The Media And Protection Of Armed Conflict Victims

WHAT IS ARMED CONFLICT?

Nearly all of us in this room could remember what happened on Friday, August 26, 2011 at the UN Building in Abuja. For those who don’t remember, at about 11am, a car laden with explosives broke through two security barriers and rammed into the reception area of the UN House in Abuja’s diplomatic zone.

The bomb instantly brought down the lower floors of the building housing no fewer than 400 staff of the global body. Boko Haram, which is ranked one of the deadliest terror group in the world claimed responsibility for the attack.

In the Niger Delta, militants have ravaged several communities, destroyed oil facilities worth billions of naira and further pollute the environment in the oil-rich region. In the North-central zone, Fulani herdsmen have wreaked havoc, killed thousands and displaced several communities and towns. In the South-east, Nigerian troops turned their guns on peaceful members of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, as part of measures to suppress their secessionist campaign. The list goes on and on.

These are all cases of armed conflicts which have serious ramifications on people and communities.

VICTIMS OF ARMED CONFLICTS

During the Boko Haram attack on the UN House, 21 persons were killed and 73 others were wounded. Since it started its bloody campaign, the group is said to have killed over 20,000 and displaced no fewer than two million people from Nigeria’s North-east zone. In Benue State alone, Fulani herdsmen are said to have murdered an estimated 2,000 people, displaced millions and occupied 14 out of the 23 local government areas in the state. It is difficult to know the total number of people the group has killed in the entire North-central zone. The same applies to the number of IPOB supporters killed by Nigerian troops in the South-east.

Those who were killed and wounded, those whose properties were destroyed or displaced, those whose relations lost their lives or lost properties or displaced or their environment damaged during such conflicts and violence are victims.

Victims of armed conflicts, therefore, are individuals, groups and communities, who have suffered harm ranging from physical, emotional, economic and even the violation of one or more of their fundamental rights. In considering the concept of “victims of armed conflicts,” we must note that they are not only individuals who were direct targets of rights violations but also include family members and groups affected by such violations.

The UN in 2006 gave vent to this when it adopted the definition of “victims” of violations of human rights and humanitarian law as… persons who, individually and collectively, suffered harm, including physical or mental injury, emotional suffering, economic loss or substantial impairment of their fundamental rights through acts or omission that constitute gross violations of international human rights law, or serious violations of international humanitarian law. Where appropriate and in accordance with domestic law, the term “victim” also includes the immediate family or dependents of the direct victim and persons who have suffered harm in intervening to assist victims in distress or to prevent victimisation.

PROTECTION OF VICTIMS’ RIGHTS

Protection of victims of armed conflicts involves all activities aimed at ensuring full respect for the rights of individuals and people in accordance with the letter and spirit of the relevant laws, viz; human rights law, international humanitarian law and refugee law.

Aid agencies like the ICRC, NRCS, The Red Crescent, Doctors Without Borders as well as UN Peace Keepers, AU Peace keeping Forces and those deployed by ECOWAS etc., have played significant roles in protecting the rights and providing scour for people caught up in armed conflicts and violence.

FACT: Journalists are ethically bound to protect victims of violence and report about conflicts in ways that do not jeopardize their safety, violate their rights and or blame them for their afflictions.

REALITY: Unfortunately, and sometimes ignorantly, the media, journalists and public commentators have turned their pens against people exposed to extreme brutality and pain. How does this happen:

By publishing disparaging and humiliating reports about men, women and children, who out of no fault of theirs, are trapped in theatres of armed conflicts and wars;

By publishing videos, photographs and offering lurid descriptions that tend to further humiliate, torture and disparage victims of armed conflicts;

By exposing (giving vivid description) of the movement and or where victims of armed conflicts are taking refuge especially when they do not have any form of protection and are prone to attack by the aggressors;

By presenting false accounts of armed conflicts thereby tilting public opinion and policy against victims

By presenting outright false accounts and reports that are suggestive of meddlesomeness of aid agencies in conflicts.

WHAT THE MEDIA CAN DO

Awareness creation – The media has the responsibility to raise awareness, foster respect for the rights and dignity of victims of armed conflicts, combat stereotypes, prejudices and harmful practices. Such reportage must be designed to make the public aware of the rights and capabilities of victims of armed conflicts as well as promote positive perception, promote their capabilities, skills and vocational abilities. It also involves respectful portrayals in report and commentaries. Adopting a human rights-based reportage approach and focusing on combating obstacles to equal opportunities to all would significantly lead to a more inclusive, productive and less-violent society.

