1.1 Introduction
The human rights violations in Niger Delta by the government of Nigeria is been perpetrated under the disguise of the maintenance of law and order in the country. Any foreign observer at first sight would rush to the side of the government as all abhors destruction of common goods however due to a lack of understanding of the genesis of the pursuit of these Niger Deltans and their sufferings and deaths (Human Rights Watch 2000). Niger Delta is a large region of the Southern Nigeria which comprises of three core states namely, Rivers, Bayelsa and Delta, amongst other states such as Cross Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Edo. Sometimes, Abia, Imo and Ondo are also mentioned in that list for obvious reason of natural resource (Stakeholder Democracy Networks 2020).
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
Since the beginning of civilization, man has always been motivated by the need to make progress and better the lives of fellow mankind by exploring the natural environment. It is indisputable that the natural environment before the advent of environmental degradation, created unlimited opportunities for development and economic sufficiency of the inhabitants or the populace, but with the advent of environmental degradation, the inhabitants have been denied these opportunities and made to languish in abject poverty. In recognition of the dangers posed by environmental degradation, the international community and the Nigerian government have put in place various laws to combat environmental degradation, while the various environmental laws in Nigeria and that of the international community (international legal instrument) in combating environmental degradations intended to yield encouraging result by enhancing environmental sustainability.
The recalcitrant attitude of those involved in environmental degradation has continued to attenuate environmental laws with the government and its agency indirectly collaborating in the act of flouting environmental laws. Unfortunately, the existing law legal mechanism in place has done little or nothing to eradicate this menace of environmental degradation. Environmental degradation continues to evolve every day and everywhere with no end in sight of how this crime can be checked. Thus this thesis intends to appraise how environmental degradation constitutes an indictment to human right and environmental laws. It also aims to serve as a theoretical framework for the review and harmonization of the relevant municipal and legal instruments. Similarly international agency/corporation in combating environmental degradation will not be left out. Hence, it is imperative to give a brief description or definition of environmental degradation. Environmental Degradation Before environmental degradation is considered we must first of all know what is environment or what constitutes the environment. Environment is the natural world in which people, animals and plants live.
The Black’s Law Dictionary also defines it as the totality of physical, economic, cultural, aesthetic and social circumstances and factors which surround and affect the desirability of value of property and which also affect the quality of life of people’s lives. Under the Nigeria law, “environment” includes water, air, land and all plants and human beings or animals living therein and the inter-relationship which exist among these or any of them. Therefore Environmental Degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as air, water and soil; the destruction of the ecosystems and the extinction of wildlife.Environmental degradation is one of the ten threats officially cautioned by the high level threat panel of the United Nations. Therefore the importance and relevance of the environment cannot be over-emphasized, the environment is a complex and delicate system that when properly managed and harnessed can be geared to productive domestic, aesthetic and even spiritual benefit but when poorly managed could predictably be hazardous not only to human survival, but the survival of all living things. It is therefore inferable that the environment is the physical foundation upon which survival rests.It is however sad to note that over the years, the environment has been greatly threatened with adverse and disastrous effects on human habitation and survival, which has reflected in the World Bank report. More than 30,000 people die each day globally, short of their predestined life span due to environmental degradation and pollution. In a year, 108 million people die as a result of environmental degradation and pollution. Further research shows that between 1990 and 2009, which has a period of 19 years, about 7.3 million people died worldwide due to environmental degradation and pollution. Therefore it constitutes a threat to the existence of mankind and needs to be checked by all the countries and organizations in the globe.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Human Rights Violation and Environmental Degradation in the Niger Delta Region.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation revealed the challenge in the respect of the indigenous right in the region bodes on lack of good governance in the country. The government possesses the will to adhere holistically to the dictates of the human rights or not. The adverse effects of a single oil spill incident are often immense and unquantifiable. One key effect of an oil spill is pollution of the immediate environment.
The extent of pollution of that environment depends on the amount of oil spilled into the environment during that incident; the response made towards clean-up of the oil spill and the quantity of oil that reaches the surrounding land. The type of environment the oil is spilled into also affects the magnitude of the harm.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to investigate the Human Rights Violation and Environmental Degradation in the Niger Delta Region in Nigeria. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To ascertain the effect of environmental degradation in the Niger Delta Region
- To examine the factors militating human rights violation in the Niger Delta Region
- To evaluate the relationship between environmental degradation and human right violation in the Niger Delta Region in Nigeria
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- Is there any relationship between environmental degradation and human right violation in the Niger Delta Region?
- What is the effect of environmental degradation in the Niger Delta Region?
- What are the factors militating human rights violation in the Niger Delta Region in Nigeria?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
Hypothesis One
- H0: There is no significant relationship between environmental degradation and human right violation in the Niger Delta Region
- H1: There is a significant relationship between environmental degradation and human right violation in the Niger Delta Region
1.7 Significance of Study
The findings will be of great importance to the federal ministry of environment, as the study seeks to address the adverse effect of environmental degradation indictment on environmental laws and human rights. The study will also be useful to researchers who intend to embark on research in similar topic; finally the findings of this study will also be immense benefit to government, academia, scholars, researchers and the general public.
1.8 Scope of Study
The study focuses on the human rights violation and environmental degradation in the Niger Delta region in Nigeria.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
1.10 Definition of Terms
Environmental Degradation: Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as air, water and soil; the destruction of ecosystems; habitat destruction; the extinction of wildlife; and pollution. It is defined as any change or disturbance to the environment perceived to be deleterious or undesirable
Environmental laws: Environmental law is a collective term describing the network of treaties, statutes, regulations, common and customary laws addressing the effects of human activity on the natural environment. The core environmental law regimes address environmental pollution.
Human rights: Human rights are moral principles or norms, which describe certain standards of human behavior, and are regularly protected as legal rights in municipal and international law
