For six years, terrorist group Boko Haram has rebelled against authority, leading frequent attacks on the northeastern part of Africa with the intent to overthrow the Nigerian government in hopes of establishing an Islamist state. Boko Haram recently gained the attention of everyone nationwide after the kidnapping of more than 300 girls from a school in northern Nigeria. The article, “Nigeria launches new investigation of 2014 kidnap of Chibok girls” by Abuja discusses the abduction of the Chibok girls and the Nigerian government’s efforts—or lack of— to bring the girls back home.
On April 15, 2014, the girls were loaded onto trucks and were later threatened to be sold. Former president Goodluck Jonathan faced criticism for his lack of urgency towards the crisis and set up a fact-finding committee to determine if the abduction actually happened and how many girls were missing nearly a month after their kidnapping. The mothers of the abducted children banned together after the Nigerian government failed to properly intervene in the crisis and have kept their daughters relevant with the help of the Bring Back Our Girls movement.
The article advises that current president, Muhammadu Buhari has ordered a new investigation into the kidnapping only after the parents and the BBOG movement marched to the presidential villa to demand a meeting with him. He stated, “”Securing the Chibok girls is my responsibility. The service chiefs and heads of our security agencies will tell you that in spite of the dire financial straits that we found the country in, I continue to do my best to support their efforts in that regard” (Abuja, 2016). Although the article states that Nigerian troops have taken back some of their territory seized by Boko Haram, it still highlights the unmotivated efforts to take back their own girls.
The lack of concern shown in the article makes it evident that women are of less significance in African society. The financial hardships of the country seem to greatly impact the citizen’s safety and the government’s ability to assist.
- A. (2016, January 14). Nigeria launches new investigation of 2014 kidnap of Chibok girls. Retrieved March 17, 2016, from http://www.reuters.com/article/us-nigeria-violence-idUSKCN0US2G820160114
