Human Rights in Nigeria's External Relations: Building the Record of a Moral Superpower(African Governance, Development, and Leadership)

This book is a broad-ranging argument for thorough reforms at home and abroad in Nigeria as the only antidote to the nation-building dilemmas Nigeria confronts in the first quarter of the twenty-first century. Because of its enormous material and human endowments, Nigeria is dubbed the “Giant of Africa.” It is a moniker many of its leaders take seriously. Yet, Nigeria is a state rife with instability, some of it periodically erupting into violence. Given still-ongoing national security challenges in the land that notoriously includes a bloody religion-oriented terrorism, the Fourth Republic since 1999, the longest period of continuous democratic rule since independence—key to the timeline of this book—has not been insulated from the spell of instability. The main argument of this work is that internationally agreed-upon ethical standards embedded in human rights can save Nigeria. This book is a methodologically and theoretically-grounded, seminal discourse on Nigerian foreign relations that spells out the human rights or lack thereof in those relations, including underlying and impinging domestic forces. This work is set around six issues of application embedded in a temple of Nigeria’s human rights foreign policy, comprising two steps and four pillars: reconstructed national interest, increased human rights at home, redesigned peacekeeping, reshaped foreign policy machinery, increased bilateralism in foreign relations, and the use of ECOWAS as human rights tool. Although focused on the period since independence, for proper understanding of events from the past that shape the current patterns of politics in the land, this book also embodies a historical background chapter that overviews the pre-colonial and colonial eras.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1: Introduction Part I: Starting Points Chapter 2: Conceptual Framework Chapter 3: Theoretical Framework Chapter 4: Activities that Shape the Current Patterns of Politics: Historical Backdrop on Human Rights in Nigeria’s External Relations Part II: Temple of Nigeria’s Human Rights Foreign Policy (Six Key Issues Relating to the Application of Human Rights in Nigeria’s Foreign Policy) Chapter 5: Reconstructing Nigeria’s National Interest in a More Human Rights-Sensitive Direction Chapter 6: Charity Begins at Home: Increased Respect for Human Rights in Nigeria Chapter 7: Redesigning Peacekeeping to Make it More Human Rights-Compliant Chapter 8: Reshaping Nigeria’s Foreign Policy Machinery in a More Human Rights-Sensitive Direction Chapter 9: The Need for More Symmetry Between Multilateral and Bilateral Activities in Nigeria’s External Relations Chapter 10: The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and Human Rights in Nigeria’s External Relations Part III: Conclusions Chapter 11: Enacting Serious Reforms at Home and Abroad Chapter 12: But So What? Two Objections to the Argument in this Work and Two Rebuttals to Those Objections References Appendix I: Biblical Passages Related to Human Rights Appendix II: Maps

About the Author :
Philip C. Aka is professor of political science at Chicago State University and adjunct professor of law at the Robert H. McKinney School of Law at Indianapolis.

Review :
Aka has created a remarkably detailed analysis of Nigeria’s human rights situation and an equally thorough plan to improve upon it. . . Aka has created a compelling theoretical model for Nigeria’s future and a possible model for other nations. Scholars and graduate students of African history, modern human rights policy, and international affairs should enjoy this book. Aka presents a timely, compelling and rigorous analysis of Nigeria's role in defending both domestic and international human rights. Aka makes his case through a masterful narrative that weaves the strands of history, law and politics into a compelling argument why Nigeria needs to let "charity begin at home". This is a must-read for scholars, activists and students interested in understanding the past, present and future of Nigeria's political and legal trajectory in the international system. Brilliantly written. Dr. Philip Aka, a legal and political science scholar and professor, has finally emerged with a classic book that grapples with incessant human rights abuses and challenges in Nigeria. This book will be useful inside and outside the academy. Here's the volume of readings and ideas that directs us towards the much needed human rights famished country: Nigeria.