#BringBackOurGirls … Now What?

on May 17, 2014

Just a few weeks ago, the name “Boko Haram” was an unfamiliar term in many parts of the world.

On April 14, 276 schoolgirls were abducted from their school in Nigeria by the Islamist group. According to Nigerian government sources, 230 remain missing.

Time Magazine reports that a social media campaign using the Twitter hashtag #BringBackOurGirls originated in Nigeria, after Oby Ezekwesili, the vice president of the World Bank for Africa, gave a speech in Nigeria in which she urged the government to intervene and “bring back our girls.” As a result twitter users across Nigeria began an awareness campaign.

U.K. publication Christian Today reports “#BringBackOurGirls has been tweeted over a million times, and a dedicated Facebook page has an estimated 60-thousand likes.”

Many world leaders have given support and been photographed with the hashtag.

The hashtag has increased awareness and concern of the situation. Now, the next question many people have been asking is: What can I do?

Many ministries worldwide have stepped up their prayer efforts as a result of the hashtag. Dr. Paul Nyquist, the president of Moody Bible Institute issued a statement saying “Please join Moody in praying for the 276 Nigerian schoolgirls who were kidnapped in Chibok. As a community we are heartbroken with the families of these precious ones made in the image of God, as they are oppressed and treated this way. We come to the Lord in whom we have eternal hope asking that the young women be sustained throughout and ultimately delivered from the hands of the oppressors. We pray for their families and for wisdom and safety for those working to rescue them.”

The Institute on Religion and Democracy contacted Open Doors USA to ask what Christians can do to help the situation. Jerry Dykstra, director of media relations with the ministry is continuing a writing/prayer campaign on its website to encourage the families of the girls. Dykstra advises writing a blog post here and to share a prayer here. Or go to www.OpenDoorsUSA.org.
In the United Kingdom, the Evangelical Alliance of the UK has joined forces with the National Day of Prayer.

Steve Clifford, general director of the Evangelical Alliance, stated: “As evangelical Christians we believe that all people everywhere are created equal and in the image of a loving God. As the Evangelical Alliance, we are also passionate about the importance of civil liberty, the right of every human being to an education and the freedom of every person to choose what they believe.

Clifford asserts that this is not just about freedoms. “At the center of this is a heartbreaking story of precious girls who have been snatched from the schools in which they were seeking an education. We might sign all the petitions and use all the hashtags we want, but as Christians our first response must be to pray to a God who is able to do all things- even in the midst of hopelessness and despair.”

UNICEF has been encouraging people to continue to use the hashtag and become involve in the “End Trafficking Project”.
Human Rights Watch is a Washington, D.C.-based non-governmental organization that both investigates and advocates for human rights worldwide. Zama Coursen-Neff is the director of the Children’s Rights Division of this NGO. In an ABC news interview she said individuals should support groups that promote girls’ education and civilian protection. She also advises people to press governments worldwide to sustain pressure on the Nigerian government to search for the girls and improve protection for schools.

Amnesty International has set up a special page to urge people to contact the Nigerian ambassador to the United States and asked that more be done to secure the release of the schoolgirls.
As individuals are being encouraged to act on behalf of the Nigerian schoolgirls, the United States government is also getting involved in practical ways. Fox News reports U.S. drones have been searching areas of northern Nigeria.

A senior State Department official says a law known as the Leahy Amendment could provide roadblocks for U.S. forces cooperating with the Nigerian government. This law was passed in 1997, and named after its sponsor, Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. It bars U.S. forces from cooperating with any military force accused of chronic human rights violations.

American drones were scouring a region the size of West Virginia in northern Nigeria for nearly 300 Christian schoolgirls kidnapped a month ago by a maniacal Islamist warlord, but the effort faced a potential roadblock in the rarely-invoked U.S. law that bars the military from helping certain governments.

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