Abstract:

This group paper seeks to examine the evolution of human rights in the post-colonial era (mid-
20th century onwards), focusing on newly independent nations navigating sovereignty,
development, and accountability. We will explore how colonial legacies, Cold War geopolitics,
and regional frameworks like the African Charter shaped rights discourse. While post-colonial
states championed self-determination and socio-economic rights, challenges like
authoritarianism and underdevelopment often undermined civil liberties. The paper highlights
conflicts between collective rights and individual freedoms, showcasing the complex interplay of
global influences and local realities in shaping human rights trajectories.

1.1 Introduction:

Post-colonial human rights evolved from the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, yet
often experienced severe reversals due to authoritarian military rules, civil wars, and institutional
failures. While formally embracing international standards, new states frequently struggled with
equitable resource distribution and ethnic conflicts, perpetuating cycles of rights violations
reminiscent of the colonial era.

The African elite who had been in the forefront of the independence struggle had been schooled
in colonial administration or raised to colonial academic institutions which had imbibed western
values in them. They had adopted a non-capitalist mode of development and were willing to
import western institutions and policies which they considered as subjective and worthy of
attainment.

The independent constitutions were formulated to serve as instruments of extending and

consolidating the value system of the formal colonial masters and these were imposed on
leaders eager to achieve political independence which they considered their first task for as a
prerequisite for the attainment or economic dependence. Despite the adherence of this new
state to the UN charter and other international instruments which were intended to promote and
protect human rights, there was anarchy in some African states like Uganda, but there was
progress in others.

1.2 The state of affairs of human rights in post colonial era was influenced by the
following:

1.2.1 Neo-colonialism

Neo-colonialism in its historical perspective was proclaimed by

Kwame, in his book Neo-colonialism which was the last Stage of imperialism
(1965). Nkrumah argued that the result of neo-colonialism is that; foreign capital is used for
exploitation rather than development. And while the state appears to be independent. And has
total control over its dealings. It is in fact controlled by outsiders economically and politically.
And the loss of control of the machinery of the state to the neo-colonialists, is the basis of
Nkrumahs discourse in his book entitled
Colonialism and Neo-colonialism (1964).

The extraction and export of minerals could not serve to develop African industries because
minerals taken from African soil by Western corporations were shipped to Europe or America
where they were turned into manufactured goods which were then resold to African consumers
at value-added prices which has led to the fact that Africans remains industrially backward and
deficient as a result of economic dependence. In a similar way, they acted as intermediaries or
the middlemen through whom economic exploitation was channelized, and who later got the
share of the loot.
The failure to organize a truly national economy and community for example foreign aid is noted
as evidence that has been given in the form of loans, with high-interest rates and
reimbursement of these loans contributed to the underdevelopment of African economies since
the collection of interest
drained African peoples.

During the Cold War, the increasing level of American and Russian aid intervention in the affairs
of independent African states was designed to keep African countries within the capitalist or
socialist/communist camp. Fanon argues that the ruling class has not taken any such
revolutionary steps
in order to dismantle this relationship rather the collaboration continued with
the colonial power to ensure that the interests of both would be met after the
declaration of formal political independence and this led to degeneration and perversion of
nationalist discourse which later became racist and tribalistic
which resulted into the inability of the State to distribute resources equitably
between the various ethnic nationalities and this created internal conflict and
nationwide therefore under the middle-class leadership remained as a
workable model of Westerners.

1.2.2 The introduction of the Constitution:

One of the actions nations do once they gain independence is to introduce their constitution.
This constitution serves as a set of laws that govern the conduct of affairs of the people of that
nation. This constitution can be largely unwritten as in countries like Canada and the United
Kingdom, or written as in Nigeria and the United States of America. According to Prof Eze, even
though there is a belief that in countries with a written constitution, their constitution is regarded
as the grundnorm, there is however superficiality of this approach. The constitution contains
desperate elements some of which are legal rules creating rights and duties while some may
simply provide non-legal guidelines reflecting not only ideology but also the aspirations of the
rulers and apparently those of the rules. In Nigeria the first constitution after their independence
was the 1960 constitution when Abubakar Tafewa Balewa was the prime minister.

In Africa, the majority of the states have adopted constitution influenced by the principal of
liberal democracy, a number proclaims adherence to soicialist or revolutionary ideology while in
fact the underlying philosophy is that of capitalism. Only a few have proceeded to adopt polices
and have created institutions geared to achieve clear the clear objective.

1.2.3. Constitutional guarantees of Human right:

In most African countries apart from Tanzania and Malawi, provision for human rights are found
in the substantive section of their constitution. This is important because the constitution as well
as the precision of their formulation determines not only the legal nature but also the extent to
which they are justified. In Nigeria the constitutional drafting committee charged with drafting a
new constitution to replace the republican constitution of 1963 adopted the same eye of
reasoning that the objective and principles are intended to be constitution directives to the origin
of the state and to inform and guide their actions.

Where the human rights provisions are included in the substantive part of the constitution, they
are generally legal binding. For example in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,
the fundamental human right(which include our civil and political rights) are provided in chapter
4, particular from Sections 33-45and they are enforceable in court as provided by Section 46
which says, Any person who alleges that any of the provisions of this Chapter has been, is
being or likely to be contravened in any State in relation to him may apply to a High Court in that
State for redress.

