On his arrival, he said that he had been heartened by the attitude of the new military leader, General Abdulsalam Abubakar in seeking to address international concerns on democracy and human rights.

The Commonwealth Secretary-General, Emeka Anyaoku, expressed hope for Nigeria

And Mr Anyaoku said he would use his visit to encourage Nigeria's military government to make progress towards democracy and to respect human rights.

Chief Anyaoku is the second high-level international visitor to talk to the military government in the last few days, signalling the start of Nigeria's re-integration into the international community.

It is the first such contact since 1995, when Nigeria was suspended from the Commonwealth following the execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other minority rights activists.

Abiola release 'soon'

The new military government under General Abubakar has released 30 political prisoners over the last two weeks, including the former head of state, General Olusegun Obasanjo.

Moshood Abiola - imprisoned for four years

Talks with opposition figures have been taking place about the possible release of the main opposition leader, Chief Moshood Abiola, the man thought to have won the annulled elections of 1993.

Reporting on the talks, Nigerian opposition figures say they believe the military government will soon release Chief Abiola.

The opposition leaders, of the National Democratic Coalition or NADECO, said they were very pleased with the results of the first such meeting between the opposition and the military for several years.

They had been asked for their advice on how the nation should move forward. They advised that Chief Abiola should be released and lead a government of national unity. General Abubakar said their views would be considered.