US-based Nigerians petition UN over killings in Benue

Just as the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Mr. Luis Moreno-Ocampo disclosed that details of his report on the preliminary investigations into the Jos killing would be made public soon, some United States- based Nigerians are filing a new petition with another arm of the United Nations seeking fresh human rights violation investigations in Benue State.Citing several international media reports to back their claims including news reports about the violence in the state by New York Times, the Nigerian-Americans filed the petition before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland.It was however gathered that the petitioners are supporters of the Action Congress of Nigerias gubernatorial candidate in the April general elections, Prof Steve Ugbah, who ran against the incumbent Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Governor Gabriel Suswan.Although Suswan was declared winner, Ugbah, an American professor, challenged the results and this reportedly resulted in a series of political violence in the state.The petition, sent to the UN body by the Steve Ugbah Committee of Friends reads, We are requesting that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights investigate and hold culpable people or groups of people in the Benue State Government responsible for these gross violations of human rights, which include the murder of unarmed civilians.The petitioners added that, Unarmed civilian killing thrives where its occurrence receives little or no response from the government, as well as failure to address the root causes and bring perpetrators to justice.
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