Nigeria began its third attempt in 14 years to move from military to civilian rule this summer following the sudden deaths of both Nigerian dictator General Sani Abacha and the unjustly imprisoned President-elect Moshood Abiola. Abiola won a free and fair Presidential election in 1993 only to see the army annul the vote and install General Abacha in power. Abiola was later arrested and held without trial for refusing to surrender his mandate, dying in prison in July 1998. Decades of brutal and increasingly corrupt military domination have impoverished the oil rich west African nation of 100 million and exacerbated ethnic, religious and sectional divisions.

The Commission's membership includes Julian Bond, Chair of the NAACP; Reverend Joan Campbell, Secretary General of the National Council of Churches; Congressional Representatives Maxine Waters and Donald Payne; Rabbi David Saperstein of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations; Bernice Powell-Jackson, the head of the United Church of Christ's Commission on Racial Justice; Rev. Dr. Bennett W. Smith, past President of the Progressive National Baptist Convention; former New York City Mayor David N. Dinkins; International Human Rights Law Group Director Gay McDougall, and Robert Wages, Executive Vice President of the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International Union (PACE). The Commission is working closely with the non-governmental Nigerian Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), a coalition of over 50 indigenous human rights and pro-democracy groups.

"Too often in the past the generals have promised to restore democracy only to deliver more dictatorship," said Africa Fund Executive Director Jennifer Davis. "The purpose of the Commission is to help ensure that this time the army follows through on its promise to withdraw from power and that the transition itself is credible and fair. "

"We are enormously grateful to the Commissioners for agreeing to join in this initiative. The Commission sends a clear message of American public support for the return of democracy. That message is important because the U.S. buys nearly half of the annual oil exports that Nigeria's military rulers depend on. That influence should be used to promote and protect the human and civil rights of the Nigerian people." The transition formally began in December 1998 with the first of four elections for local and state offices leading to presidential elections on February 27, with installation of the civilian government scheduled for May 29. Nigerian human rights groups have called the transition blueprint undemocratic, noting that it was imposed by the military without consultation with democracy leaders and that the government of General Abdulsalami Abubakar has refused to repeal such repressive legislation as Decree Number Two, allowing for the indefinite detention without charge or trial of political opponents.

A deepening crisis in the oil producing Niger River Delta region of southern Nigeria forced postponement of elections for state legislatures and governors in January, following the shooting deaths of as many as 50 people protesting environmental pollution, economic exploitation and political marginalization. Occupations of oil production facilities in the region, while largely peaceful, have cut Nigeria's daily oil output by a third in recent months, fueling fears of massive state violence against protesters to restore full production. Nigerian human rights activists fear that a generalized conflict in the Niger Delta over oil could be used by hardline generals to abort the transition and prolong military rule.

The commission is made possible by a generous grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.