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Rights Enforcement and Public Law Centre

Type:

Criminal Justice Advocacy Group
Formation:

2006
Location:

Suite 302 Lozumba Plaza
Area 10, Garki

Abuja, Nigeria

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The Rights Enforcement and Public Law Centre is a nonprofit criminal justice and human rights advocacy organization based in Nigeria. The organization, in partnership with Nigeria’s Legal Aid Council and the Open Society Justice Initiative, an operational program of the Open Society Foundations, began a joint project in 2004 centered on opposing the overuse of pre-trial detention in Nigeria. The Rights Enforcement and Public Law Centre became “the main implementing partner” for the project in December 2006, and was registered as a trust that same year. 1 2

The organization is a member of the Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN) Foundation, a network of 73 advocacy groups across Nigeria. NOPRIN Foundation has multiple projects in partnership with left-of-center American and international private grantmaking foundations including the Open Society Foundations, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Amnesty International, and the Fund for Global Human Rights. 3 4 5

Background

The Rights Enforcement and Public Law Centre (REPLACE) is a nonprofit organization based in Nigeria that advocates for human rights and criminal justice policies in the country. Nigeria’s Legal Aid Council and the Open Society Justice Initiative, an operational program of the Open Society Foundations (OSF, formally Open Society Institute), a private grantmaking foundation created and funded by billionaire financier and liberal philanthropist George Soros, began a joint project in 2004 centered on the overuse of pre-trial detention in Nigeria. REPLACE became “the main implementing partner” for the project in December 2006, and was registered as a trust that same year. 6 7

The project’s main focus was called the Police Duty Solicitor Scheme (PDSS), which has the support of the Nigerian police, the Federal Ministry of Justice, and the Legal Aid Council. REPLACE provides duty solicitors (a type of lawyer in UK-derived legal systems) to designated police stations, who advise suspects and advocate for them. Between January 2008 and June 2009, duty solicitors contacted more than 3,500 people detained and successfully advocated for the release of around 2,600 people. 8 9

The PDSS was institutionalized by Nigeria police in September 2017 and called Force Order 20. A Force Order in Nigeria is a “statutory instrument under the Police Act,” the law that regulates the Nigerian Police Force. Force Order 20 implemented PDSS across the country. 10

Affiliated Organizations

The Rights Enforcement and Public Law Centre is a member of the Network on Police Reform in Nigeria (NOPRIN) Foundation, a network of 73 across Nigeria. The NOPRIN Foundation has multiple projects in partnership with left-of-center private grantmaking foundations including the Open Society Foundations (OSF, formally Open Society Institute), a private grantmaking foundation created and funded by billionaire financier and liberal philanthropist George Soros; John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation (also known simply as the MacArthur Foundation), a large left-of-center foundation based in the United States; Amnesty International, a left-of-center non-governmental organization focused on human rights and claims to have over 7 million members and supporters around the world; and the Fund for Global Human Rights, a left-of-center grantmaking organization that funds international organizations that work on issues related to immigration, LBGT and women’s interests, indigenous communities, and child welfare. 11 12 13

References

  1. “Lawyer at the Police Station Door: How REPLACE Provides Legal Aid in Nigeria.” Open Society Justice Initiative. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.justiceinitiative.org/publications/lawyer-police-station-door-how-replace-provides-legal-aid-nigeria.
  2. “About Replace.” Accessed May 6, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20230202015004/http://replaceportal.com/about-replace/.
  3. “Membership – NOPRIN Foundation.” April 29, 2024. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.noprin.org/membership/.
  4. “Projects – NOPRIN Foundation.” April 29, 2024. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.noprin.org/projects/.
  5. “Home.” Fund for Global Human Rights. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://globalhumanrights.org/.
  6. “Lawyer at the Police Station Door: How REPLACE Provides Legal Aid in Nigeria.” Open Society Justice Initiative. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.justiceinitiative.org/publications/lawyer-police-station-door-how-replace-provides-legal-aid-nigeria.
  7. “About Replace.” Accessed May 6, 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20230202015004/http://replaceportal.com/about-replace/.
  8. “Presumption of Guilt The Global Overuse of Pretrial Detention.” Open Society Justice Initiative. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.justiceinitiative.org/uploads/de4c18f8-ccc1-4eba-9374-e5c850a07efd/presumption-guilt-09032014.pdf.
  9. “The police duty solicitor scheme: Looking back, looking forward.” The Cable. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.thecable.ng/police-duty-solicitor-scheme-looking-back-looking-forward/.
  10. “The police duty solicitor scheme: Looking back, looking forward.” The Cable. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.thecable.ng/police-duty-solicitor-scheme-looking-back-looking-forward/.
  11. “Membership – NOPRIN Foundation.” April 29, 2024. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.noprin.org/membership/.
  12. “Projects – NOPRIN Foundation.” April 29, 2024. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://www.noprin.org/projects/.
  13. “Home.” Fund for Global Human Rights. Accessed May 6, 2024. https://globalhumanrights.org/.
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