has revealed how African leaders failed to tackle widespread abuses against civilians by state forces and non-state armed groups last year.
“The regional efforts to address certain crises in Africa in 2022 have lacked sufficient political will and leadership, leaving countless civilians caught up in conflict with nowhere to turn,” said Mausi Segun, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The best way to ensure effective African solutions to African problems would be for leaders to efficiently deploy the strong instruments at their disposal to protect victims of human rights abuses.
The report also pointed out sexual orientation and gender identity, women’s and children’s rights, disability rights, as well as poverty and inequality as part of the issues in Nigeria. – African leaders failed to tackle widespread abuses against civilians by state security forces and non-state armed groups and insufficiently prioritized justice efforts for victims of atrocities across the continent, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2023. These violations occurred against a backdrop of backsliding on democratic safeguards and rule of law.
In at least 15 armed conflicts, including in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Mali, Burkina Faso, and South Sudan, government forces or non-state armed groups have been implicated in abuses against civilians. In November, an AU-led negotiation culminated in a cessation of hostilities agreement in Ethiopia’s Tigray conflict between the federal government and Tigrayan authorities.
A surge in fighting in Mali and the Central African Republic coincided with reports of horrific rights abuses by foreign mercenaries, including the Russia-linked Wagner Group. The spate of crackdowns against government opponents and critics was however not limited to countries under transitional rule. In Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zimbabwe, activists, opponents, and journalists have been detained and tortured. In Congo, attacks against media freedom, the growing involvement of intelligence services in intimidating dissenters, and the general narrowing of democratic space raise concerns ahead of the 2023 elections.