Amnesty Raises Alarm Over 1,844 Deaths, Disappearances in South-East

The hall in Umuahia fell silent as names of missing persons were recounted one after another during the re-launch of two reports by Amnesty International on Wednesday.

The rights organisation revealed that at least 1,844 people were killed in Nigeria’s South-East between 2021 and mid-2023.
The reports, titled “A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in South-East Nigeria” and “Tiger Base of Atrocities: Human Rights Violations by Nigeria Police Anti-Kidnapping Unit in Owerri,” documented cases of killings, abductions, torture and extortion. Benedicta Ofili, Finance and Office Manager at Amnesty International Nigeria, said the deaths involved non-state armed groups, state-backed outfits and security operations.
Amnesty also interviewed 23 former detainees, including 14 women, who described torture and inhumane detention conditions, while three reportedly died after regaining freedom. Particular attention was placed on the Police Anti-Kidnapping Unit in Imo State, known as “Tiger Base,” which Amnesty accused of arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances and deaths in custody.
Ofili noted that insecurity had displaced families, shut schools, destroyed livelihoods and confined communities through sit-at-home orders. She stressed that the humanitarian impact extended far beyond the statistics.
Emotional testimonies from families of missing persons dominated the event. Miriam Onyema recounted how her husband, Kingsley Chinedu, was arrested in April 2021 at Hospital Junction in Imo State and labelled an IPOB member, adding that she had not seen him since. Esther Chinedu said her husband, Pastor Godspower Chinedu, was arrested in 2022 and all efforts to locate him at police facilities proved unsuccessful.
Caroline Chukwuma alleged that her husband, Chukwuma Nwokike, was abducted in 2021 at St. Paul Junction in Aba and detained at CPS Aba before being moved to Abuja, while lawyers were denied access to him. Chinwendu Chidiebere also narrated how her husband, Chidiebere Ekwe, was arrested at his workshop in Aba in June 2021 and his family barred from seeing him.
An elderly man, Nicolas Ejekwu, said soldiers arrested his sons, Obinna and Onyebuchi, at their home. He claimed he was later informed that they had been tortured and killed, with their bodies deposited at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia mortuary, where he alleged that over 50 bodies of youths suspected of IPOB links were kept. Cecilia Nmaoche also said her son, Christian Ifeanyi, was allegedly abducted in 2022 and had not been found.
The affected families jointly appealed for help in locating their loved ones, urged authorities to charge suspects to court where necessary and called for an end to indefinite detention.
Responding, the Abia State Attorney General, represented by Chinenye Onyemanonu, said the state government maintains zero tolerance for human rights abuses and channels complaints through its Citizens’ Rights Department. He cited a case in which a family detained for six months was rescued.
Human rights activist Samuel Agwu urged rights groups to provide legal support for victims and called for an end to what he described as a culture of impunity in the region.
Amnesty International is demanding independent investigations, prosecution of perpetrators, reparations for victims and greater accountability from both state and federal authorities. For the families gathered in Umuahia, however, the figures represent not mere statistics, but husbands, sons and fathers whose whereabouts remain unknown.