The CLEEN Foundation has demanded an independent investigation into the death of 37 suspected artisanal miners in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Minna, Niger State.
The victims, said to include teenagers and displaced persons from Shiroro Local Government Area, were arrested on September 15 and 16 during an operation against illegal mining. They were found dead on September 17.
Governor Umaru Bago has confirmed the death toll and suspended the State Commandant, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye, while the NSCDC headquarters announced an internal investigative team.
But in a statement on Thursday, CLEEN Executive Director, Peter Maduoma, said internal probes are not enough.
The Foundation rejected the official claim of a suspected disease outbreak, describing it as unsubstantiated and inconsistent with survivor accounts of severe overcrowding and suffocation. No autopsy or medical report has been made public, it noted.
CLEEN said illegal mining is not a capital offence and detainees do not forfeit their right to life, citing Section 33 of the 1999 Constitution, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Mandela Rules.
It called for an independent panel comprising forensic pathologists, human rights groups and families of victims to conduct autopsies and hear survivor testimony under protection.
It also demanded the interdiction of all officers with custodial responsibility, a nationwide audit of detention facilities by the Ministry of Interior and the National Human Rights Commission, full public disclosure of findings, and compensation and psychosocial support for bereaved families.
