Anti-Torture Act 2017: Issues And Implication For Police Officers

The Anti-Torture Act 2017 was passed by the 8th National Assembly and signed into law by President Mohammadu Buhari on 29^th December 2017. Prior to the coming into effect of the Act, there was no law in Nigeria whose sole objective is the prohibition and punishment of torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.

Although Section 34 of the Constitution provides that every individual is entitled to respect for the dignity of his person, and accordingly (a) No person shall be subject to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment; the Constitution did not explicitly state that the freedom from torture, cruel and inhuman treatment is a non-derogable right.

This perhaps explains the acceptance and continued use of torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment by law enforcement officers. The Anti-torture Act 2017 fills the existing legislative gaps by explicitly making the right to freedom from torture, cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment a