The rise of social media and digital technology has brought about unprecedented challenges to personal privacy, particularly in the context of intimate relationships. In Nigeria, the intersection of these technological advancements with existing socio-economic vulnerabilities has led to a disturbing trend: the leakage of sexually explicit materials and the exploitation of individuals through human trafficking. This article delves into the alarming statistics and human rights abuses associated with these issues, highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive legal protection and support for victims.
Map of Nigeria showing key regions affected by human trafficking.
Human Trafficking: A Deep Dive into Exploitation
For years, local and international media have been awash with horrifying stories of Nigerian women and girls trafficked for sexual and labor exploitation, and of migrants trapped in Libya in slavery-like conditions or dying as they cross the Mediterranean Sea. These stories reflect the large and, according to some estimates, increasing problem of human trafficking within and from Nigeria in recent years.
This report documents human rights abuses committed against largely Nigerian women and girls who are trafficked for sexual and labor exploitation within and outside Nigeria. It also focuses on the experiences of non-Nigerian women and girls who are trafficked into Nigeria, most of them for domestic servitude. It shows how some assistance measures are further violating survivors’ rights.
The report highlights physical, mental, social, and economic impact of these abuses on survivors, and describes significant gaps in, and obstacles to, much-needed support services.
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Like Adaura, thousands of Nigerian women and girls have been trafficked within Nigeria, to other countries in Africa, and to Europe in recent years. Many are escaping dire economic situations at home, where jobs are hard to come by.
The Scale of the Problem
It is difficult to say how many women and girls are trafficked from, into, and within Nigeria, as there is no reliable data. However, Nigeria is routinely listed as one of the countries with large numbers of trafficking victims overseas, particularly in Europe, with victims identified in more than 34 countries in 2018, according to the US State Department Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. Most Nigerian trafficking victims in Europe come from Edo State, one of Nigeria’s 37 states, typically via Libya.
The numbers of “potential” Nigerian trafficking victims in Italy has shot up in recent years. In 2017, the latest available data, IOM reported a 600 percent increase in the number of potential sex trafficking victims arriving in Italy by sea, with most arriving from Nigeria.
Common trafficking routes for Nigerian women and girls.
The Journey of Exploitation
Most women and girls interviewed by Human Rights Watch said they were trafficked by people they know, who prey on their desperation, making false promises of paid employment, professional training, and education. They are transported within and across national borders, often under life-threatening conditions.
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Survivors recounted harrowing journeys as traffickers forced them through the Sahara Desert to destinations in Libya, or in some cases, Europe via the Mediterranean Sea. Their journeys were wrought with death, rape, beatings, fear, theft, extortion, and lack of food and water.
The danger of these journeys was captured by one 28-year-old woman who said, “You pray for death. You cry until you cannot cry any more. People die, faint, are beaten, raped.
Women and girls said they were exploited in forced prostitution and various forms of forced labor, especially forced domestic work, by their traffickers. They said that every step of the way, traffickers, the “clients” or “customers” who sexually exploited them, the “employers” who extracted forced labor, and the madams in Nigeria and destination countries physically, sexually, and psychologically abused them.
Some said they were forced to undergo abortions in unsanitary conditions, and were not given pain medication or antibiotics. Women and girls who ended up in Libya described experiencing racial discrimination, arbitrary arrests and detentions, and difficult conditions in places of captivity.
Madams subjected trafficked women and girls to forced prostitution for long hours with no time to rest; made them have sex with customers when they were ill, menstruating, pregnant, or soon after childbirth or forced abortions.
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Women and girls who believed they were migrating for high-paying overseas employment as domestic workers, hairdressers, or hotel staff, said they were shocked to learn they were tricked and trapped in exploitation. They were horrified when they realized that they would not be paid what they were promised, or anything at all, and instead had huge “debts” to repay.
Often these debts were vague, unpredictable, and constantly growing. Women and girls stated that traffickers used violence, threats, and retaliation against them or their families back home to control them. They also described traffickers’ threats of selling them to other traffickers, surveillance, passport confiscation, confinement, and isolation to keep them trapped and terrified, and to avoid law enforcement detection.
