Hundreds of Captives Freed From Nigerian School

Option: Children attend school at an Almajiri in Keffi City, Nigeria. (Wikimedia Commons)

Police rescued over 300 boys and men from a building operating under the guise of an Islamic school in Kaduna, Nigeria, on September 27. The victims, ranging in age from six to 50, were suffering from starvation and many showed signs of physical abuse, including scars from suspected beatings. 

Police also found victims in the building with chains around their ankles, padlocked to radiators and tires. A number of boys reported being sexually abused at the hands of their supposed teachers. Ali Janga, the Kaduna police chief, described the building as a “house of torture,” and police spokesman Yakubu Sabo cited “debasing and inhuman conditions” inside the facility. 

Police raided the building following a tip from a relative who was denied access to the boys. Other relatives reported similar experiences. Hassan Muhammad, uncle to three boys held captive in the facility, said that he was prevented from seeing his nephews after begging the school for access to them. Other parents claimed they were allowed to see their children only once every three months and that they were never allowed to enter the facility itself. 

Many parents sent their children to the Kaduna school in hopes of providing them with a Quranic education, while others believed that they were sending their children to a reform institution. However, Janga remarked, “This place is neither a rehab or an Islamic school… you can see it for yourselves.” Furthermore, officials claim that the building was never licensed to operate as either a reform center or a school.

In northern Nigeria, the poorest region in the country, parents regularly choose to leave their children at such Islamic schools, called Almajiris, because they are unable to provide for their them. Almajiris are common throughout northern Nigeria where the majority of the population is Muslim.

For the past few years, Almajiris have faced accusations of mistreatment with claims that young students were left to beg on the street. In response to these claims, President Muhammadu Buhari announced plans to ban the establishments earlier this year. The president’s office said in a statement that “the federal government wants a situation where every child of primary school age is in school rather than begging on the streets during school hours.”

Ishaq Akintola, director of the Muslim Rights Concern, a human rights group based in Nigeria, called for a less drastic approach to addressing abuse within the Almajiri system in response to the president’s plan. Akintola remarked that “those responsible for abuse, if found guilty, should be held accountable but these schools should continue because shutting them down would deprive so many students of an education. ”

In the aftermath of the raid in Kaduna, police recorded just 190 victims, saying that many victims fled immediately upon their release. The government placed the captives in a temporary camp under its charge while an attempt is made to locate family members. In the meantime, the government is providing food and necessary medical care for the victims.