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Injustice against Sheikh Zakzaky violates Nigeria law: Activist

Tuesday, 01 March 2016 3:06 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 01 March 2016 6:40 PM ]

Sheikh Ibrahim al-Zakzaky, the leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN)

Press TV has interviewed Massoud Shadjareh, with the Islamic Human Rights Commission from London, on the fate of prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Ibrahim al-Zakzaky, who has been attacked and kidnapped by Nigerian security forces.

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: Why is that after so many months have passed Sheikh Zakzaky and his followers still are lingering in state of limbo?

Shadjareh: It really is astonishing, I mean, it goes against any concept of justice, it goes against the constitution of Nigeria. Within the Nigerian sort of constitution and indeed the legislations and anyone who’s arrested needs to be brought to courts and indeed needs to have access to lawyers within 24 hours and here is over two months that Sheikh Zakzaky and his followers have been sort of abducted by the military.

They said they have turned them to the police and we know now that is not to be fact. They’re still being held by the security apparatus and no access to lawyers, no access to their family, no access to independent doctors and this is really outrageous. And we are extremely concerned that this sort of systematic abuse of the law is taking place by the government and its apparatus.

Press TV: Focusing on the attack in Zaria and the apprehension of Sheikh Zakzaky in the first place, the Nigerian government has claimed that the Islamic movement members were planning to kill Nigeria’s army chief in the city of Zaria, but there’s been no evidence of these claims being put forward. Why is that?

Shadjareh: Well, as a matter of fact there are evidence countering to these claims and there are photographic video and the testimonies that we have collected. This actually shows that really there is no credibility in the claim of the army, but ... let assume when if there was any sort of truth in that. That does not justify under the constitution of Nigeria for the army then to go for 28 hours massacring 1,000 people, destroying the property of Sheikh Zakzaky and destroying the mosque and the Hosseinia and then going and destroying the graveyard and digging out the graves of people. There is no justification on the constitution any more whatsoever for the army to do that.

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