Human Rights commission condemns Army siege on Daily Trust

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has condemned the Sunday’s invasion of Daily Trust by the Nigerian Army over a report and called on the Army to strike a balance between security and human rights at all times.

In a statement signed by Director, External Affairs and Linkages of the commission, Lambert Oparah, the Executive Secretary of the commission Tony Ojukwu said although terrorism must never be allowed to continue to destroy the country to the extent that lives and properties of citizens remain endangered, the military must at all times respect international best practices when addressing security challenges bedevilling the country.

According to him, this will go a long way to ensure the protection of human rights of every one.

He commended the Federal Government’s quick intervention in asking the invading soldiers to retrace their steps.

However, “we are demanding the immediate release of the North-East regional editor of the newspaper who is still being held in the custody of the Army. We believe that if the editor has any case to answer he should be taken to the appropriate court of law,” he said.

Ojukwu said the role of the media cannot be undermined in any democracy as they remain the gatekeepers.

He, however, advised journalists to observe caution as they exercise their right to freedom of expression as the freedom of expression is not absolute at all times.