Just 4 months after an Anti-Kidnapping Law was signed, making kidnapping a crime punishable by death in Katsina State, the State Government, led by Governor Aminu Masari, has released six bandits in its custody as exchange for victims of abduction. An action which bring to the fore a major media misconception about anti kidnapping laws in Nigeria.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that bandits have held eight local government areas of the State, namely Dandume, Sabuwa, Faskari, Kankara, Safana, Danmusa, Batsari and Jibiya, to ransom with series of intense attacks, for a long span of time. Bear in mind that the Anti Kidnapping law in the State was enacted much earlier because of the death of 26 people in three of these local governments being Danmusa, Batsari and Faskari.
The State Government started dialogue with leaders of the rogue group a week ago. A peace agreement was reached which included the release of some of the bandits who were in custody but had not been prosecuted.
During the handover, Governor Masari stated that for the past one week, he had been visiting LGAs that shared borders with Rugu Forests, which serves as the hideout of the bandits, alongside his security Chiefs.
The Governor said the process which has seen the release of five persons, includes two females and three males, will also see the release of 20 more persons before the end of September. This number was surpassed when on September 15, bandits released 30 more persons from kidnap custody.
The May 2019 Anti Kidnapping law came under criticism by social commentators who held that it was a aimless repeat of already made National laws. They stated that Edo and Anambra States had the same laws and it did nothing to stop kidnapping.
Between Ransom and a major misconception
The Abduction, Wrongful Restrain and Conferment Bill of 2016, was passed into law on September, 28 2017 by the Nigerian Senate. Sponsored by Senator Isa Misau, APC- Bauchi Central, the Bill has a total of 13 clauses.
Among the provisions of the Bill is life imprisonment for anybody found guilty of kidnapping and 30 years imprisonment with hard labor for a person found guilty of helping to negotiate ransom (on behalf of the abductors) for the release of a kidnapped person. 20 years imprisonment for anyone found guilty of paying ransom for release of a kidnapped person was a common feature in the News (including ETN24) but having recently obtained the report and amendments done to the original Bill by the Senator David Umaru led Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, we can now report that while this was true for the original Bill, Clause 3(2) which so states was deleted by the Committee before the passing of the Bill into Law by the Senate.
The Committee hard posited that the deleted clause sought to punish a person who pays ransom whereas such a person is deprived of “free and voluntary exercise of his mind,” which is required by law to punish.
Also, linguistically, the word ransom is from the old French word rancon which means redempto in Latin translating to “Buying Back”. A ransom, is described by enough authorities as money paid for the release of a hostage.
USlegal says ransom in legal terms is money demanded by a kidnapper in exchange for the release of an abducted person. It says ransom can also be demanded to return a valuable object.
There is no record available which shows the Governor negotiated to pay money, which is fundamental to the wordings of the statutes, being “ransom”. A rather interesting subject for legal debate as there is a growing trend of ransom by crypto currency, which has an arguable status as money. An expanded definition of ransom, by Encyclopedia Britannica, however covers property which may accommodate Concurrency, but not humans. The Act itself does not define the word ransom.
The Clause to punish those who pay or negotiate ransom ON BEHALF OF THE ABDUCTORS is different from the deleted Clause which was intended to punish those who pay for ransom.
