NHRC worries as women make up 95% of right abuse complaint in Kaduna

The National Human Rights Commission has revealed that about 95 percent of complaints received at its Kaduna State office come from women.

This highlighted the growing rate of human rights violations affecting women and other vulnerable groups in the state.

The Kaduna State Coordinator of the Commission, Tengu Gwar, disclosed this during a state-level consultative meeting on the National Action Plan (NAP) on Human Rights held in Kaduna on Tuesday.

According to him, most of the complaints received by the Commission border on sexual and gender-based violence, family abandonment, inheritance disputes, discrimination and other forms of abuse.

“At the Kaduna State office, about 95 percent of the complaints we receive monthly and yearly come from women.

“This data shows that many women are facing different forms of human rights violations.

“They come to us with complaints bordering on sexual and gender-based violence, family abandonment, inheritance issues, discrimination and several other forms of violations,” he said.

Gwar described the (NAP) as a comprehensive government policy framework aimed at promoting and protecting human rights across Nigeria.

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He explained that the document outlined the country’s vision for safeguarding civil and political rights, as well as economic, social, cultural and collective rights.

According to him, the consultative meeting was organised to increase awareness about the NAP and strengthen collaboration among ministries, departments, agencies and civil society organisations for its effective implementation in Kaduna State.

“We are here to popularise the document, create awareness around it, and clearly define the responsibilities of ministries, departments and agencies represented at this meeting,” he added.

The NHRC coordinator further identified challenges affecting women, children and persons with disabilities as some of the major concerns highlighted in the action plan, noting that the number of reported cases continues to rise daily.

Also speaking, a representative of the International Federation of Women Lawyers, Aisha Abdul-Mohamed, described the stakeholder engagement as important to strengthening human rights protection at the state level.

“The stakeholder engagement is very important because the work of the Human Rights Commission relies heavily on this NAP.

“It is a strategic document that should be reviewed regularly to ensure proper implementation at the state level,” she said.

Abdul-Mohamed stressed the need for lawyers and civil society groups to be involved from the beginning of the implementation process to ensure accountability and effective enforcement.

She added that the meeting had also helped improve awareness about the existence and significance of the National Action Plan.

“One major takeaway for me is that we now know there is a National Action Plan. This is actually my first time learning about it, and I believe it is something that should be developed further for Kaduna State because it is a crucial document,” she said.

On his part, the Executive Director of the Alternative Dispute Resolution Hub, Gabriel Onovo, said many residents were still unaware of the activities of the National Human Rights Commission and where to seek help when their rights are violated.

“In terms of awareness, this engagement is very important. A lot of people are not aware of the action plans of the National Human Rights Commission,” he stated.

Lenovo noted that civil society organisations have continued to advocate for increased access to justice and stronger protection for victims of rights violations across the state.