LEKKITOLLGATE MASSACRE: Invoke the "Principles of Responsibility To Protect".... Bish Johnson Urges UN.

"The principle of the Responsibility to Protect is based upon the underlying premise that sovereignty entails a responsibility to protect all populations from mass atrocity crimes and human rights violations".... Bish Johnson.

"Whether the men who fired into the crowd are personnel of Nigerian Army or not is irrelevant. The question is why was there no protections for these young people from their government?".

The mindless and unprovoked attack of Tuesday, 20th October by armed men in military uniforms of the Nigerian Army, which resulted in the deaths of unarmed peaceful protesting youths, seeking for reforms in their country, has continued to receive backlash from stakeholders including past Presidents of the country.

Bish Johnson, a retired Captain of the United States Army, has condemned the armed attack on peaceful, unarmed and young ENDSARS Protesters, and is therefore, calling on the United Nations to immediately, invoke the "Principles of Responsibility to Protect", against the Nigerian authorities.

Bish Johnson, while reacting to the aad incident that has seen the Major General Muhammadu Buhari led administration attracting global attention, said; "Needless to say that the bulk stops on the desks of the federal government of Nigeria. As citizens of this country, young, peaceful and unarmed Nigerian protesters are entitled to equal protection of our security forces just as everyone else".

"For failing to provide protections for these young, peaceful and unarmed Nigerian Protesters, the Federal Government is culpable and fully responsible for the attack on these young people by armed uniform men alleged to be members of the Nigerian Armed Forces", he said.

The former US Army officer stressed that, " the attack on unarmed Nigerian youths by uniformed persons wearing Nigerian Army uniforms who fired in close range into the crowd of young Nigerian youths who are protesting against bad governance in their country, is totally and completely unacceptable". 

"These attacks, in my view, amounts to  war crimes and crimes against humanity. For these failings, the authorities in Nigeria has failed in its responsibilities to protect a very vulnerable segment of the Nigerian population that had for decades, been under-represented in government, marginalized and persecuted, brutalized and unlawfully and unjustly harassed by the infamous unit of the Nigeria Police called, Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS)".

"Whether the men who fired into the crowd are personnel of Nigerian Army or not is irrelevant. The question is why was there no protections for these young people from their government? Were these young people not entitled to the protection of their country's security agencies? For failing in this responsibility, this government is culpable and fully responsible for this cowardly and dastardly attack on innocent, young and unarmed Nigerian youths and should be held to account by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity".

"The Responsibility to Protect (R2P or RtoP) is a global political commitment which was endorsed by all member states of the United Nations at the 2005 World Summit to prevent genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity".

"The principle of the Responsibility to Protect is based upon the underlying premise that sovereignty entails a responsibility to protect all populations from mass atrocity crimes and human rights violations. The principle is based on a respect for the norms and principles of international law, especially the underlying principles of law relating to sovereignty, peace and security, human rights, and armed conflict.

The Responsibility to Protect provides a framework for employing measures that already exist (i.e., mediation, early warning mechanisms, economic sanctions, and chapter VII powers) to prevent atrocity crimes and to protect civilians from their occurrence. The authority to employ the use of force under the framework of the Responsibility to Protect rests solely with United Nations Security Council and is considered a measure of last resort. The United Nations Secretary-General has published annual reports on the Responsibility to Protect since 2009 that expand on the measures available to governments, intergovernmental organizations, and civil society, as well as the private sector, to prevent atrocity crimes.

The Responsibility to Protect has been the subject of considerable debate, particularly regarding the implementation of the principle by various actors in the context of country-specific situations, such as Libya, Syria,Sudan and Kenya, for example. It has also been argued that commensurate with the responsibility to protect, international law should also recognize a right for populations to offer militarily organized resistance to protect themselves against genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes on a massive scale.

The Responsibility to Protect is a political commitment unanimously adopted by all members of the United Nations General Assembly at the 2005 World Summit and articulated in paragraphs 138-139 of the 2005 World Summit Outcome Document:

138. Each individual State has the responsibility to protect its populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. This responsibility entails the prevention of such crimes, including their incitement, through appropriate and necessary means. We accept that responsibility and will act in accordance with it. The international community should, as appropriate, encourage and help States to exercise this responsibility and support the United Nations in establishing an early warning capability.

139. The international community, through the United Nations, also has the responsibility to use appropriate diplomatic, humanitarian and other peaceful means, in accordance with Chapters VI and VIII of the Charter, to help protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. In this context, we are prepared to take collective action, in a timely and decisive manner, through the Security Council, in accordance with the Charter, including Chapter VII, on a case-by-case basis and in cooperation with relevant regional organizations as appropriate, should peaceful means be inadequate and national authorities manifestly fail to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. 

We stress the need for the General Assembly to continue consideration of the responsibility to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity and its implications, bearing in mind the principles of the Charter and international law. We also intend to commit ourselves, as necessary and appropriate, to helping States build capacity to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity and to assisting those which are under stress before crises and conflicts break out.

140. We fully support the mission of the Special Advisor of the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide.