Kidnapping crisis 2

Protests are happening in Nigeria due to the high cost of living, with people unable to afford food and fuel. Kidnapping has also become a major issue in the country, with criminal gangs demanding ransom. The situation is affecting daily life, with people of all ages and statuses being targeted. Farms and markets are particularly vulnerable, leading to expensive food prices. Over 4,000 people have died due to kidnappings, and paying ransom is common despite it being illegal. The police are struggling to address the problem, and schools and colleges are often targeted. The impact is causing fear and disruption in people's daily lives. This is a protest in Nigeria against the soaring cost of living. People are furious that they can't afford food and fuel. We are hungry. This hunger is too much. I have a student. We don't have one. We can't afford a house. This hunger is too much. And it's not like this before. Unfortunately, this has become a familiar story in loads of countries around the globe. Times are tough after all. But on top of that, Nigeria is dealing with another problem, kidnapping, and on a massive scale. It is the latest in a wave of violence in that region that has become known for kidnapping, for ransom. It's incredible that we've seen two kidnappings in just 24 hours. It's not working. If there is any strategy at all, people are dying in look as if nobody cares. Kidnapping has become a huge issue in Nigeria. Criminal gangs, or bandits as they're known locally, demanding a ransom, seeing it as an easy way, or perhaps the only way, to make money. It's been especially bad in the northwest of the country. I'm William Lee Adams, and this is What in the World from the BBC World Service. Today we're looking at how the kidnapping crisis is affecting daily life in Nigeria. Nigeria is dealing with a lot of insecurity inside the country at the moment, overlapping waves of violence from bandits, jihadists, separatists, and others. But when someone pulls you out of a bus, puts a gun to your head, and kidnaps you, their motivation is probably not your biggest concern. Here to take us through the impact of the issue is Chamezie Ucheabo, a journalist with BBC Igbo. Hello. Hi, William. How bad is it in Nigeria right now with kidnappings? It's bad. It's bad. Last year, between July 2022 and June 2023, over 3,000 people were kidnapped. Nigeria, as it is, has the most figures when it comes to kidnap for ransom globally. So it's bad. It's still more prevalent in the north, but in the east, in the west, in towns, in rural areas, in communities, in markets, in farms, people get kidnapped. We have people being kidnapped, like, almost every single day. And are we talking people of all ages? We're talking people of all ages, all status. It used to be, in the past, people get targeted, the rich get targeted, people that have flashy cars, people that wear flashy things, people that live in the bougie area of town. But these days, people on buses, people traveling, the rich, the middle class, the poor people, even in communities, rural communities, we have kidnappings taking place. What about farms and markets? I've read that this might be a particularly vulnerable space for people. Totally. As it is now, food is so expensive in Nigeria because of two things, climate change and insecurity. People are too scared to go into the farms because when they go into the farms, someone is jumping out of the bush somewhere. They get raped for women or they get kidnapped. So people are no longer confident to go to farms. And this has made food super expensive. And we should be clear that, in some instances, people die. Are there figures about that? Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Over 4,000 people have died to kidnappers. It's not just kidnap for ransom. I mean, the very prominent case that happened in January. 2,006 girls were kidnapped with their father. Their uncle tried to get help and he was killed alongside three police officers. The father was released to go and get the ransom money. While he was doing that, they killed one of the daughters as a warning to him. Just in case you're trying to change your mind or maybe you're trying to be smart, they killed the daughter, Labia. The police said that they rescued the rest of the family. They released the other five sisters. But there's a story on BBC Alpha where the family came saying that they paid ransom. And what do we know about the kidnappers? Are there kidnapping gangs? Are they affiliated with terror groups? In different locations, at different places, there are different types of kidnappers. The terrorists are there. The Boko Haram. You have the bandits in different farms, rural areas. You have the agitators. And just criminal gangs, armed robbers that are just trying to make ends meet. The economic situation in Nigeria is bad. It's making crime rates go high because people are hungry and people are suffering. Kidnapping is so widespread in Nigeria now. It seems like all families would think, what do I do if someone I love is kidnapped? What do people do? The truth, William, it's better imagined than experienced. Imagine having someone call you on the phone, putting your loved one in distress, putting a gun to their head. At that point, a lot of families just go into panic attacks, shock. Most times, what has happened is that people pay ransom. I mean, two years ago, Nigeria passed a law that it's criminal to pay ransom. And you could go to jail for up to 15 years. It's criminal to pay ransom for your loved one. Yes, you could go to jail for up to 15 years if you pay ransom. But then, people do not trust the security operatives to do their job and get their loved ones out. Have security officials explained why that law is in place? Yes, because they say, I remember during Nadia's case, the Minister of Defence said, paying ransom was going to keep enriching the kidnappers and equipping them to get more weapons, to get more sophisticated. And if you stop paying ransom, you kind of starve them of their sources of income. But in reality, is it easy for someone's loved one to be held captive for days and weeks, and every day they get the same call? When a loved one's life is involved, imagine how people react. So people mostly tend to pay ransom to get their people out, to get their loved ones out. A lot of people might sit back and say, what are the police doing? How has the situation got this bad? The police, they say they are doing their best. They are saying it every day and encouraging people to stay security conscious. But then in reality, a lot of these cases get underreported. And in doing their best, how many