The International Federation of Human Rights Leagues...

The International Federation of Human Rights Leagues (FIDH) sent a delegation to evaluate the application of Islamic Sharia law and its human rights implications in northern Nigeria, sources close to the Federation said in Paris.At least 12 Muslim States in northern Nigeria apply the Sharia, which prescribes stoning to death for convicted adulterers and amputation of limbs for stealing, among other stiff penalties, despite opposition by President Olusegun Obasanjo's federal government, which has rejected the controversial legal system as unconstitutional."The representatives we sent (to Nigeria) should submit a detailed report on the deterioration of the human rights situation in Northern Nigeria, since the entry into force of Islamic law."Once they finish their work, we will make a public pronouncement," FIDH said.The NGO also addressed a letter to Obasanjo pleading on behalf Amina Lawal, a woman sentenced to death by stoning for having a child outside wedlock.Lawal, whose sentence was upheld 19 August by an Islamic Appeal Court in Northern Nigeria, has sparked demonstrations in front of the Nigerian Embassy in Paris.