Justice advocacy – The media must report correctly, factually and responsibly, acts of violations of human rights by parties to armed conflicts with a view to ultimately bringing the perpetrators to justice. This can be done through investigative reports detailing abuses, errors of omission and commission by perpetrators of conflicts, state parties and agencies etc.

Attraction of humanitarian support -The media can through special reports and analysis provide strong basis to mobilise and deploy humanitarian personnel so victims of armed conflicts can have access to services they need for recovery and enjoyment of their rights;

Demand for reparation – The media, through their reports and analysis, should push for reparation for injury and loss caused by the commission of internationally wrongful act. Reparation in this case may include restitution, compensation, satisfaction, rehabilitation and guarantees of non-repetition.   Relevant international and domestic laws provide for reparation for victims of armed conflicts. But victims increasingly find it difficult to access mechanisms which can award such reparations. The media can help by drawing the attention of government and aid agencies to the rights of the victims to be compensated for their losses during violent and armed conflicts.

Demand for rehabilitation – The media must hold government responsible for providing effective and appropriate rehabilitation for the physical and psychological injuries suffered by victims of violent and armed conflicts. Such rehabilitation should enable the beneficiaries, including physically challenged persons; attain and maintain maximum independence, physical, metal, social and vocational abilities to participate fully in all aspects of life.

Demand for health services -The media must hold the government responsible for providing healthcare services during times of armed conflicts and ensure medical personnel and infrastructure are not targeted by parties to the conflict.

Protection of women and children – Women and children have always been the hardest hit during violent and armed conflicts. History is replete with cases of grave abuses of these highly vulnerable group. A record 1.1 million children were massacred during the Holocaust, thousands of women and children died during the Nigerian Civil War and during the Rwandan genocide. Most of the victims who survive armed conflicts live with the terrifying images of rape, torture and killings the witnessed. More so, women are faced with the difficult task of keeping their families together after the conflicts and providing food, clothing and shelter for them. The media has a strong responsibility to bring the plight of such women and children to the attention of state actors and the public with a view to ensure they get the necessary assistance including age-sensitive victim assistance, disability assistance, legal protection, access to health and rehabilitation, additional care and protection for pregnant women and early motherhood, protection from, and prosecution of sexual and gender based violence.

Protection of people with disabilities – The International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is said to be the governing framework for the achievement of the rights of all victims of armed conflicts, who are also persons with disabilities. The media should help break all societal barriers in ensuring access to opportunities for the enjoyment of human rights and successful living.

HOW THEY CAN DO THESE

Agenda setting and status conferral – Based on Paul Lazarsfeld and Robert Merton’s model, the media can effectively set the agenda of public discussion around the rights of victims of armed conflicts in the country. Currently, the Nigerian military is fighting Boko Haram in the North-east and the Niger Delta militants in the oil-rich South-south, in situations that have led to killings and displacement of communities.

While the media have largely been focusing attention on the military operation, very little have been done in the reportage of the plight of the victims of those skirmishes. We are again reminded today to do more to bring the plight of victims of armed conflicts in the country to the forefront of media discourse.

Persistent reportage – There is a saying, “Nothing good comes easy.” Getting the public an indeed relevant state actors to recognize and take action to protect the rights and dignity of victims of armed conflicts will never be an easy task but persistence can pay in the long run. The media must constantly and deliberately report acts of human rights violations, especially those of people caught in theaters of armed conflicts and wars. These could take the form of investigations, special reports, commentaries, analyses, cartoons, documentaries.

Knowledge of relevant national and international laws relating to victims of armed conflicts and wars – Only very few journalists know and fully understand the rights of individuals and people caught up in armed conflicts as prescribed in the Human Rights Law, International Humanitarian Law and the Refugee Law. A good knowledge of laws and international treaties safeguarding the rights of victims of armed conflicts would enable journalists report about issues affecting them and ensure they have justice and are treated with dignity.   To understand the rights of victims of armed conflicts, journalists and their editors must know the following:

.Fundamental Human Rights as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria as amended

.African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights

.International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

.Universal Declaration on Human Rights

.International Humanitarian Law (IHL).

.International Criminal Law

.The Refugee Law

Isine, a visiting Professor to the American University of Nigeria (AUN) and an Editor with Premium Times Newspaper, presented this paper at a two-day workshop for journalists in Abuja organised by ICRC and NRCS, November 22-23, 2016.

Ibanga Isine