Upon return to Nigeria, many women and girls said they struggled with depression, anxiety, insomnia, flashbacks, aches and pains, and other physical ailments that have sometimes limited their ability to work effectively. They said they struggled to provide financially for their families, lacked adequate food, or struggled to find money to access health care.
The Tort of Public Disclosure of Private Facts and Data Privacy
It is not uncommon nowadays to see headlines of a sextape or sexually explicit material leaked by a disgruntled ex-lover. There seem not to be a challenge when a party gives his/her consent to make explicit video or pictures of themselves.
It falls within the purview of data privacy where a partner screen-records an intimate video call without the consent of the other or where a sexually implicit material sent with consent has been leaked or distributed without the consent of the maker. An ex that posts online on a public platform, a video or picture they received while in a relationship, could be liable to data breach, defamation, public disclosure of private facts among other things.
Relationships, though a private affair, are increasingly made public with the advent of social media and the urge to publicly display affection (P.D.A) in this era. This is good until God-forbids (like my people would say), the relationship comes crashing.
Breakups brings out the worst in most people, especially when they feel like the victim. As a result, they would desire to get back at the party that left them hanging. One need not imagine the resultant consequence where all these technological developments are combined with vindictiveness.
These data are private facts that are protected by the combined laws of the Tort of Public Disclosure of Private Facts under Common Law, the Nigeria Data Protection Act and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Legal Framework for Privacy Protection
The right to privacy is protected in Nigeria by the Constitution, the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 and the Common Law. Right to privacy, simplicita, indicates that a person ought to have control over his/her private and personal affairs free from unsolicited intrusions. In other words, only you determine what you share with others.
Many have argued that personal data has replaced oil as the new currency, hence, the need for a strong data protection measure. Possibly recognizing this need, the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration signed into law the Data Protection Act 2023. One of the objectives of the Act is to safeguard the fundamental rights and interest of data subjects as guaranteed under the Constitution. The Act, among other things prohibits the processing of sensitive personal data without the consent of data subjects.
As a general rule, a person who posts their own sensitive private information on social media cannot be said to have a legitimate expectation of privacy. However, the development of online social networking has changed the manner people share information with one another.
Availability of smartphones and data, has increased the possibility of Nigerians to record embarrassing private facts about themselves or spouse in a romantic relationship. Online social networking services have increased social interactions which in turn creates an unprecedented potential for invasion of privacy. As a result of these increase social interactions, many, such as online businesses, online predators, social media companies, marketers, school and government officials, have access to information available on the internet and are actively collecting it. Thus, the internet has made distance and physical location irrelevant, as cyberspace has invariably made of no effect the differentiation between the private and public boundaries.
Elements of Public Disclosure
A public disclosure of private fact is an offensive exposure or publication of the private facts of the claimant. In other words, the facts disclosed publicly must be highly offensive to the Claimant that it might cause an embarrassment to him and it is not a defense that the facts disclosed was true.
Both defamation and the tort of public disclosure of private facts have the interest of protecting the image and reputation of the Claimant. But unlike defamation where declaring the truth would act as a defense even when it hurts the reputation of the Claimant, truth would not avail the defendant that disclosed such private facts under this tort.
To avoid embarrassment and preserve reputations, individuals carefully select areas of their private affairs they want to reveal to the society. Therefore, exposing such other areas of their private lives without their consent is a breach of their data privacy as well as a breach of the tort of public disclosure of private facts.
Where private parts are disclosed by the Claimant themselves or the Claimant divulges these private facts to the defendant, the defendant might not be liable for disclosing those facts as a general rule. However, divulging one’s private facts to the defendant in itself is not an excuse to disclose those facts to the public as such information would have been gotten from a privileged relationship and disclosing it to the public might amount to breach of privacy.
