Nigeria’s schools live in fear of Boko Haram

Nigeria’s government has promised to protect schoolchildren. It has been six months since 200 girls were kidnapped by Boko Haram and Nigeria’s northern states continue to live in fear.The only thing we desire is that we want them back", said Bukky Shonibare, barely holding back his tears. “At this point we are begging, we are pleading that they should do all that is needed and let the girls come back.”
Shonibare is a member of the #BringBackOurGirls group, which has been campaigning for the release of the school girls who were kidnapped in Chibok six months ago. For the relatives of the more than 200 girls who are still missing, the uncertainty has become unbearable.
The militant Islamist group Boko Haram – which translates as “western education is forbidden” – has continued to target schools in northern Nigeria. In the state of Borno, the group has reportedly killed over 70 teachers and destroyed 900 school buildings since 2011.
The kidnapping of the more than 200 secondary school girls on April 14, 2014 was no isolated case. Yet it caused an international outcry, propelled by the social media campaign #BringBackOurGirls, with personalities like Michelle Obama and Malala Yousafzai demanding the girls' release. In the weeks after the kidnapping, reports emerged that Nigerian and foreign security forces had information of the girls' whereabouts. Yet six months later, the Nigerian government seems to have made little headway in the search.