NHRC’s Tony Ojukwu elected vice-president of African Rights Network

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The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has announced the election of its Executive Secretary, Tony Ojukwu, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), as Vice-President of the African National Preventive Mechanisms Network (ANPMN).

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According to a statement on Monday, NHRC’s Director of Corporate Affairs and External Linkages, Fatimah Mohammed, stated that Mr Ojukwu was elected on 26 June during the Fourth Annual Conference of ANPMN held in Kigali, Rwanda.

Philile Ntuli, commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission, was elected President of the ANPMN.

ANPMN is the continental platform for National Preventive Mechanisms (NPMs) established under the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture, OPCAT. Its Secretariat is located in Morocco.

It serves as a platform for strengthening “preventive monitoring of places of deprivation of liberty, sharing best practices, enhancing technical cooperation among African NPMs, and advancing torture prevention across the continent.

Other Steering Committee Members elected include: Morocco, Rwanda, Mozambique, Mali, Senegal and Mauritania.

According to the NHRC, Mr Ojukwu’s election “recognition of his distinguished leadership in torture prevention, and of NHRC’s growing reputation in promoting preventive monitoring and protecting the rights of persons deprived of their liberty.

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“It further reflects the confidence reposed in Nigeria’s National Preventive Mechanism and the Commission’s contributions to regional human rights initiatives.”

Mr Ojukwu’s recent election comes a year after his election as President of the Network of National Human Rights Institutions in West Africa (NNHRI-WA).