The Right Of Self Defence In Nigeria: The Do's And The Don'ts

Today I've decided to talk about a very tricky topic namely: the right to self defence. Before I go further let me just drop this disclaimer that this post does not in anyway support or promote violence. And now to our discussion.

First of all self-defence as the name implies, is any act done to protect one's self or property from an unlawful attack or violence. The Constitution passively mentions this right when it talked about the right to life and it makes a lot of sense because there are certain urgent situations where it is not feasible to get the timely help of any of the various security agents when faced with imminent danger. However, this right must be exercised with great caution. Let's now proceed to the elements of a valid self defence.

Based on several judicial authorities, a valid act of self defence should involve a process of reasoning. This implies that whatever you're doing in self defence must be reasonable/rational. Therefore unreasonable actions will not qualify as valid acts of self defence. For example, self defence only applies to unlawful attacks because it is unreasonable to try to defend a lawful attack. For instance if the police are effecting a lawful arrest, it would be unreasonable for you to defend yourself against them when they are lawfully doing their job. But even when you think the arrest is unlawful I strongly advise you still don't try to resist or defend yourself to avoid "stories that touch the heart". If the arrest is unlawful you can always get justice later so be smart.

Apart from this, the law also requires that a valid act of self defence must be based on necessity. What this means is that you can only claim self defence if you were faced with a real danger and you had no other available option to save yourself or your property. If for instance you are being attacked and you have an opportunity to escape (or escape with your property in the case of an attack on your property), the law expects you to take the escape option. Where you ignore that option but rather choose to counterattack your adversary, your actions will not be considered as self defence.

The final requirement for a valid self defence is proportionality which means that whatever you're doing in self defence should be approximately equal to the danger you are facing. For instance, if you're being attacked with a stick then the law expects you to defend yourself with a stick or something similar. If you're attacked with a stick and you defend yourself with a gun, your response is not proportional to the attack and will therefore not be regarded as self defence.

A valid act of self defence (that is one which is reasonable, necessary and proportional to the threat) will exonerate you of any and all guilt/liability in court. However, all the above discussed elements must compulsorily be present.

Please note that provocation is different from self defence. While self defence is done to protect one's self or property from imminent danger, provocation is mainly a sudden and unplanned reaction in the heat of passion to verbal or physical attack which does not pose a real threat/danger to your life or property but which makes you temporarily lose control.

Also, self defence is quite different from assault. Self defence is a physical act done out of necessity as a last resort to defend/protect while assault is a premeditated/intentional physical act that is not done out of necessity or as a last resort and it is usually more of an attack rather than a defence.

Let me conclude with this final free advice: avoid trouble as much as you can. When you can't avoid trouble and it comes to you, try to escape at the slightest opportunity and report to any of the security agencies. Only when there is no other option should you attempt self defence and when you do, ensure that your actions are both reasonable and proportional.

Have a great day.

#KYR