I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1786
To impose sanctions against Nigeria, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 4, 1997
Mr. PAYNE (for himself, Mr. HOUGHTON, Mr. CHABOT, Ms. MCKINNEY, Mr.
SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. ACKER-
MAN, Ms. NORTON, Mr. PORTER, Ms. PELOSI, Ms. WATERS, Mr. BROWN
of Ohio, Mr. OLVER, Mr. MANTON, Mr. SHAYS, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE
JOHNSON of Texas, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. FILNER, and Mr. CLAY) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Inter-
national Relations, and in addition to the Committees on Banking and
Financial Services, Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Judiciary,
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
A BILL
To impose sanctions against Nigeria, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Nigeria Democracy
Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The November 10, 1995, execution by hang-
ing of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni envi-
ronmental activists was carried out by the Govern-
ment of Nigeria after a trial that ignored the fun-
damental standards of legal process, and despite the
pleas for clemency by the African and international
community, as well as the United States Administra-
tion, the Chairman and ranking minority member of
the Committee on International Relations of the
House of Representatives, and the Chairman of the
Congressional Black Caucus and the co-chairs of the
Human Rights Caucus of the House of Representa-
tives.
(2) The United Nations recommended in both
March and April of 1996 that the Government of
Nigeria release the bodies of the Ogoni Nine for
proper burial and paid compensation to the families
of the deceased.
(3) This heinous action followed an October 1,
1995, ambiguous statement by Nigerian military
leader General Sani Abacha, that the country would
be returned to civilian democratic rule in three
years, and a lifting of the ban on political parties
while at the same time not repealing the Treason-
able Offenses Decree which allows the arrest of any-
one speaking against the government.
(4) General Abacha’s announcement was pres-
sured by the outrage of the international community
for his March 1995 arrest and conviction to long
prison terms by secret trial of some 43 persons for
involvement in a so-called coup. Among those con-
victed and still incarcerated are former President
General Olusegun Obasanjo, the only military leader
in Nigeria to return power to democratic civilian
rule, General Shehu Musa Yar-Adua, deputy to the
President in Abaasanjo’s Administration, and later,
human rights activist Beko Ransome-Kuti.
(5) The people of Nigeria and the international
community had been led to believe that the presi-
dential election held in Nigeria on June 12, 1993,
would result in a return to full democratic civilian
rule in Nigeria.
(6) General Ibrahim Babangida, the head of Ni-
geria’s military government at the time of the June
12, 1993, election interrupted the release of the elec-
tion results on June 23, 1993, and later annulled
the election, thereby preventing a return to civilian
rule.
(7) The election process indicated that voters in
Nigeria—a country with a population of approxi-
mately 90,000,000 persons comprising 250 ethnic
groups and spread across 357,000 square miles—
were expressing a spirit of national unity that tran-
scended ethnic, religious, and regional allegiances.
(8) The reported returns suggested that Chief
M.K.O. Abiola of the Social Democratic Party was
receiving a substantial majority of the votes cast,
leading the poll in 20 of the 30 States in Nigeria.
(9) The annulment of the presidential elections
resulted in various forms of civil unrest, which in
turn led to the deaths of more than 100 persons.
(10) An interim government established by
General Babangida on August 27, 1993, and headed
by Ernest Shonekan, failed to win the support of the
Nigerian people.
(11) General Sani Abacha took power on No-
vember 17, 1993, appointing an unelected Provi-
sional Ruling Council to govern Nigeria.
(12) Chief M.K.O. Abiola was imprisoned in
solitary confinement for over one year for pressing
his claim as the elected democratic leader of Nigeria,
and still remains incarcerated today.
(13) The political and economic conditions in
Nigeria have continued to deteriorate in the months
since Abacha took control of the country.
(14) The faith of the Nigerian people in the vi-
ability of the nation as a unified whole must be pre-
served, and the balkanization of Nigeria guarded
against.
(15) The people of Nigeria have not accepted
the continuation of military rule and have coura-
geously spoken out in favor of the rapid return of
democratic and civilian rule.
(16) On May 15, 1994, a broad coalition of Ni-
gerian democrats formed the National Democratic
Coalition calling upon the military government to
step down in favor of the winner of the June 12,
1993 election.
(17) The confidence of the Nigerian people and
the international community in the Provisional Rul-
ing Council’s commitment to the restoration of de-
mocracy can only be established by a sustained dem-
onstration of a commitment to human rights, due
process, and the return of civilian rule.
(18) The United States would prefer to have a
relationship with Nigeria based upon cooperation
and mutual support but cannot, and will not, con-
done or overlook the denial of democratic civilian
rule, against the clear wishes of the Nigerian people,
by the Provisional Ruling Council or any other body
in Nigeria.
(19) The lack of support from the Nigerian au-
thorities on drug trafficking issues forced the United
States for the last 2 years to place Nigeria on the
list of countries penalized for failure to seriously ad-
dress the narcotics proliferation issue, thus endan-
gering vulnerable youth in our communities.
(20) Continuing credible reports of widespread
corruption and questionable business practices in the
Nigerian Government and ‘‘scams’’ in the United
States, and the lack of cooperation in addressing
these problems by the Nigerian Government, further
undermines Nigeria’s credibility in the international
community, and is a constant embarrassment to ap-
proximately 1,000,000 law-abiding Nigerian Ameri-
cans.
(21) Nigeria’s leadership role on the African
continent, especially in the area of peacekeeping, will
be severely compromised by its failure to rejoin the
world community of democratic nations.
(22) Nigeria was recently suspended from the
Commonwealth, a forum linking Britain and former
colonies, and African countries like South Africa
have already called for diplomatic, economic, and
sports sanctions, since the limited sanctions imposed
by the United States Administration have had little
effect in safeguarding the lives of the people of Nige-
ria and moving Nigeria toward democracy.
SEC. 3. DECLARATIONS OF POLICY.
(a) COMMITMENT TO UNITY AND DEMOCRACY BY
THE NIGERIAN PEOPLE.—The Congress continues to sup-
port the Nigerian people in their commitment to unity and
democracy as evidenced by their participation in the June
12, 1993, presidential election in Nigeria, and in their
subsequent insistence on the return to full civilian and
democratic rule.
(b) ACTIONS TAKEN BY THE UNITED STATES.—
While the Congress endorses the limited steps taken by
the Administration to demonstrate United States opposi-
tion to the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential
election in Nigeria, more needs to be accomplished to en-
courage the restoration of fully democratic and civilian
rule in Nigeria.
(c) SANCTIONS TO BE IMPLEMENTED IN COORDINA-
TION WITH INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY.—The Congress
declares that the sanctions against Nigeria contained in
this Act should be taken in concert with the international