The American Veterans of Igbo Descent (AVID), in collaboration with Rising Sun Charities Organization and Ambassadors for Self-Determination, have petitioned U.S. President Donald Trump to impose Global Magnitsky sanctions on several Nigerian judges and former Attorney General Abubakar Malami. The petition accuses them of gross human rights violations linked to the detention and prosecution of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
The groups allege that Nigerian judges, including Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako, Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani, Justice Hamma Akawu Barka, Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, former Chief Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, and former Attorney General Malami, enabled arbitrary detention, extraordinary rendition, denial of fair trial rights, and suppression of free speech against Kanu, who has been held in detention since his extraordinary rendition from Kenya in June 2021.
AVID argues that judges should not enjoy immunity for such human rights abuses, drawing parallels to prosecutions of Nazi judges for sham trials and sanctions against Russian judges for arbitrary detentions. The petition highlights a July 2022 United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention ruling declaring Kanu’s detention unlawful and ordering his release and reparations, which Nigerian courts have defied.
The petition also criticizes the 2017 proscription of IPOB as a terrorist organization through an illegal ex parte proceeding, noting that no country, including the U.S., recognizes IPOB as a terrorist group. It accuses Nigerian courts of using this label unjustly to persecute peaceful activists.
The groups call for sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act to deter further abuses and send a message that human rights violations have consequences worldwide. The petition underscores broader advocacy for accountability and the protection of fundamental freedoms in Nigeria.