The National Human Rights Commission has rescued an aged woman, Laritu Safiyanu, who was chained and caged by her family members in Gyaza village in the Kankai Local Government Area of Katsina State.
The NHRC Katsina State Coordinator, Barrister Adamu Umaru Kasimu, said the commission received information from a Good Samaritan intimating them of Laritu’s imprisonment in Gyaza on the grounds of alleged mental health.
He noted that the commissioner thereafter swung into action, trailed and rescued the aged woman.
Adamu said it took the intervention of the commission and other stakeholders to rescue the victim from the inhuman and degrading treatment meted out to her by her family members.
He said, “Investigation revealed that the woman who was kept in a filthy environment unsuitable for human habitation had for a long time been denied her rights to dignity of a human person – a situation which may have contributed to her state of mental stability.”
According to a release from the NHRC Katsina State office, the commission’s state coordinator ordered the “immediate release of Laritu from the deplorable condition she was subjected to.”
The coordinator also tasked the family to urgently take her to the hospital for a thorough medical examination, and care.
“The commission will continue to monitor the condition of the victim to ensure that she gets the right kind of treatment she deserves.
“We wish to educate the family of the victim on human rights norms reiterating that every person deserves to live in dignity and be free from all forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended provides for the right to life and dignity.
“Therefore, any action that infringes on this fundamental right or any other human right is highly unacceptable and must be discouraged in all ramifications,” he said.