kidnappers have they arrested? Do we have figures? No, no figures. We've mentioned that farms and markets are vulnerable places, but so are schools and colleges. Ten years ago, a school kidnapping in Nigeria became a huge news story all around the world. Boko Haram jihadists took nearly 300 girls from a school dormitory in the northeastern town of Chibok. There was a worldwide campaign that used the hashtag BringBackOurGirls with support from celebrities and public figures. The first of the kidnapped girls were found two years later. And since then, many have either been freed or escaped. But there are reports that dozens of the girls are still missing. At the time, the Chibok girls case was seen as a shocking and unusual incident. But in the years that followed, many other schools and universities were attacked with mass abduction for ransom. The Nigerian federal government is said to have paid huge sums to kidnappers in the past, including to Boko Haram militants to secure the release of some of the Chibok schoolgirls. But it's largely been left up to families to pay the bandits' demands. Someone that's had to do this is our next voice. Friday's daughter was taken from a college in Kaduna State in 2021. The students were eventually released after the parents paid what they could towards the ransom. This is the law change that Chemezye mentioned about making paying ransoms illegal. Friday and the other parents felt they had no other option but they wanted to see their children again. This is what the day of the kidnapping was like for each of them. I woke up very early in the morning to that news and it was a very terrified news. So rushing down to the scene of the incident, I saw a lot of the presence of the military, the police, the rest of the parents whose children were adopted were there. And all of us were like, where do we go from here? To us, we're like, is it how our children are going to go? The way the Chibok girls went? And we're like, God have mercy. Here's his daughter Rejoice on her experience. We just finished from reading and then went to our rooms. I was on my bed when they came in and they asked all of us to come outside. So they gathered the ones they can carry and then they took us into the bush. And we were walking for about four hours before they brought back and took us deep inside. I was afraid they were gone. The first thing that came to my mind was, oh God, is that how I'm going to go? I'm not coming back. I was very scared. We were there for about 56 days, almost two months. We were just there on the floor. Sometimes we would just wake up and there were scorpions around. Sometimes no food. But thank God we are back. It's not just affecting those directly involved, though. Kidnappings from schools and colleges can lead to parents taking their children out of classes to protect them. And in some cases, schools even close. But how else is it impacting people's daily lives? Back to Chamezie. If you're coming from work and you have to board a bus, you have to look at the kind of bus. You have to look at the kind of keke. We call it keke. Keke is like tuk-tuk. You have to look at the kind of keke that you are boarding. Because in Abuja, which is the capital of Nigeria, these keke, and it's interesting because they don't even run fast. But they are the ones that are used the most now to kidnap people. So I board a tuk-tuk, a keke, and there's a risk that the driver will then take my phone and perhaps pull a weapon on me? Absolutely. And you go in, they pull the weapon, they take your phone, and warn you not to say anything. And because they are the most, you have two choices. Stay there or jump out into the road and risk being hit by an oncoming vehicle. I interviewed a senator that proposed a bill that Nigerians should start to carry their own firearms. That's Nigerians should make a law for people to be able to buy firearms and protect themselves. Because the security rate is high. The bill is still in the Senate, but that's to show you how bad it's gotten. People are now having conversations around owning firearms and protecting themselves. And are there any notorious roads or areas that people actively avoid? Absolutely. There are people now that do not want to take road transport for long distance journeys. Interstate journeys, people usually take public transport like buses. Because flying is like a thing for the elites now. It's super expensive. So people take these buses. But people are avoiding routes. For instance, going from Lagos, which is a commercial capital of Nigeria, to Abuja, which is the actual capital of Nigeria, is about a 12-hour journey by road. And the road is one of the worst roads. The road is bad and it's the best target for kidnappers because buses can't run fast. I mean, somebody made a joke once. It became a meme in Nigeria. And the person said, you can travel by road, just carry your ransom in your bag. What about life for young people? Has that been impacted by all this? Absolutely. In cities, people still go to nightclubs. In huge cities like Lagos and Abuja, people still go to nightclubs. But then, some people have had experiences coming out of nightclubs at night, being mugged, being kidnapped. In huge cities, people can still raise kids. But in some cities, especially in the southeast, nightlife is almost zero. It's non-existent and there are bubbling places. These are places that people used to go to spend money and just stay lavish, just chill and relax and have fun. But now, it doesn't happen anymore. It's as if nowhere is actually safe anymore because you can get mugged or attacked or kidnapped in school. You can get kidnapped in the market or in your farm, on your way to work, traveling. But people are still going to school. People are still asking government to do better when it comes to insecurity. Because these things affect people's daily life, but people keep living. That's the thing. Chemezye, thank you so much for explaining that. Thank you. Thank you, William. Chemezye ended by saying that people keep living. But with bandits in their midst and the threat of kidnapping looming ever larger, how people live and how they think about their safety has had to change. And until the economic situation improves, we might expect that these kidnappings will continue. Especially if the government and law enforcement fail to get a grip on security issues. I'm William Lee Adams. Thanks for listening to What in the World from the BBC World Service. We'll see you later. Bye. What in the World from the BBC World Service Press freedom. The reasons why it's under increasing pressure. 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