It cannot be said that education is a human right, as it implies an obligation on others to provide it. Warfare and certain ideologies do interrupt the process of education, however. An egregious example of this were the schoolgirl kidnappings in Chibok, Nigeria.
This kidnapping was committed by the Boko Haram, an Islamist group that mostly operates in northeast Nigeria, but is also active in Cameroon, Chad, Mali, and Niger. On the night of 14 – 15 April 2014, 276 female students were kidnapped from a government school by them. The students were prime targets for two reasons: they were mostly Christians, and they were females. Islamist organizations have “problems” with both groups.
The school was closed before the kidnappings due to security concerns, but the students remained to complete their final exams[1].
The assault on the school was well-organized. It consisted of three elements: security, support, and assault elements[2]. The support element held Nigerian forces in place while the security element provided perimeter security. Finally, the assault element loaded the students onto trucks. The trucks then departed for nearby nature preserves where the Boka Haram had established compounds.
Fifty-seven students escaped immediately by jumping from the trucks. Later, others were rescued sporadically by the Nigerian Armed Forces. Since the kidnapping, the girls have been used in hostage exchanges. As of April 2024, 82 students are still missing[3].
It is interesting to note that as the trucks were driving towards Chibok, people from other villages called Chibok to let them know that the Boko Haram were coming[4]. Unfortunately, they didn’t have Minutemen to respond.
Footnotes
[1] Adewunmi, et. al. “Nigeria’s mass kidnapping: the vital questions answered.”
[2] TRADOC, “Threat Tactics Report: Boko Haram.”
[3] Stephanie Busari, “They were kidnapped from a boarding school 10 years ago. Hear their stories.”
[4] Adewunmi, et. al. “Nigeria’s mass kidnapping: the vital questions answered.”
Bibliography
Adewunmi, et. al. “Nigeria’s mass kidnapping: the vital questions answered.” The Guardian, 7 May 2014. Last retrieved 2 May 2014 from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/07/nigeria-boko-haram-mass-kidnapping-vital-questions
Busari, S. “They were kidnapped from a boarding school 10 years ago. Hear their stories.” CNN, 14 April 2024. Retrieved 2 May 2024 from https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/13/africa/chibok-girls-ten-years-as-equals-intl-cmd/index.html
Omeni, A. “The Chibok Kidnappings in North-East Nigeria: A Military Analysis of Before and After.” Small Wars Journal, 11 April 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2024 from https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/the-chibok-kidnappings-in-north-east-nigeria-a-military-analysis-of-before-and-after
TRADOC. “Threat Tactics Report: Boko Haram”. TRADOC G-2 ACE Threats Integration, October 2015. Retrieved 2 May 2024 from https://info.publicintelligence.net/USArmy-BokoHaram.pdf
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