For example, in the advent of social media, there is an increase in chat leaks, nude leaks, private video leaks among others. A private fact is any detail of someone’s life that is not known to the public and/or is not publicly available or ascertainable. This means that any fact which was already disclosed or a matter of public record cannot be a ground of a cause of action. These facts could include medical history, financial difficulties like loan debt or default, sexual orientation among others.
Key Considerations
- Any private fact disclosed on social media is a public disclosure because of the potential number of people that could access such data. In other words, for a matter to be viewed as a public disclosure, the ‘communication must be to enough people that it’s reasonably likely the fact will become public knowledge’.
- As a general rule, disclosure to one or two persons does not constitute public disclosure except there is a possibility of such information to be spread around. Public Disclosure arises when such facts a communicated to the public through any means including but not limited to social media or to enough people that it is likely to get to the general public.
- The disclosure must be such that it would have been embarrassing or offensive to a reasonable member of the society if it were their private information that was disclosed. In other words, it must be offensive or embarrassing for an average person within that society.
Asides the above, sometimes, the claimant must show that disclosing those embarrassing/offensive data of them, serves no legitimate public good and not newsworthy.
Case Example
In ES v. Shillington (2021 ABQB 739), the parties were in a long-term relationship of about eleven (11) years and have had two (2) children together before they separated. At the end of the relationship, the defendant confessed to have posted images of the ex online, starting shortly after the relationship began. The images depicted various states of undress and engaging in sexual activity together. At no point did she give her consent to posting such images, images that could now be found on internet pornography sites. Getting to know this at the time of their separation, it caused her significant mental distress and embarrassment.
The court decided that a tort of public disclosure of private facts is necessary in situations where a wrong exists for which there are no other adequate remedies. This kind of scenario could also be brought under the Nigeria Data Protection Act and Enforcement of the Fundamental Human rights under the Constitution.
Nigeria's Response to Trafficking: A Mixed Bag
Nigeria has taken some positive steps to address its widespread problem of trafficking. It has taken the important step of ratifying most international instruments on human trafficking. It has also established the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) and developed an anti-trafficking law that is line with international standards.
The agency and the law have helped to improve investigation and prosecution of trafficking cases. With support of international development agencies, Nigeria has also established shelters, assisted with medical care, and created skills training and economic support programs for trafficking survivors. There is a strong network of NGOs who provide services to trafficking victims, including shelter accommodation, identification and family tracing, as well as rehabilitation and reintegration.
A key problem is the government’s overreliance on shelters, as opposed to community-based services, as the primary means of promoting safety and providing services to survivors. In fact, the Nigerian authorities are actually detaining trafficking survivors in shelters, not allowing them to leave at will, in violation of Nigeria’s international legal obligations. The detentions overwhelmingly affect women and girls, and put their recovery and well-being at risk.
Some survivors in the NAPTIP shelters complained about not being able to receive visitors or contact their families, not having clear information about when they would reunite with their families, monotonous daily schedules, or boredom from doing nothing. Those referred by NAPTIP to private shelters were unhappy about poor conditions and services, including inadequate food, lack of soap or body lotion, lack of medical and psychosocial care, and lack of job training. They also expressed concerns about limited communication with NAPTIP officials.
Generally, women and girls were not actively engaged in decisions about their own assistance. Many survivors, including those in NAPTIP shelters and those participating in other reintegration programs, said they were given insufficient and/or unclear information about the kind of services they would receive, or the status of services they were receiving, including on economic, social, and medical assistance, court cases, family tracing, and timing for reunification with families.
Some reported long waiting periods without assistance after contact with service providers. Survivors expressed anxiety about not knowing how long they would be in shelters, how long the training would be, or if, and when, they would get money to start businesses after vocational training. Some administrative procedures or requirements by service providers also impede successful reintegration.
Recommendations for Improvement
Nigeria has human rights obligations to combat trafficking in persons, and to effectively protect and assist survivors. Nigerian authorities, including NAPTIP officials, should urgently improve implementation of its anti-trafficking laws and policies across the board, placing a high priority on improving assistance and services for internally identified and repatriated survivors. It should revamp its shelter policies and practices to ensure that they respect survivors’ human rights.
