Source: http://www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org/country-search-post.cfm?country=Nigeria
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 04:02:13+00:00

Document:
BBC, Country Profiles: Bangladesh Profile, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-13949550, Nov. 27, 2013.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria reportedly hangs four in first executions since 2006, http://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/nigeria-reportedly-hangs-four-first-executions-2006-2013-06-24, Jun. 24, 2013.
 Nigeria Criminal Procedure Act of 1945, art. 367(1), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 80, Jun. 1, 1945, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, p. 52 fn. 67, Mar. 2002.
 Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, sec. 1(3), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 398, Mar. 29, 1984, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 The Nation, Court Restrains Govt From Executing Five by Hanging, http://thenationonlineng.net/new/court-restrains-govt-from-executing-five-by-hanging/, Sep. 25, 2012.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, ch. III, 41, 44, 93 (1) (xviii), 126, 127, 129-130, 131-132, p. 68 fn. 162, p. 69 fn. 172, p. 69 fn. 174, p. 70, fn 181.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, ch. VIII, art. 152 (d).
 Amnesty Intl., Death Sentences and Executions in 2016, p. 38, ACT 50/5740/2017, Apr. 11, 2017.
 Amnesty Intl., Death Sentences and Executions in 2016, p. 61, ACT 50/5740/2017, Apr. 11, 2017.
 Chanells Television, LEDAP condemns killing of death row prisoners in Benin City, https://www.channelstv.com/2016/12/28/ledap-condemns-killing-death-row-prisoners-benin-city/, Dec. 28, 2015.
 Amnesty Intl., Death Sentences and Executions in 2013, p. 50, ACT 50/001/2014, Mar. 26, 2014. Amnesty Intl., Nigeria reportedly hangs four in first executions since 2006, http://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/nigeria-reportedly-hangs-four-first-executions-2006-2013-06-24, Jun. 24, 2013.
Roger Hood and Carolyn Hoyle report that the death penalty applies for use of firearms or explosives in undermining public order, offenses that could result in death.  We did not find the legislation establishing these offenses.
- Practice of indigenous beliefs: In states applying Shariah law, the practice of some religions may be considered juju or witchcraft and punished by death, even when of little or no harm.  Cannibalism  and retaining human blood or remains for the purpose of trophy or witchcraft  are also punished by death.
We did not have access to the complete criminal legislation for all thirty-six states. We consulted the Criminal Code Act (effective in southern states except Lagos), the Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated (compiling the Shariah law of the Northern states with the Penal Code applicable in the Northern states), the Armed Forces Act of 1993, the Criminal Procedure Act, the Robbery and Firearms Act, and the Terrorism (Prevention Act).  A model Shariah criminal law has not been adopted, however, and states continue to apply divergent penal codes.  The Harmonised Shariah Penal Code we referred to is an informative secondary compilation of annotated Shariah offenses rather than a collection of the original statutes, which we could not obtain. For the purposes of this research, we included any offense which is death-eligible in at least one state.
In September 2012, the High Court of Lagos State declared that the mandatory death penalty was unconstitutional in James Ajulu & Others v. Attorney General of Lagos.  However, its holding is only enforceable in Lagos State.
Support or solicitation for terrorist acts that result in death carries the mandatory death penalty.  .
- Practice of indigenous beliefs: In states applying Shariah law, the practice of some religions may be considered juju or witchcraft and punished by a mandatory death sentence, even when of little or no harm.  Cannibalism  and retaining human blood or remains for the purpose of trophy or witchcraft  are also punished by death.
The retributive (qisas) sentence of death is a penalty that excludes the possibility of judicial discretion unless a payment of blood money is made to a victim’s relatives (or forgiveness is gratuitously extended).  We consider this to be a mandatory death penalty because an extrajudicial determination controls whether discretion may be exercised.
The four prisoners executed in 2013 were convicted of either armed robbery or murder.  We were unable to find information on whether the robbery offenses resulted in the death of a victim.
As a party to the ICCPR,  the Convention on the Rights of the Child,  and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child,  Nigeria is under an international obligation to exclude juveniles from capital punishment.
As of 2010, 40 death row inmates were thought to be under the age of 18 at the time of their offenses.  We were not able to find more recent figures.
