Clutching unto a week-old baby boy, a teenager, simply identified as Hajara, was lost in thought as she spoke repeatedly to herself while ignoring the screams from the baby, which turned out to be hers. Nearby women who rebuked her were asked to come and carry the child and leave her alone.
Hajara is one of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) temporarily kept in a camp in Maiduguri town. An orphan, who lost both parents in one of the attacks by the Boko Haram sect, gave birth to a baby boy a week ago and is yet to adjust into her reality of motherhood.
Hajara, like so many other girls, was four months pregnant before she was rescued. “I am sad because I do not know who owns this baby. I have told them to carry this child so that I can have my life back but they said that I must breastfeed him for six months. The elders in the camp said that they are looking for a rich old man that can marry me alongside with the baby. This is not my dream but I thank Allah for keeping me alive this day as so many girls were raped to death by Boko Haram members. Please, take him away from me if you can,” Hajara called out to visitors who came to the camp to celebrate the New Year with the IDPs.
Saturday Sun learnt that one of the major challenges of the various IDP camps visited is that of children born out of wedlock, and is happening at an alarming rate.
Unlike Hajara, who got to the camp pregnant, Fati,16, conceived while in the camp. She lamented that it was her quest to make do of an available man in the camp that landed her in trouble.
Speaking fluently in English, Fati said: “I lost both parents when they attacked our village in Bama. I was able to run away with my little brother before they packed the other girls and left. We trekked through the bush till we got to Maiduguri.
“I was admitted into the camp a year ago and since I do not have parents, I and my brother were attached to another family in a tent. There are so many girls in the camp and few men. The family I was living with advised me to find a man for myself that will marry me because Boko Haram had killed so many boys. I was only 16 and the competition was too much.
“I later got Sani but I never knew that he had so many women on the line. I refused to have sex with him initially but he threatened that he would leave me for another woman. This was why I started having sex with him. He promised to marry me as soon as we get out of the camp. He was not happy when he discovered that I was pregnant. He simply asked me to get out of his sight and go and find a husband for myself. I thank God for men of NEMA who have assisted us, I wish they will take the baby so that I will have an opportunity to go to school. I am an orphan and do not have anyone to assist me in life.”
Zara’s tale is also similar to that of Fati but the difference is that the baby in her arms belongs to a 70-year-old-man who is in the camp. At 17, she was advised to become the fourth wife of the old man since her entire family was wiped out by the insurgents. “I was left with no choice but to marry Alhaji. I was even lucky that he has only three wives. This is not the life I dreamed of, but I pray that when we get back to Adamawa, we will be able to have a normal life. I hope he will allow me to go back to school because I want to become a teacher,” Zara said.
Not left out were some of the parents who spoke with Saturday Sun. They raised alarm that the various camps have turned into breeding ground as the teenager whose hormones are very active can no longer control their urge.
According Mohammed, his greatest worry is how to find a husband for his daughter. “I am grateful to God that I made it alive. I am married to four wives and would have taken more if my religion accepts it. My greatest concern is three of my daughters who are of age. Men are difficult to come by and the ones in the camp are full of deceit. Once in a while families will come from the city to pick wives for their children but my daughters are not lucky yet. The camp has turned into a brothel and the little girls you see around are all into it. They have lost control and I wish that government will help us to keep them busy. We are simply praying to Allah (God) to help us so that we can return to our various homes.”
Another parent, Mrs. Halima called on government to quickly end the reign of terror so that they can go back home. “It is bad over here. The elderly men are also guilty of getting our daughters pregnant. In fact, they are worse than the younger ones. Some of them have access to money and normally use it to woo these innocent girls. I can tell you that most of the pregnant women you see around here conceived while in this camp. Rape cases here is also high, it’s just that we prefer not to talk about it. The victims are mostly girls whose parents are not in the camp to protect them.”
Also 40-year-old Aishatu, who is eight months pregnant, lamented that by the time she was rescued by the military, she was already six months pregnant. “It was a horrible experience and we were at the mercy of the insurgents who took turns to sleep with the women in the captivity. You do not have access to drugs, especially when they discover that you are pregnant. I am simply counting my days and will donate this child to an orphanage so that he would be adopted by a childless family.
“I am satisfied with the seven children that God gave me through my husband before he was beheaded by the sect. At least five of them survived the attack and are safe.”
On the rate of birth, a midwife, Fatima, who spoke to Saturday Sun, explained that several girls in the camp are pregnant and remains unmarried. “They are idle so it is natural that most of them seek pleasure among themselves. All we need is counsellors because the rate of pregnancies is very in most of the camps that I have visited. They even gave them condom free of charge but every month we will get a new case of pregnant woman especially the under aged.”
“Meanwhile, one would expect that people would flood here seeking for children to adopt. Their excuse is that most the newborn babies belong to Boko Haram members. This is the major challenge that we have today and most of these girls are willing to give out their child. This was why it was rumoured that they were selling children in IDP camps. The truth is that some of them need to be taken to better homes where they will be well taken care of.”
While at the camp, Red Cross official, who was also spoke with Saturday Sun, confirmed the high degree of sexual activity going on in the camps, and warned that there might be epidemic of sexually transmitted disease, if nothing is done to control unprotected sex in the camp.
“We have been lucky so far that HIV has not ravaged our various camps. Those that tested positive were completely isolated from the camps. We are doing our best within the resources at our disposal to help these Nigerians who are displaced as a result of the activities of Boko Haram. There is need to actively engage them to distract their attention form sex. The rate is high and if they are kept here for the next one year, there will be an explosion of babies in the various camps.”
On rumours that some babies are being sold, the official said that it could be true but without the knowledge of government officials.
Meanwhile, NEMA reportedly confirmed that more than 410 babies were born in a space of two months in camps in North-East.
“Over 410 births were recorded between August and September in the camps in Borno and Adamawa states, said the head of NEMA, Muhammad Sani Sidi. In the same period, there were 187 marriages -100 in camps in the Borno State capital, Maiduguri and 87 in neighbouring Adamawa, he added in a statement.
According to the report, in recent months, IDPs camps have accommodated hundreds of women and children kidnapped by the insurgents and rescued by the military during its counter-offensive against the Islamist.
NEMA’s Sidi, however, made no reference as to whether the births in September and October were from women kidnapped by Boko Haram and forced into marriage with the Islamist fighters.
“We just help them deliver,” NEMA spokesman, Manzo Ezekiel reportedly said from Maiduguri
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