This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/may/01/parents-abducted-schoolgirls-nigeria-protest

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Parents of abducted Nigerian schoolgirls hold desperate protest Parents of abducted Nigerian schoolgirls hold desperate protest
(about 3 hours later)
Hundreds of parents in Nigeria have held a day of desperate protest in the town where the kidnapping of scores of schoolgirls by Islamists has left families lurching from fury to despair. Hundreds of parents in Nigeria, many dressed in red, held a day of protest on Thursday in the town where the kidnapping of more than 100 schoolgirls by Islamists has left families lurching from fury to despair.
The parents began their march outside the residence of a local chief in Chibok, the town in Borno state where suspected Boko Haram insurgents stormed into a school and abducted the girls at gunpoint more than a fortnight ago. In Chibok, the town in Borno state where suspected Boko Haram insurgents stormed into the Government girls secondary school and abducted the girls at gunpoint a fortnight ago, parents began their march outside the residence of a local chief.
The mothers and fathers – some wailing, some chanting angrily – marched towards the scene of the kidnapping, carrying placards reading "Find Our Daughters", before holding a prayer ceremony at the school gates. The mothers and fathers, some of whom were wailing, marched towards the scene of the kidnapping, carrying placards reading "Find Our Daughters", before holding a prayer ceremony at the school gates.
"We want our daughters back. We want the United Nations to come and assist in rescuing our daughters. Through this march, we want to tell the whole world that we need their help to secure the release of our daughters," Enoch Mark, whose daughter and two nieces were abducted, told AFP. The Borno government says 129 girls were taken and that 52 have since escaped. But locals, including the principal at the school, say 230 students were taken and 187 are still missing.
One father drew a damning parallel with recent international efforts to find the missing Malaysia Airlines plane. "Imagine 25 countries joining hands in a search for a missing aircraft in Malaysia whose passengers are presumed dead. Here we are talking of scores of living girls abducted by people known to have no mercy, but the government doesn't seem to care much," said a tearful Yakubu Maina. The leader of Chibok's elders forum, Pogu Bitrus, told AFP he had received information that the girls were trafficked into neighbouring Cameroon and Chad and sold as brides to insurgents for 2,000 naira (about £7). The report has not been confirmed.
The Borno government says 129 girls were taken and that 52 have since escaped. But locals, including the principal at the targeted Government Girls Secondary School, say 230 students were taken and 187 are still missing. "Death is preferable to this life of misery we have been living since their abduction," said one protesting mother, who did not give her name. "We call on our government to sit up and rescue our girls."
The leader of Chibok's elders forum, Pogu Bitrus, told AFP he had received information that the girls were trafficked into Cameroon and Chad and sold as brides to insurgents for 2,000 naira (£9). The report has not been confirmed. In Lagos, police fired teargas canisters at a crowd of 100 people staging a protest for the missing girls. Bukola, one of the protesters, told the Guardian: "He [the police officer] kept saying we had no right to talk, sing or be there – we should leave."
"Death is preferable to this life of misery we have been living since their abduction," said one mother at the protest, without giving his name. "We call on our government to sit up and rescue our girls." The protest moved to Onikan stadium, where Lagos state governor Tunde Fashola was attending a May Day parade. Demonstrators camped outside the stadium, singing and chanting: "Bring back our girls – alive!" For many, the missing schoolgirls have come to symbolise a wider security crisis in Nigeria.
Anger at the government's ineffectual response has fuelled protests across the country. Police fired teargas to disperse a group of protesters in central Lagos, local media reported, a day after hundreds rallied in the capital Abuja. "What if it's my grandchildren?" asked Nnenna Ogwuegbu, 64, who marched in Lagos with her daughters. "We voted for security and now there's no security. It's time to do something."
Speaking at a May Day rally in Abuja, the head of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Abdulwahed Omar, said: "Our hearts bleed and we pray for their safe release. "It doesn't make sense. How do 234 girls go missing and nobody knows where they are?" asked Yemi Adamolekun, executive director of Enough is Enough (EiE)
"The war on terrorism does not seem to be going well at the moment. We demand better initiatives and more commitment," he told a crowd that included President Goodluck Jonathan, who has faced harsh criticism over the government's response. "[The authorities] know where Boko Haram is," said Gambo Manzo, a local politician whose parents are from the country's north east. "Only they can't confront them. Nobody knows why."
The mass kidnapping is one of the most shocking attacks in Boko Haram's five-year extremist uprising, which has killed thousands across the north and centre of the country, including 1,500 people this year alone.The mass kidnapping is one of the most shocking attacks in Boko Haram's five-year extremist uprising, which has killed thousands across the north and centre of the country, including 1,500 people this year alone.
A delegation from the Senate in Abuja met with Jonathan on Wednesday to discuss the rescue operation, Senate spokesman Eyinnaya Abaribe told AFP on Thursday, but he declined to give details. A delegation from the Senate in Abuja met Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday to discuss a rescue operation, spokesman Eyinnaya Abaribe told AFP on Thursday, but he declined to give further details.