In June 2014, the ECOWAS Court of Justice issued a judgment holding that the death sentence of Maimuna Abdulmumini, who was convicted of murdering her husband at the age of 13, was a violation of the ICCPR’s prohibition on applying capital punishment to minors. The court awarded Abdulmumini trial costs and damages.  In March 2014, Justice Minister Bello Adoke had announced that the federal government would not carry out her execution in accordance with the ECOWAS court’s interim decisions.  The ECOWAS judgment thus has the potential to change Nigeria’s practice with regard to sentencing juveniles to death.
As a party to the ICCPR,  and the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa,  Nigeria is under an international obligation to exclude pregnant women from capital punishment.
We found no laws, however, prohibiting the execution of prisoners who are mentally ill at the time the death sentence is to be carried out.
We found no laws, however, expressly prohibiting the execution of prisoners who are intellectually disabled at the time of their sentencing or at the time the death sentence is to be carried out.
Nigeria has ratified the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa,  which excludes pregnant women and nursing women from the application of the death penalty.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, arts. 50, 198-199, p. 85 fn. 271, Mar. 2002.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, arts. 316, 319, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, arts. 198-199 (a), Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 205, Mar. 2002.
 Criminal Law of Lagos State, Sec. 319, Aug. 19, 2011.
 Nigeria Armed Forces Act, art. 106, Law No. 105 of 1993, 1993.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 152 (c), Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 205, p. 87 fn. 282, Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 330(2), Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, arts. 407, 411, Mar. 2002.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, arts. 316, 319, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, art. 207-208, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Terrorism (Prevention) Act, sec. 4(2), Act. No. 10 of 2011, Jun. 2, 2011.
 Roger Hood & Carolyn Hoyle, The Death Penalty: A Worldwide Perspective, p. 136, Oxford University Press, 4th ed., 2008.
 Terrorism (Prevention) Act, sec. 4(2), Act. No. 10, Jun. 2, 2011.
 Zamfara State Shari’a Penal Code, sec. 129, Jan. 2000. Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 128 (b), Mar. 2002.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, art. 402, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000. Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, sec. 1(2)(b), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 398, Mar. 29, 1984, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Criminal Law of Lagos State, Sec. 295(2), Aug. 19, 2011.
 Leadership, Nigeria: Death Penalty for Kidnappers - Ex-Lawmaker Backs Oshiomhole, http://allafrica.com/stories/201310210111.html, Oct. 19, 2013.
 Zamfara State Shari’a Penal Code, sec. 126, Jan. 2000. Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 126 (b), Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, p. 133 fn. 627, p. 134, fn. 637, arts. 406, 408-409, Mar. 2002.
 Cherif Bassiouni, Crimes and the Criminal Process, p. 277, Arab Law Quarterly, Vol. 12, No. 3, 1997. Cherif Bassiouni, Leaving Islam is Not a Capital Crime, Chicago Tribune, Apr. 2, 2006.
 Zamfara State Shari’a Penal Code, sec. 129, Jan. 2000. Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 132 (b), Mar. 2002.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, arts. 37-38, 49, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Nigeria Armed Forces Act, arts. 45, 46, 47, 52, 63, Law No. 105 of 1993, 1993.
 Nigeria Armed Forces Act, arts. 107, 114, Law No. 105 of 1993, 1993.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 130 (1), Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, arts. 408-409, Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 413, Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, art. 414, Mar. 2002.
 Radio Netherlands Worldwide, Law and Disorder in Nigeria’s Sharia States, http://www.rnw.nl/africa/article/law-and-disorder-nigeria’s-sharia-states-0, Dec. 23, 2011.
 Human Rights Watch, “Political Shariah” Human Rights and Islamic Law in northern Nigeria, p. 13, Vol. 16, No.9, Sep. 2004.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000. Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, Mar. 2002. Nigeria Armed Forces Act, No. 105 of 1993, 1993. Criminal Procedure Act, art. 368(3), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 80, Jun. 1, 1945, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000. Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, sec. 1(2)(b), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 398, Mar. 29, 1984, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 U.S. Dept. of State, 2013 Human Rights Report: Nigeria, Denial of Fair Public Trial, http://www.statEd.gov/documents/organization/220358.pdf, Feb. 25, 2014.
 U.N. ESC, Report of the Special Rapporteur on Summary, Extrajudicial or Arbitrary Executions, Philip Alston, p. 3, E/CN.4/2006/53/Add.4, Jan. 7, 2006.
