On Monday or so, a Nigerian Court Marshal convicted 12 soldiers of the crime of mutiny and sentenced them to die by a firing squad. In DPA (Due Process Advocates), we take human life seriously.

The state cannot officially take life without due process and without full rigour and diligence towards exculpation. Yes, Nigeria has over 160 million people. But that does not mean that we should allow the hair of any man to be taken away without justice, mercy or consideration of humanism.

The question is: What will Nigeria benefit from the killing of these 12 soldiers? Nothing! It will not increase discipline in an undisciplined and highly corrupt and politicised military. It would rather sow the seed of rancour and disunity at a time Nigeria is going through a real existential threat.

If the officers have committed an offence, time is now for us to improve our method of punishment. Death by firing squad is too atavistic to be acceptable to a civilised mind. Until Nigeria begins to punish the top officers who embezzle the security allocations and send our men to fight dangerous terrorists with outdated weapons and equipment, it will remain unjust to punish those poor fellows with death by firing squad. Discipline them, we must, if they have done anything wrong. But killing them has no disciplinary logic to it.

I oppose this sentence of death by firing squad. I oppose it with every drop of blood in me. Firing squads are a horrible part of the Nigerian history, which we should be eager to eradicate and wipe out of our psyche.

On this basis, I have decided to enter my appearance as counsel either for these officers or at least in the capacity of a friend of the court. I shall use that position to advocate for justice, due process, and clemency if necessary. I want to challenge Nigeria. It must live up the standards of human civilisation and it must stop all forms of scapegoatism and sacrificial tokenisms that could only be the purpose of killing these men.

I call on all members of DPA, who have information about these officers, where they are detained and any other information that would enable me file my papers in court, to please help provide me with information. I call on our members to brace themselves for this fight. We shall fight for justice. We shall fight for human life and not fold our arms as more people are slaughtered.

•Emeka Ugwuonye, Esquire, lawyer and activist, whose photo appears alongside this piece, is Founder/Coordinator of Due Process Advocates (DPA).

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