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(2004/C 88 E/0373)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-1708/03

by Emma Bonino (NI) to the Commission

(19 May 2003)

Subject:   Murder of Joyce Miamuna Katai, State Commissioner for women's affairs and social development of the Nigerian State of Nasarawa

Joyce Miamuna Katai, Commissioner for women's affairs and social development of the State of Nasarawa in central Nigeria was assassinated on 5 May in Toto. Two of her assistants were killed at the same time and only a third, Phoebe Ayenajeh, managed to escape the massacre. This triple murder occurred inside a police station and amounted to nothing less than a lynching, according to a spokesman of the forces of law and order.

The local population had asked Joyce Miamuna Katai for help and protection from an organised gang which was trying to remove ballot boxes in order to falsify the results; the Commissioner tried to help by involving the local police, but they were not even able to guarantee her safety.

The institutional role taken on by Joyce Miamuna Katai as Commissioner for women's affairs and social development was part of the programme of the government of President Obasanjo and the Governor of the State of Nasarawa, Abdullahi Adamus, which made the education, training and social emancipation of women a key policy in Nigeria's transition to democracy.

Obasanjo's Presidency has given and is still giving a strong impetus to the democratic process in Nigeria, a country which up until 1999, the year in which Obasanjo was elected, suffered continuous coups d'état. Since the government declared certain aspects of Islamic law to be unconstitutional in 2002, following the case of Amina Lawal, there has been an upsurge in tension between ethnic Moslems and Christians, which also led to the massacre of civilians at the time of the Miss World contest which was to have taken place in Nigeria.

The First Lady, Stella Obasanjo, has backed the President's policy of supporting women's rights by encouraging women to go to university, stand for election, and play an active role in the social and political life of the country, and promoting an international campaign against the practice of female genital mutilation, still suffered by 40 % of young women and girls in Nigeria.

Is the Commission aware of these horrendous events in the State of Nasarawa?

Has the Commission already expressed its indignation at what happened on 5 May 2003 to President Obasanjo and the representatives of the democratic states of Nigeria?

In view of the very grave nature of these events, what measures does the Commission intend to take to facilitate the transition to democracy in the democratic states of Nigeria?

Answer given by Mr Nielson on behalf of the Commission

(10 July 2003)

The Commission is aware that Mrs. Joyce Miamuna Katai was murdered by youths at Rafin Kunama polling station at Toto in Nasarawa State on 3 May 2003. It appears that the deceased had intervened to stop election fraud when the youths attacked and chased her to the local police station where they killed the Commissioner and two assistants.

The Commission has not made a specific demarche to the authorities on this matter, however, in writing to congratulate President Obasanjo on his re-election, it has made an explicit reference to electoral violence and the need to ensure that all cases are fully investigated and that perpetrators will be brought to justice.

The Commission is supporting the transition to democracy in Nigeria. The ACP-EU Partnership Agreement signed in Cotonou on 23 June 2000 sets out in article 9 three essential elements – respect for human rights, democratic principles and the rule of law. The Country Strategy signed with Nigeria on 16 July 2002 (1) will directly support measures to promote these principles. Nigeria is also a focal country for the European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR). The Commission supported local observers and fielded a large international team to monitor the recent elections.

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(1)  http://europa.eu.int/comm/development/body/csp_rsp/csp_en.cfm.

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