Rana Badri's monthly on Women's Rights 
In the matter of Bariya Ibrahim Magazu

afrol.com, February 2001 - Why is the case of Ms. Bariya Ibrahim Magazu attracting so much attention? 

The police singled out Ms. Magazu in her village because she was pregnant. Then they reported her to the courts for committing the crime of engaging in pre-marital sex. When she was asked in court about the father of her unborn baby, she reported being raped and identified three of her father's friends as the perpetrators. No witnesses were found to support her claim. Ms. Magazu was sentenced to 80 lashes for falsely accusing her father's friends, and to 100 lashes for engaging in pre-marital sex. 

Following pressure from women's groups in Nigeria, international human rights agencies, as well as the government of Canada and Australia, her sentence was reduced to 100 lashes as punishment for pre-marital sex. Before her lawyers were able to appeal her case, Ms. Magazu sentence was carried out in public to avoid international pressure. 

According to the BBC World Service,"a government spokesman, Bashir Sanda, said the flogging, announced on 22 January, went ahead because local authorities wanted to bring an early end to the storm of international criticism."

My question to the authorities in Zamfara is why was Ms. Magazu deprived of the right to appeal her case? The judicial system of all countries is expected to be impartial and fair in applying the facts of a case to the law of the land. What happened to Ms. Magazu is a gross violation of her right for a fair trail.

The problem facing rape victims, such as Ms. Magazu and many others worldwide is the lack of substantive and procedural structure at the community and state level to address crimes of sexual assault. Ms. Magazu was at a disadvantage because of the lack of apparatus to collect evidence to support her claim of sexual assault. 

In countries where there is an established structure to address rape, the victim is advised to report the assault within 24 hours of the incident. Rape incidents that are not promptly reported are difficult to prosecute because necessary physical evidence is lost. Today, rape investigations depend on DNA testing, a technology not available to prosecutors in Zamfara, Nigeria. 

It is very important to provide information (safety tips) to community members to avoid sexual assault. Awareness raising campaigns help change falsely preconceived notions about victims of sexual assault and the nature of the crime. 

In countries such as the United States, community members receive information from their schools, colleges, universities, the mass media and law enforcement agencies about what to do in case of sexual assault. The victim is often advised to seek medical care immediately, to report the incident to the police and to present all available evidence. 

All of these services were unavailable to Ms. Magazu, hence she was the one who received punishment not the perpetrators. Ms. Magazu was victimized by the perpetrators and punished by the judicial system of her state because of the lack of awareness and substantive and procedural structure to address sexual assault in her community.

By Rana Badri

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