The ECOWAS Court of Justice has fixed April 27, 2022 for judgment in a suit filed by a Non-Governmental Organisation, representing 19 Fulani communities in Nigeria’s Mambilla Plateau alleging ‘genocide’ against the 19 communities on the plateau by an ethnic militia led by the Chairman of the local government in the area during an incident in June 2017.
The Presiding judge, Hon. Justice Edward Amoako Asante, announced the date on Tuesday, February 1, 2020 in Abuja after the Court had heard the testimonies of five witnesses called by the NGO, the Registered Trustees of Gan Allah Fulani Development Association.
The Court also gave lawyers to the parties up to February 27, 2020 to file their closing addresses even though they have presented ‘copious documents to the Court.’
During the examination led by Applicant’s counsel, Mohammad Hamza, the witnesses, some of who narrated how their family members were killed and provided various accounts of the incident, confirmed the authenticity of documents and video evidence already submitted by the NGO to the Court.
In the initiating application, the NGO alleged that the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Taraba State government did not intervene in the incident until after one week during which 732 adult Fulani’s were either killed or missing, 25,000 cattle killed and property worth millions of naira destroyed.
The NGO, alleged that the conduct of the Federal and State governments during the initial days of the incident constituted a violation of their human rights, particularly the right to life, health, housing, personal integrity, privacy, fair trial, freedom of movement and residence as well as judicial guarantee to private property and child rights.
The Applicant had asked among other things for compensation in the sum of $200 million for the violation of the human rights of the affected communities and the award of other forms of reparations.
The Court had on December 19, 2019 dismissed the preliminary objection of the Federal government of Nigeria and expunged the Taraba State government from the suit, not being a proper party before the Court.
In the preliminary objection, the Respondent had urged the Court to find the case inadmissible on the three grounds that the incident contained elements of the alleged commission of crimes of murder and destruction of property and livestock, which are matters outside the jurisdiction of the Court to entertain and determine.
The Respondents, who were represented by a legal team from the Federal Ministry of Justice led by Mrs. A.O Rufai, had also argued that the suit also contains elements of a land dispute between the Fulani communities and the Mambilla ethnic group, which is also outside the Court’s jurisdiction, adding that the Court cannot deal with the human rights issues without ‘necessarily delving into the criminal aspects and land dispute in this matter.’
The Counsel had said the government intervened sometime during the incident in order to stop the killings.
The three-member panel of the Court for the suit were Honorable Justices Gberi-be Ouattara and Dupe Atoki.
GIK/APA