Amnesty Urges Nigeria to Stop Forced Evictions of Waterfront Residents

Lagos, Jan 24 (AFP) Amnesty International on Thursday urged Nigerian authorities to halt the forced evictions of shanties and waterfront communities in the economic hub of Lagos.

Lagos has in recent years seen repeated forcible evictions of poor communities living in prime locations, especially along the waterfront, as developers look to cash in by building high-end properties.

On Tuesday, the Nigerian Navy fired into the air to evict some 10,000 residents of Tarkwa Bay in the latest mass eviction around the city.

Bulldozers rumbled into Tarkwa Bay, a semi-rural area on an island in the city of some 20 million, as part of an operation the military say is aimed officially at stopping the looting of nearby oil pipelines.

"The Nigerian authorities must immediately halt the violent and unlawful evictions that rendered thousands of residents of Tarkwa Bay,"homeless, said Amnesty International in a statement.

It said the authorities should respect the rights of the people to safety and housing.

"What is happening at Tarkwa Bay, Lagos is a violation of human rights. It is unacceptable that the Nigerian government are evicting people in the most violent manner and destroying their homes without genuine consultations, adequate notice, alternative accommodation or access to remedies," said Osai Ojigho Director Amnesty International Nigeria.

"The attacks on poor communities of Lagos must end. Throwing many families into endless misery is not the best way of addressing allegations of crime and urban planning failures of the authorities," he said.

"We call for a halt to ongoing forced evictions," he added. AFP

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