 For example, see: U.N. ESC, Report of the Special Rapporteur on Summary, Extrajudicial or Arbitrary Executions, Philip Alston, paras. 21-26, 32-28, E/CN.4/2006/53/Add.4, Jan. 7, 2006.
 Nigerian Monitor, President Goodluck Jonathan Seeks Death Penalty for Cyber Crime, Jan. 29, 2014.
 CybercrimeBill 2013, sec 5(3), Jan. 28, 2014.
 Eseohe Ebhota, Nigerians React to Cyber-Crime Bill, AllAfrica.com, http://allafrica.com/stories/201402031339.html, Feb. 2, 2014.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000 (effective in southern states); Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated (compiling the Shariah law of northern states and the Penal Code applicable in northern states).
 The Nation, Court Restrains Govt From Executing Five by Hanging, http://thenationonlineng.net/new/court-restrains-govt-from-executing-five-by-hanging, Sep. 25, 2012.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, arts. 50, 198-199, p. 85 fn. 171, Mar. 2002.
 Nigeria Armed Forces Act, art. 106, Act No. 105 of 1993, 1993.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, ch. VIII, art. 152 (c), Mar. 2002.
 Terrorism (Prevention) Act, sec. 4(2), Jun. 2, 2011.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, ch. VIII, art. 128 (b), Mar. 2002.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, art. 402, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, sec. 1(2)(b), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 398, Mar. 29, 1984, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Roger Hood & Carolyn Hoyle, The Death Penalty: A Worldwide Perspective, p. 140, Oxford University Press, 4th ed., 2008.
 Zamfara State Shari’a Penal Code, sec. 126, Jan. 2000. Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, ch. VIII, art. 126 (b), Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, ch. VIII, art. 132 (b), Mar. 2002.
 Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, ch. VIII, art. 130 (1), Mar. 2002.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000 (effective in southern states). Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, Mar. 2002 (compiling the Shariah law of northern states and the Penal Code applicable in northern states).
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria reportedly hangs four in first executions since 2006, http://www.amnesty.org/en/for-media/press-releases/nigeria-reportedly-hangs-four-first-executions-2006-2013-06-24, Jun. 24, 2013. Reuters, Nigeria Hangs Four Prisoners in First Executions since 2006, http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/25/us-nigeria-execution-idUSBRE95O0RA20130625, Jun. 25, 2014.
 Child Act, sec. 221, 2003.
 Child Rights International Network, Inhuman Sentencing of Children In Nigeria, http://www.crin.org/docs/Nigeria_UPR_CRIN_FINAL.pdf, Mar. 2013.
 Child and Young Persons Act, art. 12, 1943.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, arts. 319, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000. Criminal Procedure Act, art. 368(3), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 80, Jun. 1, 1945, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 43, AFR 44/020/2008, http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/poverty-and-the-death-penalty-in-nigeria-20081021, Oct. 21, 2008. Nigeria Criminal Code Act, arts. 39, 319, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Status, Declarations, and Reservations, ICCPR, 999 U.N.T.S. 171, Dec. 16, 1966, http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-4&chapter=4〈=en, last accessed Mar. 14, 2014.
 Status, Declaration, and Reservations, Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1577 U.N.T.S. 3, Nov. 20, 1989, https://treaties.un.org/pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-11&chapter=4〈=en, Jun. 16, 2014.
 African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Ratification Table: African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, http://www.achpr.org/instruments/child/ratification, last accessed Mar. 4, 2014.
 U.N. CRC, Committee on the Rights of the Child, Concluding Observations: Nigeria, paras. 7, 32-33, U.N. Doc. CRC/C/NGA/CO/3-4, Jun. 11, 2010.
 Bertram Nwannekanma, ECOWAS Court upholds rights of death row detainees, http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/news/national-news/166818-ecowas-court-upholds-rights-of-death-row-detainees, Jun. 18, 2014.
 Ikenna Emewu, ECOWAS Court Stops Death Penalty in Nigeria, The Sun, http://sunnewsonlinEd.com/new/?p=56385, Mar. 15, 2014.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 43, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008. Nigeria Criminal Procedure Act, art. 368(2), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 80, Jun. 1, 1945, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Lilian Chenwi, Towards the Abolition of the Death Penalty in Africa: A Human Rights Perspective, p.41, Pretoria University Law Press, 2007.
 Gerald E. Lampe, ed., Justice and Human Rights in Islamic Law, p. 56, Intl. Law Institute, 1997.
 African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Ratification Table: Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, http://www.achpr.org/instruments/women-protocol/ratification, last accessed Mar. 14, 2014.
 Nigeria Criminal Code Act, art. 28, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 77, Jun. 1, 1916, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Nigeria Criminal Procedure Act, arts. 222-223, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 80, Jun. 1, 1945, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Status, African Convention on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa, http://www.achpr.org/instruments/women-protocol/ratification/, last accessed Jun. 18, 2014.
 Status, Declarations, and Reservations, Optional Prot. to the ICCPR, 999 U.N.T.S. 171, Dec. 16, 1966, http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-5&chapter=4〈=en, last accessed Mar. 20, 2014.
 Status, Declarations, and Reservations, Second Optional Prot. to the ICCPR, Aiming at the Abolition of the Death Penalty, 1642 U.N.T.S. 414, Dec. 15, 1989, http://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-12&chapter=4〈=en, last accessed Mar. 14, 2014.
 African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Ratification Table: African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, http://www.achpr.org/instruments/achpr/ratification, last accessed Mar. 14, 2014.
 African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Ratification Table: Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, http://www.achpr.org/instruments/women-protocol/ratification, last accessed Mar. 4, 2014.
While more than 2,600 people were convicted and executed between 1970 and 1999, the rate of executions dropped dramatically after the fall of the military government in May 1999. From May 1999 to 2006, Amnesty estimates that at least 22 people were executed.  After a 7-year hiatus without executions, four death row inmates were executed in 2013.  In June 2013, President Goodluck Jonathan urged state Governors to sign death warrants for death row prisoners.  The four executions took place shortly after in Edo State.  All four individuals still had appeals pending when they were executed, according to their lawyers,  in violation of Nigerian and international law.
In early July 2010, reports indicated that the Nigerian government had contemplated mass executions of death row inmates, many of whom may have been convicted in unfair trials, in order to somewhat diminish overcrowding. Two (or more) Nigerian NGOs—the Legal Resources Consortium and the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project—obtained injunctions and orders against the execution of death row prisoners as violating a variety of human rights protections. Reports conflict as to whether 824 or more than 870 individuals were affected by these injunctions and orders.
In September 2012, the High Court (the highest appellate court) of Lagos State declared that the mandatory death penalty was unconstitutional. The court in James Ajulu & Ors v. Attorney General of Lagos also held that execution by hanging or firing squad is unconstitutional. It explained that these methods of execution amounted to “a violation of the condemned’s right to dignity of the human person and inhuman and degrading treatment” and are a violation of the right to human dignity as a person under Section 34(1) of the Lagos Constitution.  Its holding is only enforceable in Lagos State.
While we did not find court opinions by Shariah courts, Philip Alston, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Summary, Extrajudicial and Arbitrary Executions, reported in 2006 that Shariah Courts of Appeal exercised review to limit application of the death penalty, overturning a number of sentences on the grounds that the state’s evidence failed to meet Shariah standards. Shariah appeals courts judges explained that under Shariah evidentiary standards, the death penalty should be only rarely applicable. Shariah Courts of Appeal apply principles that strongly support a presumption against the use of the death penalty, especially with regard to zina, or offenses against sexual mores. For instance, an estranged or divorced woman’s child is presumed to be her husband’s child even after several years have passed; sexual indiscretion cannot be considered adultery unless it is shown that a marriage was consummated; and sexual acts (including homosexual acts) cannot, in the absence of pregnancy or a confession (which can be retracted), be death eligible without the testimony of four witnesses.  As of 2006, the federal government’s position was that states applying Shariah law for sexual offenses are acting unconstitutionally,  but this issue has not come up for constitutional review.
All the decisions of the Supreme Court of Nigeria since its inception in 1963 are available on the court’s website (http://judgment.supremecourt.gov.ng) and can be searched by title or date. Some recent judgments are also available on the website of the Court of Appeals (http://www.courtofappeal.gov.ng). The website of the Federal High Courts was under construction at the time of research but may in future include judicial decisions (http://www.fhc-ng.com/libray.htm).
