What Can Be Done to ‘Bring Back Our Girls’?

GW experts discuss kidnapping of Nigerian schoolgirls from international affairs, women’s issues perspectives.

May 12, 2014

Alt Text

By Julyssa Lopez

The world has looked on in horror as Boko Haram, an extremist terrorist organization, orchestrated the kidnapping of more than 300 Nigerian schoolgirls three weeks ago. The vast majority of the victims are still missing, and advocates have responded with awareness campaigns to help the Nigerian government bring the girls back to safety.

George Washington Today spoke with two university experts to gain more insight on the mass kidnappings: David Shinn, professorial lecturer in the Elliott School of International Affairs and former U.S. ambassador to Ethiopia and Burkina Faso, discussed the crisis from an international affairs standpoint, while Mary Ellsberg, director of GW’s Global Women’s Institute, explored what can be done to raise awareness of violence against women and girls.

David Shinn“The United States can offer improved communications equipment for the security forces and sophisticated forensic techniques.”

-David Shinn, professorial lecturer in the Elliott School of International Affairs

Dr. Shinn is an expert on the Horn of Africa and has published numerous books and articles on the region, including “China and Africa: A Century of Engagement.”

Q: Can you describe Boko Haram and their beliefs, particularly toward education?
A: Boko Haram, which translates to “Western education is a sin,” arose in Nigeria in 2002. The first leader was a charismatic Muslim cleric, Mohammed Yusuf, who established a mosque and Islamic school. In 2009, however, Boko Haram began attacks on police stations and government buildings. Nigeria’s security forces responded harshly and killed Mr. Yusuf. Briefly, the organization almost disappeared but then reappeared with a vengeance. In 2012, the United States designated Boko Haram as a terrorist organization. It has been terrorizing northern Nigeria ever since. The current leader is Abubakar Shekau, a figure about whom little is known.

Boko Haram opposes all aspects of Western education and believes it corrupts the moral values of Muslims, especially girls. It also follows a discredited Islamic belief that women captured in conflict are part of war booty, which may explain its actions following the April 14 abduction of the Nigerian schoolgirls. 

Q: How did the Islamic extremists manage to pull off such a large-scale kidnapping? Have they participated in other terrorist acts of this magnitude?

A: Boko Haram operates in a country where corruption is a serious problem, youth unemployment is exceptionally high, and there are significant problems with political marginalization and economic inequality. In such an environment, it is not difficult to convince or force young people to sign on. There may also be complicity by small numbers of local officials. Northern Nigeria’s borders with neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon are porous, making it easy for Boko Haram to move back and forth. 

The episode involving the schoolgirls happened after a long series of terrible Boko Haram attacks, although this one is among the most horrific. The Nigerian government was slow to react and slow to accept outside help. It has also become numb to these frequent Boko Haram attacks. In addition, it was focused on hosting the World Economic Forum in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, which ended recently.

Q: Jay Carney announced that the White House would be providing assistance. Is the U.S. doing enough to help the Nigerian government?
A: It is not clear what the United States and other countries can do at this point to help find the girls, who have probably been dispersed into small groups and may have crossed into neighboring countries. Overhead satellite intelligence may be of some value, but it is hard to identify individuals this way. The United States can also offer improved communications equipment for the security forces and sophisticated forensic techniques. But the girls are almost certainly widely scattered, and U.S. boots on the ground would not likely be of much value. 

David Shinn“Every girl should have the right to reach her fullest potential without the threat of violence.”

-Mary Ellsberg, director of the George Washington University's Global Women's Institute

Dr. Ellsberg leads the Global Women’s Institute, a university-wide initiative aimed at advancing gender equality through research, civic engagement and education.

Q: Is Boko Haram’s anti-education stance a common challenge that women and girls are up against?
A:
Girls around the world face immense challenges to getting educated: Consider Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenage girl who was shot by the Taliban in 2012 for promoting girls’ education. We need to coordinate globally to ensure girls’ equality of access to education, and make certain girls aren’t risking their lives just by going to school. Every girl should have the right to reach her fullest potential without the threat of violence.

Q: What else can Americans do on an individual basis to help these girls?
A:
As individuals, we can raise awareness of these kidnappings by tweeting the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls, a global Twitter campaign which has been shared by over a million people. You can also sign this petition, begun by Nigerian youth education advocate Ojonwa Miachi, which encourages Secretary of State John Kerry and the Inspector General of the Nigeria National Police Mohammed Dahiru Abubakar to act to secure girls in Nigerian schools.

Q: How can the international community work not only to help the Nigerian government, but also raise awareness of violence against women and girls?
A:
We need to keep pressure up on the Nigerian government to prioritize the search for the kidnapped girls, so that they do not simply drop off the radar in the next news cycle. In order to help safeguard girls from future violence, we in the United States need to pass the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA), which was reintroduced into the Senate on Thursday. I-VAWA would allow for global coordination on the prevention of violence against women and girls. The bill not only increases protections to address violence, but calls for an increase in educational and economic opportunities for women around the world. I encourage everyone in the GW community to contact their congressional representatives today and urge them to pass I-VAWA.