Amnesty International has made a move to investigate the human right abuses that took place in Onitsha-Nkpor where the innocent and peaceful people of Biafra gathered to remember their heroes’ who died in 1967 to 1970. The peaceful heroes’ day turned bloody when Nigerian army sporadically shot to kill unarmed Biafrans.
Chima Onyekachi and Ifeanyi Chijioke of Family Writers who followed amnesty international research team to the various mortuaries where the victims were kept can confirm that Amnesty International are working relentlessly to make sure that human right is protected and records put in place for the purpose of justice. Having spent three days walking from hospital to mortuaries and other places the killing of Biafrans occurred. Surprisingly, Anambra state government has ordered for eradication of evidence as tear gas canisters were not seen and eye witnesses afraid to talk. But a good Samaritan eye witnessed spoke extensively on the atrocities committed by Nigerian military.
Our investigation was noted when we got to a mortuary where one of the victim is kept, and autopsy result showing a close range shot. While Nigerian military was claiming unarmed Biafrans were killed out of self defense, the corpse in the morgue was shot at his back. This however is evident that when a shot is given from the back, it implies unprovoked attack was carried out against such victim.
While the self-defense claim cannot hold any water, the Nigerian military also failed to apply caution and professionalism, when one is peacefully expressing his view, it does not warrant lethal confrontations. Speaking to the mortuary attendant, he noted “He was brought here dead, he was shot to die, and you can see the shot came from the back. Probably he bled to death before reaching our hospital. It is a pity that security that ought to protect them is killing them”.
Lying cold on the mortuary ground as we took picture of him is a young man that just finished his traditional marriage in Easter and his white wedding is coming up next three weeks. Tears was strongly held but our heart was heavy, battered to a point that man’s inhumanity to man began to ache our heads. The handler given to us to take us to the places we needed, shared his story “I was the person who carried him to this hospital, he died on our way, he bled to death. We have not seen any of his family members yet, we have only seen his friends who confirmed they know him” he said as we wondered what the state of his wife would be once the story reaches her.
Effort to speak to Amnesty International proved futile as protocols demand, we headed for another mortuary where three members were kept. While mathematically, the number of victims seen and admitted by the military is 14 while scores were nowhere to be found and the military denied keeping their corpses while pictures and videos documented proved otherwise. Estimated 40 were said to have been killed as families all over Biafra are complaining of missing ones.
Amnesty International would officially make press release on the out-come of their investigation in defense of human right which the institution has been in the forefront for years. While there would possibly be a press conference after investigation might have been made public, it is important to appreciate the effort to making the world a better place.
Source: Biafra Writers
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