Judgments from death penalty cases tried at the state level may also be available on the websites of the relevant courts. The website of the Lagos judiciary, for instance, hosts some judicial decisions (https://lagosjudiciary.gov.ng/jis_new/programs.aspx).
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, art. 33(1), May 29, 1999.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, arts. 233(2)(d), 241(1)(e), May 29, 1999.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Preamble, May 29, 1999.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, art. 19(d), May 29, 1999.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, Order I – Application and Interpretation, art. 2, Nov. 11, 2009.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, Preamble, art. 3(b), Nov. 11, 2009.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, art. 3(b), Nov. 11, 2009.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, Preamble, art. 3(a), Nov. 11, 2009.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, Preamble, art. 3(e), Nov. 11, 2009.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, Preamble, art. 3(g), Nov. 11, 2009.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, Order III – Limitation of Action, art. 1, Nov. 11, 2009.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ pp. 36-37, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl, Nigeria executions: “They almost executed him secretly”, https://www.amnesty.org/en/news/nigeria-death-penalty-feature-2013-06-28, Jun. 28, 2013.
 U.N.G.A. Human Rights Council, Report of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Manfred Nowak, para. 61, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/7/3/Add.4, Nov. 22, 2007.
 For example, see: U.N. ESC, Report of the Special Rapporteur on Summary, Extrajudicial or Arbitrary Executions, Philip Alston, paras. 21-26, 32-28, 81, E/CN.4/2006/53/Add.4, Jan. 7, 2006.
 Amnesty Intl, Nigeria: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Nigerian Civil Society Groups Call on State Governments Not To Resume the Execution of Prisoners, AFR 44/010/2010, Jun. 25, 2010.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 34, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, arts. 233(2)(d), 241(1)(e), 251(2&3), 272(1),May 29, 1999, as amended by the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure), Nov. 11, 2009. Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: Waiting for the Hangman, p. 42, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 41, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Olayinka v. State, S.C. 279/2003, Supreme Court of Nigeria, Apr. 20, 2007.
 Yemisi Dina, John Akintayo & Funke Ekundayo, Update: Guide to Nigerian Legal Information, GlobaLex, http://www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/Nigeria1.htm, Mar. 2013.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, art. 175, May 29, 1999.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, art. 212, May 29, 1999.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ pp. 42-43, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 23, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Criminal Procedure Act, art. 368(3), Laws of the Federation of Nigeria Ed. 2000 Ch. 80, Jun. 1, 1945, as updated to Dec. 31, 2000.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, arts. 233(2)(d), 241(1)(e), 251(2&3), 272(1), May 29, 1999. Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: Waiting for the Hangman, p. 42, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 U.S. Dept. of State, 2013 Human Rights Report: Nigeria, Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, http://www.statEd.gov/documents/organization/220358.pdf, Feb. 25, 2014.
 Human Rights Watch, “Political Shariah” Human Rights and Islamic Law in northern Nigeria, p. 18, Vol. 16, No.9, Sep. 2004.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, art 262(1), May 29, 1999.
At the end of 2011 an estimated 16 women were on death row.  We were unable to find more recent figures.
We did not find any specific discussion of racial or ethnic disparity in application of the death penalty.
 Ayodeji Adeyami, Waiting Endlessly on Nigeria’s Death Row, Al Jazeera http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/11/waiting-endlessly-nigeria-death-row-2013112094420106741.html, Dec. 4, 2013. Afua Hisch, Nigeria Hangs Four Prisoners, the Guardian, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/25/nigeria-prisoners-hanged-benin-city, Jun. 25, 2013. Nigeria: In Overcrowded Prisons, Survival is a Daily Battle, IRIN, http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=57777, Jan. 11, 2006. Amnesty Intl., Nigeria and the World Day 2006: Unfair Trials, p. 1, http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/action7579.pdf, 2006.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 28, 29, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 26, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 25-29, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008. U.S. Dept. of State, 2013 Human Rights Report: Nigeria, Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, http://www.statEd.gov/documents/organization/220358.pdf, Feb. 25, 2014.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: Waiting for the Hangman, p. 26, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria and the World Day 2006: Unfair Trials, p. 1, http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/action7579.pdf, 2006; Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: Waiting for the Hangman, p. 4-5, 27, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl, Nigeria: Authorities in Nigeria must not carry out any further executions of death row prisoners, http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/5225cf514.pdf, Aug. 28, 2013.