But there's a contradiction to in Chapter 2 of our constitution, which provides for the
Fundamental Objective and Directive principles of State Policy. This chapter provides for our
socio- economic rights ranging from free education, electricity, good roads, etc. But the
unfortunate thing about these right is that they are only aspirational as they are not
unenforceable.

By virtue of section 6(6)(c), The judicial powers of the state shall not except as otherwise
provided by this Constitution, extend to any issue or question as to whether any act of omission
by any authority or person or as to whether any law or any judicial decision is in conformity with
the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy set out in Chapter II of this
Constitution

It has been argued that these social economic rights were not enforceable because Since
African are underdeveloped, it will be futile to encourage litigations based on the injunction of
socio economic rights. However scholars such as Omade and Osagi have criticised this view
saying that they should be justiceable regardless. They added that in past freedom of
expression and assembly were justiceable even when majority of the populated were
submerged in a culture of silence through illiteracy which denied them freedom of expression in
official English where the press was officially barred and peaceful assembly denied.

1.3 Challenges of Human Rights in the Post Colonial era:

1.3.1 Problems In Creating A Human Rights Court:

On 8 June 1998, members of the OAU meeting in Burkina Faso voted to initiate the process for
the creation of an African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights. To come into effect, the
protocol for the proposed court requires the ratification of fifteen OAU member States 26. As of
late 1999, only Burkina Faso and Senegal had ratified it. However, given that organization's
inadequate support for its own Human Rights Commission, one must wonder how well it will
maintain the court.

1.3.2. Extrajudicial Killings and interventions: When Nigeria gained independence and
started operating a written constitution which enforced human rights. One of the issues faced
was the constant intervention of the military government, who takeover power. They do this by
first of all suspended sections of the existing constitution and ruling by decrees. In other to
achieve this the came by coup which was always bloody and thereby denying the citizens of
their right to life and liberty as promised by the constitution. An example of such coup is the
January 15, 1966, military coup, widely considered the bloodiest in Nigeria's history, was led by
Major Kaduna Nzeogwu along with other young officers.

1.3.3. Non-compliance with the Rule of Law:

There is a deep-seated culture of impunity where perpetrators of human rights abuses,

especially state actors, are rarely held accountable. Law enforcement agencies often ignore
court orders, and the judiciary faces challenges regarding independence and underfunding. In
Nigeria, our constitution even plays a role in the non-compliance of rule of law as it grants
certain immunities to the President and Governors as provided in Section 308. InTinubu V
IMB1, the then governor of Lagos state was indebted to the Bank, but an action could not be
brought to him since he had immunity from trial in court. So in as much as the Nigerian
constitution provides for equality of rights in Section 17, not everyone is equal before the law
and this makes the masses lose hope in the system.

1.3.4. Gender-Based Violence and Inequality:

Despite constitutional protections, women face high rates of domestic violence and sexual
violence. Harmful traditional practices, such as forced child marriage and widowhood rituals,
remain prevalent in certain regions. in Article 444 of the Congo Family Code: The husband is
the head of the household. He owes protection to his wife; his wife owes obedience to her
husband2. This makes marriage one of the most discriminatory practices against women. To
mitigate this, Article 16 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women (CEDAW) requires States to set a minimum age for marriage3.

1.3.5. Socio-Economic Rights Deficits:

Widespread poverty, lack of access to quality healthcare, and education inequality—often

resulting from corruption—constitute violations of economic and social rights.

1.3.6. Environmental Rights in the Niger Delta:

Residents in the Niger Delta have historically suffered from violations of their right to a healthy
environment due to pollution from oil exploration.

1.4 Conclusion:
In conclusion, The post-colonial era was characterized by an optimistic transition to
independence, which promised the restoration of human dignity, but often resulted in a "new
scramble for Africa/Asia"characterized by, or resulting in, repression and elite corruption. While
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) provided a framework, many newly sovereign
nations struggled to move beyond the repressive state structures inherited from colonial
regimes, leading to continued or intensified humanrights violations.
1
(2001) Legalpedia (SC) 11989

2
(Congo (Democratic Republic of) Family Code, Book 3, title 1, chap. 5, sect. 2, art. 444.)

3
(Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discriminations Against Women, article 16)
1.4 Recommendation:

To fully grasp the evolution of human rights in post-colonial societies, future research should
adopt a comparative regional approach, analyzing how different continents (Africa, Asia, Latin
America) translated independence into rights frameworks. Emphasis should also be placed on
local voices and movements (e.g., womens rights groups, indigenous struggles) rather than just
state-level policies, since these often reveal the real gaps between theory and practice. Finally,
scholars and policymakers should explore how global human rights instruments(like the UDHR
and regional charters) can be adapted to address contemporary challenges such as digital
rights, climate justice, and inequality, which continue to shape human rights discourse in post-
colonial nations.

1.5 References:

-Theoneste Bimenyimana The State Of Human Rights In The African Post-colonial Politics.
2021
-Frantz Fanon, The Wretched of the Earth, Paris, François Maspero,1961.
-Paul J. Magnarella Achieving Human Rights in Africa: The Challenge for the New Millennium
2000.
- [Link] and gender inequalities in Africa: what about
equality between women and men?