The influence of compliance with international human rights obligations on democracy and national development

A Nigerian perspective

Abstract

The issue of States’ compliance with international human rights law (IHRL) is paramount since the norms they espouse are useless unless States put in place measures for compliance with them within their domestic jurisdictions. This article discusses the intersections between compliance with IHRL and democratic governance on one hand and national development on the other hand. It uses a reflective analytic approach in examining critical issues such as factors that determine the extent to which States would conform with their obligations under IHRL. Identified and discussed are historical, political, sociocultural, economic and legal factors. The historical fact of the origin of the Nigerian State as an imperial agent of repression and exploitation coupled with the decades of authoritarian military rule has for instance created a public governance space that is antithetical to the recognition and enforcement of human rights norms. The article then offered certain suggestions aimed at increasing the level of compliance with IHRL towards a more entrenched democratic culture and consequentially, more widespread, inclusive, and giant national developmental strides.