives of many of Nigerians that were unfairly sentenced, but would make Libyan government to be responsible enough to give fair hearing to Nigerians in the future. A Nigerian residing in Tripoli, who spoke on the conditions of anonymity to a media, said: "At least 10 Nigerians are among those that were executed. There are over 50 Nigerians awaiting execution. Some of them were convicted on flimsy reasons."
Nigerian government needs to learn from her neighbouring counterparts, Ghana, which passed through similar scenario when three of her citizens and a Nigerian were sentenced to death for a murder case in 1998.
In May 17 1998, three Ghanaians and a Nigerian were sentenced to death for murdering a Libyan national in a drug related case. The Ghanaian government took it upon itself and did all within its might to ensure her three citizens were let loose. The Ghanaian embassy in Libya took keen interest in the case and arranged for the defence of the accused persons during trial and subsequent appeal. According to a report on Ghanaweb, “Subsequently the embassy had contact with the family of the deceased to explore, in accordance with Islamic practice, the possibility of seeking clemency or the payment of compensation to cancel the death sentences. The family however, rejected any negotiations and insisted that the law should take its course.”
In May, 2007, the Libyan authorities notified the Ghanaian embassy and her Nigerian counterpart of the imminent execution of the condemned four. While Ghana’s government went the whole length securing a second stay of executions for her three nationals, the only Nigerian was executed since the Nigerian government, then under Olusegun Obasanjo, was too preoccupied with issues that would benefit their immediate families and bandwagon of allies and gave no iota of regard to a common and worthless Nigerian who found himself in such a mess in Libya.
But surprisingly, the then Ghanaian president went to Libya to intervene for the release of these three Ghanaians.
"In late May 2007, the President John Agyekum Kufuor visited Libya and raised, among other matters, the plight of the three nationals with the Libyan Leader who promised to look into the matter.”, Ghanaweb reported.
In June 2007, officials of the Embassy made another attempt to contact the family of the murder victim but the latter declined a meeting”.
"On December 29, 2007 the Ambassador of Ghana took the opportunity of visit to Ghat to discuss the matter with the Governor of the Province. The latter however explained that the case was a difficult one because of the persistent of the family to modify its position, not even on the instance of a request emanating from the office of the Libyan leader”.
"On January 20, 2008, the Embassy was notified yet again by the Libyan authorities that two of the three nationals were scheduled to be executed by 22nd January 2008. The Embassy immediately made representations to the Libyan authorities for a further stay of execution to allow time for consultations with Government on this development”.
"However, without responding to the Embassy's request, the Libyan authorities proceeded to execute the two nationals by firing squad, together with three others, including a Libyan, a Sudanese and an Egyptian”.
The Ghanaian government in the above case made efforts to ensure three Ghanaians were spared execution, even though they were eventually executed. This move alone shows in all ramifications that it is a responsible government and attest to the fact that they are more responsible and have high regard for every of their citizen within and outside Ghana, than what our Nigerian government display here as vividly illustrated in the aforementioned case.
In another murder case of a Senegalese where a Ghanaian and a Gambian were convicted and sentenced to death in May 2007, the Ghanaian government successfully secured the stay of execution for her national while the Gambian was executed. The Embassy of Ghana made representations to the Embassy of Senegal in Libya on the possibility of clemency from the family of the deceased. Even though the Embassy of Senegal was unable to locate the family of the deceased national, it took upon itself to offer clemency to the Ghanaian national.
If Nigerian government had intervened in the same way the Ghanaian government did in the above case, then the recent execution of 10 Nigerians would have been prevented or at a worse scenario delayed.
While last Sunday’s executions can not be reversed, our government can still save it’s face by immediately intervening to stop the remaining executions of the about 50 Nigerians in Libyan prisons.
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