Badeh Inaugurates Inter-Agency Body On Human Rights For Security Agencies

Air marshal Badeh

CHIEF of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh yesterday inaugurated Nigeria’s first ever inter-agency civil-military cooperation community, charging them to institutionalise respect for the rule of law during internal security operations by the nation’s defence and security agencies.

The inter-agency civil-military cooperation community is being established by the Office of the National Security Adviser and the European Union (EU), under its Instrument for Stability programme for officers and men of the Nigerian military, police and State Security Services for internalisation of international humanitarian law, law of armed conflict and rules of engagement in low intensity conflict.

The United States and its Western allies have hinged their inability to support Nigeria in its war against the Boko Haram insurgency on alleged lack of respect for human rights by Nigeria’s military and security forces.

In the last few months, Nigerian defence and security have been undergoing training on their compliance and standard best practices with the provisions of international humanitarian and human rights laws during military operations.

Inaugurating the inter agency community, Badeh regretted criticisms against the military, saying it was because of the “misunderstandings that lead to occasional fictions between the military and the civil population particularly in relation to our participation in counter-insurgency operations and other activities that bring us into contact with the civil populace.”

  He noted that “in today’s counter-insurgency operations against non-state actors concealed amongst the populace, a robust civil-military collaboration to win the hearts and minds of the populace is very critical for any success to be achieved.”

 He, therefore, urged Nigerians to appreciate, cooperate and support the military as it goes about discharging its constitutional responsibilities as “the Nigerian military is not the enemy of Nigerians, rather, it is fighting against our collective enemies.”

Source:

Guardian Newspaper