The Right to Dignity

When Fela Anikulapo Kuti talk am for inside hin song, Beasts of No Nation, say “human rights na my property”, e get why. Evribodi na him get some human rights wey nothing or body fit carry am comot. The tori be say, fundamental human rights dey important, but some dey importanter.

The right to dignity na one of the oga patapata rights wey dey importanter. Di Universal Declaration of Human Right (UDHR) wey be one document wey don té on human rights mata recognise di ‘follow-come’ dignity of all pesin and state. You don buy original phone wey no get follow-come charger before? Na like 5 and 6 nau. Una sabi as follow-come charger take cost for market?

Oh. No ves say I run comot for wetin we dey talk before.

As I dey talk, as follow come charger be to original phone, na so right to dignity be for every person. But….wait. Unlike follow come charger, nobody fit comot am from your package no matter wetin happen.

This right to dignity cover plenty things. E include say:

● Evribodi must to treat you with respect,

● Nobodi fit humiliate, dehumanize, or degrade you.

Torture, rape, forced labour or slavery, and plenty other yanma-yanma things dey illegal under dis right to dignity,

The UDHR document – wey we talk before – talk am for im ‘beginging’ sey the right to dignity of every person o, say nah hin be di “foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world”. If you check the Article 1 of dis document, dem talk am say “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”. For we Africa, di African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) sef join mouth for the matter come talk am for Article 5 say… so long as pesin be human being, he must to get right to respect of him dignity.

As it be for di Naija Constitution….

Dem write am wey e bold for Section 34(1) say “Every individual is entitled to respect for the dignity of his person”. Di tori wey follow subsection (1) try to explain wetin dis right be. As it be so, di right to dignity according to our Naija Constitution be sey:

● Nobodi get power to wire you with torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or

● Nobody get power to chook you for slavery or servitude, or force you to perform compulsory labour.

As we talk, any treatment wey dey below di sense of decency such as rape, torture, brutality and many more dey violate pesin right to dignity.

Wetin our courts dem talk about am….

Di question of di right to dignity follow di right to life appear for Ezekiel Adekunle v. The State. For dis case, some gwogwo people gather together stone one 70 year old woman to death unto say dem reason say di woman na witch.

If you check dis case of Mr. Johnson Owamagbe Aiwuyor v Sunday Famous Aluyi (Suit No: B/35M/2016), you go see say court vex onto dis issue of right to dignity. For dis matter, di Respondent enter di domot of di applicant, slap am for him face, make am stand on him feet and sit on bare floor. Court come rule say dis treatment of the Applicant who be school principal na violation of him right to dignity as e humiliate am before him family and friends.

For dis our kontry, once a pesin don proceed from him mama body in a living state and don get di status of  pesin, di right to dignity go automatically follow am. Na for dis reason dem call am inherent right. Plus in addition to the matter, nobodi fit deny another person enjoyment of dis right on di ground say the person na disabled person. The Vienna Convention wey Nigeria ratify for 1969 talk for the him Section 3 say “Disabled persons have the inherent right to respect for their human dignity”.

Dis right include sey nobody fit dey discriminated against becos of circumstances surrounding him birth or him sex, religion, ethnicity, and political affiliation. For Onuikhemi v. Smiridu Nig Ltd, wia dem terminate person for work unto say him test positive for HIV, the court talk am sey the dismissal on dat ground na violation of the person right to dignity. Court later order say make di people wey violate another person right to dignity pay dat person big money.

The mata neva end

We write am before sey right to dignity include dat pesin no go be forced to perform compulsory labour. From the paragraphs of subsection (2), we get action which no come under forced compulsory labour;

1. Labour wey pesin must do as a result of sentence of a court or order of a court.

2. Labour wey pesin wey be member of armed forces of the Federation or Nigeria Police Force go do in furtherance of his duties.

3. Labour which a pesin who conscientiously objects to serve in the armed force go perform as an alternative to such service.

4. Labour wey dey necessary when we get any emergency or life threatening calamity.

5. Labour wey form part of a pesin civic obligation.

6. Labour wey result from compulsory national service in the armed forces as the National Assembly go don prescribe.

7. Labour resulting from compulsory national service which dey part of education and training of citizens in  Nigeria as go be prescribed by an Act of the National Assembly. Here, di National Youth Service Corps Decree No.51 of 16 June 1993 which prescribes the one year National Youth Service Corp Program.

After dem don breach pesin right to dignity, what next?

If anybodi torture you, use you do slave, or any other things wey dey against your right to dignity, you get the right to carry your matter go court. Hope una remember our oda post on right to freedom of movement, we talk sey for mata wey concern breach of fundamental human rights, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun  J.S.C in FUTMINNA v. Olutayo talk am sey both the Federal High Court and State High Court get concurrent jurisdiction.

That aside, e go beta mek you know sey di enforcement of dis rights, in dis case di right to dignity, must be the main claim and not an ancillary claim. Dis we go find for Fundamental Rights (enforcement procedures) Rules 2009.

To undastand di tori, we go use di case of Mrs Uchechi Nwachukwu v Henry Nwachukwu & Anor (2018) LPELR-SC. 601/2013. For dis case, one man chase him wife comot for di marriage unto say di woman get HIV. Di appellant no get anoda choice but to come dey sleep outside, and faced humiliation becos of the stigma from di respondents actions. She come claim sey di respondents physical torture, harassment, embarrassment, inhumane and degrading treatment amounted to di violation of her right to dignity. Walter Onnoghen, the Chief Justice of Nigeria (as he be then) dismissed the appeal and talk am sey from di facts of di case, di case arose from di matrimonial relationship between di appellant and the first respondent with di main claim as restoration of di appellant back to her matrimonial home.

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