An Overview of the Legal Framework for the Protection of Human Rights of Custodial Inmates: The Case of Nigeria

Abstract

A number of historical and constitutional milestones have inspired the evolution and growth of human rights globally. They include; The Magna Carta of England (1215), The United States Declaration of Independence (1776), The French Declaration of the Rights of man and citizen (1789), The American Bill of Rights of 1791 and the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights (1948). Taken together, these instruments underscore the universal imperative of human rights. The concept of universality posits that human rights are general and of equal application to all human beings everywhere regardless of their culture and level of political development. It also posits that human rights are not dependent on the fact that "states or groups of states may behave differently from each other as far as their political, economic policy and culture are concerned". The notion of entitlement to human rights by humankind derives from the inherent dignity of the human persons. It therefore behoves on the government of all nations to ensure that all persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated at all times with dignity, humanity and respect, notwithstanding the location and circumstances in which they are found.