Calling for justice for Nigeria’s women and girls

Open Doors has joined the Voices for Justice campaign, aiming to raise awareness, prayer and action for victims of sexual violence as a weapon in conflict. Henrietta Blyth, CEO of Open Doors UK & Ireland, has today sent a letter with recommendations to the UK Foreign Secretary.

On 19 February 2018, Leah Sharibu was abducted from Government Girls’ Science and Technical School in Dapchi, Yobe State, Nigeria. She was just 14 years old.  

For the past eight years, she has been held captive by the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). She is the only girl from the abduction who was never brought home, because she refused to renounce her Christian faith as a condition for release.

Alongside Leah, 109 other schoolgirls were abducted. Sadly, a small number didn’t survive – but the others were eventually released while Leah was not. Many of us are familiar with her heart-breaking story, yet sadly this is not an isolated case. Thousands of women and girls are still held in captivity in northern Nigeria.

Joining with Voices for Justice 

As a global ministry, Open Doors has joined with the Voices for Justice campaign to shine a light on the use of sexual violence as a weapon of conflict. The campaign seeks to draw particular attention to the vulnerability of Christian women and girls in northern Nigeria who face abduction, sexual violence, forced marriage and deep trauma at the hands of extremist groups.

The aims of the Voices for Justice campaign, that Open Doors is joining with, are to: 

• Build public awareness: increase global understanding of conflict-related sexual violence in Nigeria and its devastating impact on women and girls 

• Generate political pressure: encourage governments (including Nigeria’s), the UN and other policymakers to take meaningful action for prevention, protection, accountability and survivor support  

• Raise prayer support: join as the wider Christian community worldwide in prayer for our church family. 

UN experts urge action 

Open Doors and Voices for Justice are not alone in raising concern. Last week, a group of UN experts and Special Rapporteurs warned of ongoing rights violations against women and girls from Christian and other religious minority communities in Nigeria. They noted, “These crimes took place within a broader pattern of violence and persecution disproportionately affecting Christian communities in some northern states, including killings, attacks on churches and villages, mass displacement, mob violence linked to accusations of blasphemy, and severe insecurity affecting women and children in internally displaced persons camps.” 

The experts urged Nigerian authorities to take immediate steps to protect those at risk, secure the release and recovery of abducted girls and women, ensure independent impartial and thorough investigations, prosecute perpetrators, and guarantee effective remedies and support for victims and survivors. 

They warned that ‘impunity for these crimes only fuels further violence’, and emphasised that ‘Nigerian authorities must act urgently to prevent further irreparable harm and ensure accountability for all violations’.

“For Nigerian Christians, Leah Sharibu became a powerful symbol of courage,” says Tiffany Barrans, Global Advocacy Director for Open Doors International. “They are emboldened by her refusal to renounce her faith to gain freedom after being abducted by Islamist extremists.”  

Recommendations to the Foreign Secretary 

In honour of Leah and the many others affected, and to mark the UN International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict on 19 June, Henrietta Blyth, CEO of Open Doors UK & Ireland has written to the UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper. The letter calls on the UK Government to make representations to the Nigerian authorities, urging them to take immediate action to strengthen the protection of vulnerable women and girls across the country.

In the letter, Henrietta welcomes the Foreign Secretary’s commitment to make support for women and girls a central pillar of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s work. She notes however, that the cases of Leah and many others show that such support must also explicitly include freedom of religion or belief where this contributes to heightened vulnerability.  

She concludes the letter with three key recommendations:    

• Intensifying efforts to secure the safe release and return of Leah Sharibu and all other abducted women and girls, providing them with appropriate medical, psychosocial and reintegration support   

• Ensuring prompt, impartial and thorough investigations into abductions, sexual violence, and forced marriage, and the arrest and prosecution of perpetrators to the fullest extent of the law 

• Enhancing protection for vulnerable communities in conflict-affected areas by ensuring the presence of sufficient, accountable, and well-resourced security personnel mandated to prioritise civilian safety.   

As you reflect on this, you’re invited to join with believers in prayer – for Leah, for the many women and girls still captive or at risk, for their families who wait and grieve, and for those in positions of power who can influence change. Please keep praying for justice, protection and restoration in communities affected by violence. And let’s continue to stand alongside our persecuted family raising awareness, speaking out and advocating on their behalf.