Nigeria Warns UN Against Abuse of Universal Jurisdiction, Seeks Global Safeguards

Nigeria has urged the United Nations to establish safeguards against the selective or politically motivated application of universal jurisdiction, warning that powerful countries must not use international criminal justice mechanisms to impose their domestic legal systems on weaker nations.

The position was presented on Thursday by Nigeria’s delegation during a plenary meeting of the UN General Assembly’s Sixth Committee at the organisation’s headquarters in New York. The committee was considering the scope and application of universal jurisdiction, a legal principle that allows certain serious international crimes to be prosecuted beyond national borders.

Nigeria reaffirmed its commitment to fighting impunity but maintained that universal jurisdiction should remain an exceptional measure, exercised within clearly defined international legal limits. The country’s representative, Emmanuel Nweke, said it should be used as a last resort, particularly when countries directly connected to alleged crimes are unable to prosecute them.

The Nigerian delegation expressed concern that the principle could be applied selectively or used for political purposes, particularly in cases involving African officials. It argued that such practices could undermine the credibility of international criminal justice and weaken cooperation between sovereign states.

To address these concerns, Nigeria proposed limiting universal jurisdiction to the gravest crimes whose international character is clearly established by treaties or customary international law. It also opposed allowing individual countries to expand the categories of offences covered by the principle unilaterally.

The delegation further proposed that a third country should exercise universal jurisdiction only when the state where the alleged crime occurred, or the country of the accused person’s nationality, is unable or unwilling to prosecute. Nigeria also called for prior consultation with the country directly connected to the alleged offence.

Among other safeguards, Nigeria argued that an accused person should be physically present in the country seeking to prosecute and opposed trials conducted in the absence of defendants. It also proposed that decisions to initiate such proceedings should be made by the highest prosecutorial authorities, subject to due process and fair-trial guarantees.

Nigeria stressed the need to distinguish universal jurisdiction from extradition obligations and the jurisdiction of international courts. The delegation cited the Nigerian Constitution, the Geneva Conventions Act, terrorism legislation and mutual legal assistance arrangements as elements of the country’s domestic accountability framework.

As a party to the Rome Statute, Nigeria also reaffirmed its support for the principle of complementarity, under which national authorities retain primary responsibility for investigating and prosecuting crimes. The delegation maintained that efforts to combat impunity must respect sovereign equality, international cooperation and established legal procedures.