 Amnesty Intl, Annual Report 2012-Nigeria, http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/nigeria/report-2012#section-15-9, last accessed Mar. 7, 2014.
 Amnesty Intl., Death Sentences and Executions in 2009, p. 8, ACT 50/001/2010, Mar. 30, 2010.
 U.N. CRC, Committee on the Rights of the Child, Concluding Observations: Nigeria, para. 33, U.N. Doc. CRC/C/NGA/CO/3-4, Jun. 11, 2010.
 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, art. 46(b)(ii), May 29, 1999.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: Waiting for the Hangman, p. 17, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 42, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 21, 42, generally, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 3, 10, 20-23, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 Amnesty Intl. Nigeria: Security Forces: Service to respect and protect human rights? p. 6, AFR 44/023/2002, Dec. 2002.
 U.N.G.A. Human Rights Council, Report of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Manfred Nowak, paras. 36, 40, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/7/3/Add.4, Nov. 22, 2007.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 3, 10, 20-23, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008. U.N.G.A. Human Rights Council, Report of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Manfred Nowak, paras. 36, 40, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/7/3/Add.4, Nov. 22, 2007.
 Amnesty Intl., Nigeria: ‘Waiting for the Hangman,’ p. 4, 42, AFR 44/020/2008, Oct. 21, 2008.
 For example, see: Human Rights Watch, Nigeria: Civil Society Groups Call on State Governments Not to Resume the Execution of Prisoners, http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/06/25-5, Jun. 25, 2010; Thomas Hubert, Abolitionists Block Nigerian Executions, WCADP, http://www.worldcoalition.org/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=443, Jul. 9, 2010.
 U.N. ESC, Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on human rights defenders, Hina Jilani: Mission to Nigeria, paras. 4 et. seq., U.N. Doc. E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.2, Jan. 30, 2006.
 U.N. ESC, Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on human rights defenders, Hina Jilani: Mission to Nigeria, paras. 30-33, U.N. Doc. E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.2, Jan. 30, 2006.
 U.N. ESC, Report of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Asma Jahangir: Mission to Nigeria, paras. 40-42, U.N. Doc. E/CN.4/2006/5/Add.2, Oct. 7, 2005.
 U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Reporting status for Nigeria, http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/TreatyBodyExternal/countries.aspx?CountryCode=NGA&Lang=EN, last accessed Apr. 23, 2014.
 U.N. Human Rights Committee, Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 40 of the Covenant: Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee: Nigeria, U.N. Doc. CCPR/C/79/Add. 65, Jul 24, 1996.
 U.N.G.A., Human Rights Council, Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Nigeria, para. 115, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/25/6, Dec. 16, 2013.
 U.N.G.A., Human Rights Council, Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Nigeria, para. 18, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/25/6, Dec. 16, 2013.
 U.N.G.A., Human Rights Council, Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Nigeria, para. 137, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/25/6, Dec. 16, 2013.
 U.N.G.A., Human Rights Council, Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Nigeria, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/11/26, Mar. 3, 2009.
 U.N.G.A., Human Rights Council, National Report Submitted in Accordance with Paragraph 15(A) of the Annex to Human Rights Council Resolution 5/1: Nigeria, para. 75, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/WG.6/4/NGA/1, Jan. 5, 2009.
 U.N.G.A., Human Rights Council, Compilation Prepared by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, in Accordance with Paragraph 15(B) of the Annex to Human Rights Council Resolution 5/1: Nigeria, paras. 21, 40, U.N. Doc. A/HRC/WG.6/4/NGA/2, Jan. 5, 2009.
Amnesty International, Nigeria: Waiting for the Hangman, AFR 44/020/2008, http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/poverty-and-the-death-penalty-in-nigeria-20081021, Oct. 21, 2008.
Center for Islamic Legal Studies, Harmonised Shariah Penal Code Annotated, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Mar. 2002.
Ostien, Philip, Sharia Implementation in Northern Nigeria 1996-2006: A Sourcebook, Chapter 4, pp. 3-21, Philip Ostien, ed., Ibadan: Spectrum Books Ltd., 2007.

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