The Plight of Nigerian School Girls – A Review
What happens when children become tokens of conflict? What should the government do when kidnapped humans are used to fund militant groups? How will the future be affected when girls are ripped from their education and forced into marriages?
One may recall the news stories back in 2016 about the 276 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram. The attack sparked the #BringBackOurGirls campaign that spurred social media activity worldwide. The media reported on every development of the girls’ abduction and the release of the few lucky girls who managed to escape. Meanwhile, Boko Haram released their own videos of the captives, demanding money for the release of the girls. As time went by, media coverage died down and the world forgot about the Chibok girls. The Nigerian conflict has persisted, yet the push to remember the children, and to get them back, has faded from the global community’s purview.
Over time, some of the girls had been able to escape. This past August, one girl and the man she married during her time in captivity surrendered themselves to the military and were reunited with her parents. Nonetheless, it is believed that nearly 113 of the Chibok girls taken seven years ago are still held by Boko Haram.
Who is Boko Haram? They are a Nigerian militant Islamist group that has been terrorising the civilians of Africa’s most populated country. They are attempting to advance a version of Islam that considers all political or social activity associated with the West as “haram”. Secular education is one of the activities that Boko Haram aggressively considers forbidden. They are behind a series of assassinations, attacks, and campaigns against neighbouring states.
Boko Haram was the first militant group to use the practice of kidnapping large numbers of school children for ransom, but now it has become a common tactic adopted by groups in West Africa. What was once a shock to the world has now become a common practice in a region torn apart by war.
There have been 20 attacks on Nigerian schools just this year. CNN reports that in 2021, 1,400 children have been abducted, 16 have died, and 200 are still missing. More children may miss out on school as parents are increasingly pulling their children out to prevent them from being kidnapped. COVID-19 lockdowns have already been detrimental to Nigerian children’s access to education. As parents remain fearful of sending their children back to school, experts are concerned how COVID-19 and these insurgent threats will cause long-term damage to the educational development of Nigeria’s children.
Before COVID-19, the number of children absent from school in Nigeria was at 10.5 million. UNICEF believes that this number has increased significantly as schools in Zamfara, Katsina, Adamawa, Kaduna, and Niger have closed because of the rise in kidnappings. Worldwide, the pandemic has already unprecedently disrupted an entire generation’s education. However, Nigeria, which already experiences some of the lowest school enrolment rates in the world, faces an even more severe problem. When considering the resiliency of the country long-term, the prospect of an entire generation being uneducated in a technologically expanding world presumes to be incredibly harmful to an already unstable state.
The Nigerian National Assembly debated a new law that would criminalise ransom payments to kidnappers. This bill attempts to ensure that only the government and military will manage the kidnappings and that terrorist groups become unsuccessful at collecting funds from ransom demands; however, human rights lawyers have asserted the impracticality of this law and its insensitivity to the parents of the kidnapped children.
This is one of the many attempts that the Nigerian government has made in response to the kidnappings. However, the clear weakness and unrealistic nature of the bill presented are indicative of the problem that the children and their families are facing. The Nigerian government lacks the pre-emptive strategy to face these kidnappings. After seven years, the government has not made any progress in preventing attacks on schools or recovering the children abducted. Many human rights experts question the government’s dedication to both the children and the education of the country.
What could be done? According to the International Crisis Group, “the Nigerian government should redouble efforts to protect schoolchildren.” “It should deploy additional forces to the northeast, launch an independent probe of the … abductions, reinvigorate the Safe Schools Initiative and continue efforts to diminish bloodshed through engaging insurgents.” Naturally, this is just one opinion but is clear that many are critical of the Nigerian government’s current approach. The Nigerian government has expressed its desire to solve the problem, but more must be done. The kidnappings are reflective of many issues that Nigeria faces. The government cannot eliminate the terrorist threat. The government is struggling to provide security and protection for its civilians – especially children. And Africa’s most populated country may lose an entire generation as the children lose their education.
It is heart-breaking that these children have been turned into numbers, statistics, and victims when they should be children. They should not have to be a case study of a nation’s failure to achieve security. If there is something to be learned in this tragedy, something to remember as academics of international politics, it is that the numbers we study represent real people. Without this consideration, one may become numb to the severity of the situation. More attention and consideration must go to the children of Nigeria, for the international community should support all its children if peace is going to play a role in our future.
Image courtesy of VOA via Wikimedia, ©2014, some rights reserved.
