Nine years ago, Hauwa Maltha was among the 276 girls that were abducted from their school, the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno state. She was 17 years old at the time of her abduction. Nine years later, she has been rescued by the Nigerian army. While it was a joyous occasion for the family of Hauwa, one couldn't help but wonder what she must have gone through in the hands of her abductors for almost a decade.
Esther Marcus is another girl that was abducted along with Hauwa nine years ago. She was also rescued by the army alongside Hauwa. Also 26-year old, it was tears of joy when the army unveiled them. The army stated that they had been rescued on the 21st of April and had been undergoing medical examination before handing them over to the Borno State Government for further administration.
Saratu Dauda is perhaps the latest of the girls to be rescued. The 25-year old escaped from captivity and was rescued by the army on May 6, 2023. It was revealed that she was forcibly married off to one Abu Yusuf an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) Boko Haram expert. She had three children with her forced husband, but she left them behind and found her way out of the forest. One can only imagine the kind of horror she must have undergone in captivity, making her leave her children behind.
A striking feature of the girls turned women in captivity is that they have become mothers. Hauwa who is Kibaku by tribe from Jila in Chibok Local Government Area was rescued along with her three-year-old baby. She got married while in captivity at Gulukos, a village in Sambisa forest, to one Salman, a cameraman to Abubakar Shekau. Salman later died and thereafter she got married to one Mallam Muhammad in Gobara.
Her children later died due to ill health. Muhammad, her second husband, was killed during clashes between Boko Haram/ISWAP. Incredibly, she was almost nine months pregnant when she was rescued and has since delivered a baby boy. All this happened within a 9-year period of which she had been in captivity. She was forcibly married twice, became a widow twice and lost both of her children. One can only imagine her mental state right now.
Esther's case is similar to that of Hauwa. She was forcefully married to one Garba, also known as Garus, a Boko Haram fighter who was killed during troops' offensive operations on terrorists' enclaves. She was later married off to another insurgent, Abba, until her rescue by troops of Operation Hadin Kai. Like Hauwa she was married twice, widowed once and becoming a mother all in the space of 9-years in captivity.
The army says so far 76 Chibok school girls had escaped, while 107 were released by Boko Haram in 2018 out of a total of 276 victims abducted on April 14, 2014. 186 school girls were rescued by the army, while 93 abductees were still in captivity by the terrorists. The army also added that between 2019 and 2023, it had rescued 19 Chibok schoolgirls, including 11 last year.
According to an account of an abducted girl, "they tied me together with other girls from the village and made us walk in a line." On the first day of her captivity, Boko Haram militants asked, "Do you love us?" She did not; could not. The beating she endured marked the beginning of weeks of systematic abuse. Each day, six Boko Haram fighters raped her.
It has been nine years since they last saw their parents, family, friends and community. Nine years would have been enough time for them to have bagged a degree from any Nigerian institution even with the perennial ASUU strike. Nine years would have been enough time for them to learn a skill or vocation that they would have been using to fend or sustain themselves and families. Nine years would have been enough time to realise their dream or continue to pursue their dreams in life.
Nine years have been abruptly stolen from these innocent girls turned women. The joys and happiness of celebrating birthdays, occasions and festivities have been denied them for the past nine years. For the past nine years, they have been made to marry different men, not of their own volition or family's consent. For nine years many of them have been made to do obscene things and made sex slaves. For nine years, they have been under the mercy of the dastard, rabid and uncouth Boko Haram members.
One can only imagine the mental torture the families of the girls have been going through for the past nine years. One can only wonder how they have been keeping hope alive, that they would one day see their abducted child or children. One can only imagine how the parents of those with more than one child must have been coping after the abduction that fateful night on April 14th nine years ago. One can only imagine how their community would have been faring after the abduction for the past nine years.
The authorities can be commended for keeping the torch alive and making several efforts to secure the release of the abducted girls albeit at a snail's pace as some have said. The Nigerian military must also be given thumbs up for consistently combing Sambisa forest and its environs, in search and rescue operations of the girls. Their efforts have helped many of the girls to breathe the air of freedom. More importantly, the girls must be extolled for their bravery and tenacity as well as never giving up mentality. From the frequent escape of many of them from the clutches of their abductors, it is obvious that they were fed-up in captivity.
For Hauwa, Esther, Saratu and so many girls that were captives, escaping from Boko Haram in most cases is just the first step toward recovery. There are socio-cultural barriers to reintegration faced by thousands of women and girls kidnapped by insurgents. Available data reveals that more than 110 suicide bombings is by children in 2017, at least 76 of them by girls. This have fueled suspicions that returnees could be spies still loyal to Boko Haram's cause. Returned women and girls are often ostracised and those who fall pregnant face virulent condemnation that the children of Boko Haram fighters will inevitably grow up to be militants.
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Re-integration and re-habilitation is vital for these rescued girls in other for them to have a sense of belonging. They were abducted when they were teenagers. Today they are young women, having been forced to marry their abductors. Thus, they would have been traumatised and dehumanised. Their mental health will no doubt be shattered and they would need psycho-social support to be regain their normal frame of mind and sense of society. Nine years of captivity and being forced to live a life in a manner that was alien to the girls must have been a real struggle. While nine years, by any means, is too long to have been kept in captivity, we can each rejoice that now they have been rescued and can reunite with their parents. One can only pray and hope that they are able to put those kind years behind them and look to a future where they can rebuild their lives in a free and healthy manner. May The Almighty give them strength.. Ameen
