Amnesty International says nearly 700 people have been kidnapped in the last seven days in Nigeria
Amnesty International says the mass abduction in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State is a sign of a reign of impunity in Nigeria.
PREMIUM TIMES reported how at least 61 people were abducted as terrorists attacked Buda, a community in Kajuru local government area late Monday.
The abduction in Buda followed the mass abduction by terrorists of school pupils in Kuriga in Chikun Local Government Area of the same Kaduna State
Responding to the abduction in Buda, Isa Sanusi, Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, said: "Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu and his government must urgently address the country's spate of abductions targeting children in schools and internally displaced persons (IDPs) camps in the northern part of the country.
"In the last ten days, nearly 700 people have been abducted by gunmen in Borno, Kaduna and Sokoto. Amnesty International receives almost daily reports of abductions including in Zamfara, Katsina and Niger states. The abductions and attacks are forcing many parents to keep their children out of school.
"The consistent failure of the Nigerian authorities to stem the tide of abductions targeting children and schools means that a generation of children could miss out on education, as fear of abductions compels authorities to close hundreds of schools while teachers are abandoning their rural posts.
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"Time is running out for the authorities to effectively perform its legal responsibility of protecting people's lives and security and to secure the safe release of hundreds of people held in captivity by gunmen. The inability of the Nigerian authorities to bring the perpetrators of these abductions to justice is further emboldening impunity and putting lives at greater risk.
"Amnesty International has documented at least 17 cases of abductions in less than a decade and in many cases, the authorities' failure to act and security lapses made it easier for gunmen to storm schools and abduct children. The Tinubu government must move swiftly to make the security and safety of everyone in the country a public policy priority", the right organisation said.
Background
"On 3 March, suspected Boko Haram fighters abducted at least 400 Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) - most of them women and children - from Babban Sansani, Zulum and Arabic IDP camps in Gamboru Ngala, Borno state.
"On 7 March, at least 287 students and their teachers were abducted by gunmen in Kuriga Kaduna state.
Hundreds of attackers arrived at the school on motorcycles before seizing students and teachers and taking them into the bush.
"On 9 March, 15 students at an Islamic school were abducted by gunmen who have made ransom demands, the Amnesty International stated.
