BEVERLY HILLS, June 12, (THEWILL) – Two United States’ congressmen, Cory Booker and Rand Paul, have stated that Washington’s planned sale of attack aircraft to Nigeria should only be done when the country has investigated cases of alleged human rights abuses.
A report by Washington Post in April had stated that the President Donald Trump administration has agreed to sell 12 fighter jets to Nigeria at $600 million, adding that the Congress would within weeks receive formal notification of the deal.
But in a letter dated June 8 and addressed to the United States Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, the congressmen warned that Nigeria’s acquisition of the aircraft would “spur unrest and violence, particularly in the north-eastern part of the country”.
They expressed concern that the sale of the hardware, if done without any indication of commitment from Nigerian authorities to the protection of human rights, would contravene the US security objectives.
While citing the “massacre” of Shi’ites allegedly carried out by the Nigerian army and the accidental bombing of the Rann IDPs camp by the Nigerian airforce, the senators pointed out that there were allegations of corruption, abuse, and misconduct in the military.
Booker and Paul said in the letter, “We request that before you approve this sale, you brief us on the steps Nigeria has taken to investigate and hold accountable those that have committed human rights abuses. We believe the security threats Nigeria is facing are very real but that a sale of this nature, and at this time, is ill-advised.
“Boko Haram – a 5,000 to 10,000 strong insurgent force with ties to the Islamic State – will not be defeated through expanded air power alone.
“At the same time, there continues to be additional allegations of corruption, abuse, and misconduct throughout the Nigerian military. While some soldiers have been released or retired, there has yet to be any real or meaningful accountability for the systemic challenges that have plagued Nigeria’s security forces for decades.
“Without addressing these problems at an institutional level, reform is merely cosmetic and will only perpetuate long-standing patterns of abuse, which could serve as propaganda for Boko Haram and other insurgent groups seeking to discredit the Nigerian government.
“We are concerned that the decision to proceed with this sale will empower the government to backtrack even further on its commitments to human rights, accountability, and upholding international humanitarian law, which in turn could spur greater unrest and violence, particularly in the north-eastern part of the country.
“Accordingly, we strongly urge you to reconsider your decision to sell A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft to Nigeria without any meaningful reform or any clear safeguards in place. Instead, we recommend you make clear to Abuja that the sale of these aircraft can proceed only if there is positive and measurable progress on reforming the security institutions.”
institutions.”
