The Borno State Government has announced that no fewer than 6,900 suspected Boko Haram fighters currently in custody will face transitional justice. The State Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Zuwaira Gambo, made this revelation during the conclusion of a best practice dissemination and learning programme organized by the Allamin Foundation for Peace and Development in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, on Tuesday.
Since the mass surrender initiative began in 2021, a total of 200,000 Boko Haram terrorists and their families have surrendered to the state government. Commissioner Gambo highlighted that nearly 9,000 individuals have successfully reintegrated into society through the programme.
“We have about 6,900 genuine Boko Haram fighters in our custody, and they will face transitional justice because they have committed crimes. We are working on that; they are real fighters,” she stated. The transitional justice process aims to address severe atrocities and end recurring cycles of violent conflict through various responses, including restitution, reconciliation, prosecution, and amnesty.
Hamsatu Allamin, Executive Director of the Allamin Foundation for Peace and Development, emphasized that the surrendered individuals regret their involvement with Boko Haram. They expressed remorse, citing a lack of knowledge and the ease with which they were brainwashed into joining the insurgents.
“If Boko Haram used their ideology based on religion to brainwash people into joining them, we must also use religion to tell them the truth. Therefore, I suggest that the government use religion to correct this troubling narrative,” Allamin said.
Under the project ‘Building Bridges of Reconciliation: A Community-Based Approach to Deradicalisation of Women and Girls in Borno State,’ over 800 deradicalized women were sensitized and are now contributing to society. These women are prepared to embrace a new life free from violence and become responsible members of society, contributing to peacebuilding and the overall development of their communities.
