A/HRC/7/3/Add.4 page 9 2. Provisions of the Criminal Code and Penal Code criminalizing torture 18. Nigeria’s criminal law is primarily based on two legal texts: the Penal Code, applicable in the mainly Muslim 12 northern states; and the Criminal Code, applicable in the remaining 24 southern states of the country. 19. The 1990 Criminal Code does not contain any provision explicitly prohibiting torture with the requirements laid down in article 1 of CAT (i.e. the requirements regarding the role of a public official and the intentional infliction of severe pain or suffering for a specific purpose, such as obtaining a confession, intimidation, or punishment), or any provision for adequate sanctions, as required by article 4 of CAT. However Part 5, which deals with offences against the person, contains a number of provisions criminalizing acts which may fall within the scope of the Convention, such as various categories of assault (chaps. 25 and 29), homicide (chap. 27), offences endangering life (chap. 28), and assaults on females (chap. 30). Section 298 criminalizes the excessive use of force. 20. Penalties potentially range from: imprisonment for 1 year for ordinary assault to 14 years for assault with intent to have unlawful carnal knowledge; 7 years to life for grievous bodily harm; life imprisonment for manslaughter; death penalty for murder; and life imprisonment, with or without caning, for rape. 21. Under the Penal Code applicable in the northern mostly Muslim states which have introduced criminal law based on sharia to the jurisdiction of sharia courts and courts of appeal,3 acts amounting to torture may constitute offences such as infliction of injury, homicide and rape. Under sharia, the perpetrator of homicide and injury can only be punished if the victim or relatives of a victim seek punishment. If committed intentionally, the punishment is retaliation: punishment mirroring the injury inflicted. Blood money can be paid to the victim or the relatives of a victim in lieu of retaliation. 22. The Police Act and Police Regulations provide for internal disciplinary measures. Section 341 of the Police Act provides: “In the individual exercise of his powers as a police officer, every police officer shall be personally liable for any misuse of his powers, or for any act done in excess of his authority.” The First Schedule of the Police Act lists several disciplinary offences which are subject to internal disciplinary sanctions, including unlawful or unnecessary 3 Twelve northern states: Zamfara State, Kano, Katsina, Niger, Bauchi, Kaduna, Sokoto, Borno, Gombe, Kebbi, Jigawa and Yobe. Section 4 of the Constitution specifies that the legislative power of the Government is divided between the federal and state governments. Section 4 (7) gives state houses of assembly the power to “make laws for the peace, order and good government of the State”. Section 6 empowers states to establish courts with jurisdiction at first instance or on appeal on matters. Advocates of the implementation of sharia argue that sharia courts have jurisdiction to try criminal cases, because although the Constitution mentions sharia courts with regard to civil proceedings and Islamic personal law, it is silent regarding criminal law jurisdiction; criminal law is not on the Federal Exclusive List in the Constitution, and the states have residual powers to legislate in this sphere.