The ECOWAS Court of Justice has ordered the Federal Government to pay ₦10 million in compensation to Glory Okolie, a Nigerian student, for her unlawful detention and maltreatment by the police.
Delivering its judgment on Thursday, November 21, 2024, the court also directed the government to implement measures to prevent future human rights violations.
Okolie was arrested on June 13, 2021, and detained without judicial authorization. During her detention, she was reportedly denied legal representation, subjected to forced labour, and physically abused.
The case, filed by Okolie alongside the One Love Foundation and the Incorporated Trustees of Behind Bars Human Rights Foundation, argued that these actions violated provisions of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the Revised ECOWAS Treaty.
In its defence, the Federal Government claimed that Okolie was associated with the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and argued that her detention was necessary for national security.
However, in the ruling, Justice Ricardo Gonçalves stated that Okolie’s prolonged detention without judicial oversight breached her fundamental rights to liberty and a fair trial as enshrined in Articles 6 and 7 of the African Charter.
“The court found her treatment to be a clear abuse of human rights,” the judgment read.
The court ordered the government to pay ₦10 million in damages, cease all forms of harassment against Okolie, and introduce safeguards to prevent similar violations in the future.
The two co-applicant NGOs were not awarded damages due to procedural issues, the court noted.
The three-member panel presiding over the case included Honourable Justice Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves, Honourable Justice Sengu Mohamed Koroma, and Honourable Justice Edward Amoako Asante.
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