[left][/left]The right to life is the foremost of all rights without which all other rights are unenforceable. Life begins at conception thus, a child has the right to life from his mother’s womb. Every human being has an inherent right to life and this right is protected by law. The right to life is enshrined in the 1999 CFRN as amended by virtue of
section 33.
Section 33 (1) of the 1999 constitution prohibits any intentional deprivation of life except in execution of a sentence of a court with respect to a criminal offence. Thus, the death sentence of a court is an exception to the right to life. However, children under 17 years of age at the time of the commission of the offence cannot be sentenced to death and any sentence on a pregnant woman must be commuted until she is delivered of her baby.
Section 33 (2) provides for circumstances wherein a person shall not be regarded as having been deprived of his life. Paragraph (a) of sub-section (2) provides for circumstances of self defence or defence of another and defence of property. Paragraph (b) provides for circumstances of death in the process of effecting a lawful arrest or preventing the escape of a person lawfully detained and paragraph (c)
provides for circumstances of death as a result of the suppression of riot or mutiny.
NOTE: Death in the process of effecting a lawful arrest dosen’t mean a police officer has the right to kill a person who has refused to be arrested. Where there is no voluntary submission on the part of the person to be arrested, assault on the part of the police officer to effect arrest would be lawful.
https://lawstudentaide.com/2018/12/05/right-to-life-constitutional-law/