Vol. 529 No. 1
270 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to widespread human rights abuses in Nigeria; the plans he has to improve the situation for the victims or potential victims; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2572/01]
As the first democratically elected civilian President of Nigeria following 15 years of military rule, President Obasanjo has faced enormous challenges since his inauguration in May 1999, including the consequences of widespread human rights violations. One of his first acts upon becoming President was to set up a human rights violations investigation commission, known as the Oputa Commission, with a remit to investigate human rights abuses between 1966 and 1999. Public hearings have been under way since October 2000 and have brought home to Nigeria for the first time the horrors of military rule. The commission's objective is to promote national reconciliation among Nigerians. The Obasanjo Government has also supported a number of initiatives in the area of penal reform to address human rights violations and to reduce the number of inmates in Nigeria's chronically underfunded and overcrowded prisons.