It should ensure that no one is detained in shelters or is being forced to remain there against their will, and allow freedom of movement. NAPTIP should provide survivors with accurate and clear information about assistance on an ongoing basis, ensure that women and girls participate in making such decisions, and develop and implement protocols for informed consent for survivors entering shelters or participating in other NAPTIP programs and services. It should also evaluate its shelter operations, including the impacts of its “closed” shelter approach, with input from survivors, NGOs, and government officials.
Nigerian authorities should take measures to ensure that reintegration services, including counseling, medical care, and livelihood support, are long-term and are tailored to meet the specific needs of women and girls, as well as their families. They should expand options for formal education, including through bridging programs, technical and professional training, and ensure that such programs promote women’s equality and do not reinforce traditional gender roles that disadvantage women and girls.
The Nigerian government should also improve legal assistance to help survivors pursue charges against and compensation from perpetrators. It should clarify the anti-trafficking mandates of all relevant government ministries and agencies, ensure that they understand their role and how it complements that of NAPTIP, monitor and evaluate their anti-trafficking activities, support training and improvement, and hold them accountable.
Specific Actions Needed
- Develop and provide resources for community-based rehabilitation and reintegration programs for survivors of trafficking.
- Provide financial support to NGOs with a successful track record of providing rights-respecting services to trafficking survivors.
- Immediately end the detention of women and girls in shelters. For any exceptional case where it is necessary to detain survivors, e.g.
- Ensure the establishment of transparent and effective mechanisms to monitor all shelter facilities used for victims of trafficking, including systems for survivors to provide regular feedback on services offered, and to allow their input on management of the shelters.
- Work with the government to commission an independent evaluation of NAPTIP’s shelter operations, including the impacts of its “closed” shelter approach, with input from survivors, NGOs, government officials, and others.
- Update shelter policies, rules, and administrative requirements to ensure that they do not violate survivors’ rights to freedom of movement and to be free from arbitrary detention, and ensure that confinement in shelters or other facilities is a last resort.
- Conduct detailed needs assessments on an ongoing basis, as victims’ circumstances may change.
Human Rights Watch interviewed 76 survivors of human trafficking, 20 of them children, about their experiences of trafficking and reintegration assistance, for this report. Of these, 71 identified as women or girls, and 5 identified as men. We also interviewed seven survivors of smuggling, two internally displaced persons, and one victim of forced marriage.
We conducted research in Lagos (Lagos State), Benin City (Edo State), Abeokuta (Ogun State), and Abuja (Federal Capital Territory) between May 2017 and October 2018. Some women and girls we interviewed were unsure about when they were trafficked, but most cases documented in this report occurred in the last five years. Two interviewees said they were trafficked twice. Most survivors were exploited in trafficking for a year or longer, and seven were intercepted at borders or at the airport before leaving the country.
Human Rights Watch observed two NAPTIP shelters, in Lagos and Benin City, Edo state capital, and a private shelter and orphanage in Lagos. We interviewed 21 trafficking survivors who had stayed in these institutions for varying periods of time, from a few weeks to six months. Seven of those in NAPTIP shelters and the orphanage were children below the age of 18. Children interviewed by Human Rights Watch were aged between 8 and 17. Thirteen were Beninese trafficked for domestic labor in Nigeria.
We identified survivors and witnesses with the assistance of NAPTIP and of NGOs providing services to women. Human Rights Watch held most interviews in private, including all interviews in institutions, and took great care to minimize the risk of retraumatization when conducting interviews. In the few instances where it was not possible to conduct the in...
| Category | Statistics/Facts |
|---|---|
| Countries with Nigerian Trafficking Victims | Over 34 countries in 2018 |
| Increase in Potential Sex Trafficking Victims in Italy (2017) | 600% increase reported by IOM |
| Interviewees by Human Rights Watch | 76 survivors of human trafficking |
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