The Hague/New York: PGA and its global membership of more than 1,100 Members in over 140 countries worldwide urges Nigerians to restrain from using violence during the presidential elections to be held on the 28 March 2015 and calls for peaceful elections.

Since campaigning began in mid-November, both the ruling and opposition parties have reported violent attacks which have killed a number of their supporters. PGA reiterates the need to restrain from violence, as agreed under the Abuja Accord of January 2015, and to conduct peaceful, transparent, inclusive and credible elections.  

Nigeria has been a member state of the Rome Statute since 2001. The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its ongoing preliminary examination of Nigeria, made public in 2010, has determined that there is a reasonable basis to believe that crimes against humanity have already been committed in Nigeria, namely acts of murder and persecution attributed to Boko Haram (condemned in an open letter of PGA). At a time where there is a high level of instability in the country with the presence of Boko Haram in the North and the prominent tensions between the two major political parties, the need for a peaceful electoral process is crucial in order to establish stability.

PGA calls for the President, major political parties and their candidates to publicly support democracy and the respect for human rights both during and after the elections in order to discourage violence at the polls and after the results are announced.

Nigeria is proud to be a member of the ICC. The bill to implement has passed the second reading in house and senate and Nigeria is looking forward to fully incorporate the crimes under the Rome Statute in its national criminal code to ensure the protection for victims of crimes allegedly committed by Boko Haram. Peaceful elections play a key role in ensuring that the efforts made to strengthen the international criminal law system are indeed successful. Statement by Honorable Ali Ahmad (MP HoR Nigeria)

Nigeria has become one of the most prosperous economies and relevant actor not only in the region but in global relations, I have seen the Nigerian people working towards the strengthening of their democratic institutions and transforming their divisions into powerful diversity. However the level of instability in the country is still very high and I am concerned about the risk of violence during the elections that will be held on the 28 March 2015. I urge all Nigerians from all religions, all ethnic groups, and all regions, to come together and keep Nigeria free from the threat of violence.”Statement by Dip. Minou Tavarez Mirabal, PGA President (Dominican Republic)

Over the past years, Nigeria has witnessed repeated cycles of extreme violence especially in period of elections. Given the difficult security situation peaceful elections will strengthen and reinforce the democratic institutions in place and increase the confidence of the people in these institutions. This is a crucial step to break the cycle of violence. Statement by Ms. Barbabara Lochbihler, MEP (European Parliament)