Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 October 2016
356. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which women and girls continue to be targeted by Boko Haram; the extent to which women and girls taken as hostages are being released; the efforts being made to assist their release; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32096/16]
View answerIreland has consistently condemned the violence perpetrated by Boko Haram, which has resulted in the deaths of thousands of people and the displacement of over 2 million. The activities of the group continue to pose a serious risk to the peace and security of Nigeria and the wider region, including Cameroon, Chad and Niger.
In a UN report released in June of this year, UN human rights experts found that Boko Haram have subjected women and children to extensive practices of abduction, rape, forced marriage, and forcing children into direct and supporting combat roles. There is also a serious developing trend of forcing young girls to engage in suicide bombings.
While exact numbers of those abducted is difficult to confirm, the UN estimates that thousands of women and children have been abducted by Boko Haram since 2012. As of February 2016, 1,010 of these children had been rescued. Ireland, with our EU partners, continues to call for all parties to work together in securing the release of those that have been abducted.
In particular, Ireland has consistently called for the release of the Chibok Schoolgirls, who were abducted in April 2014. In that regard, I welcome the recent news of the release of 21 of the girls and join with my EU colleagues in congratulating Nigeria on the success of the negotiations. I also commend Switzerland and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for their important role in facilitating this process. The release has brought the total number of the Chibok Schoolgirls freed in 2016 to 22.
While it is the responsibility of the Nigerian Government to ensure that a secure environment is provided to its citizens, Ireland, in cooperation with our EU partners, has continued to support the Nigerian Government in its efforts. The EU has pledged to provide up to €50 million to the Multinational Joint Taskforce, which comprises 8,700 troops from neighbouring countries and the Nigerian Armed Forces, to promote regional security.
More recently, as the security situation has improved with gains by the Nigerian Armed Forces against Boko Haram, the true extent of the crisis has been revealed, with an estimated 7 million people now in need of immediate humanitarian assistance.
Ireland continues to provide significant humanitarian funding in areas affected by the conflict. To date in 2016, Ireland has provided over €721,000 in stocks and €300,000 in humanitarian grants to NGOs for use in the region. Furthermore, in September 2016, my Department announced funding of €1 million each to both the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and the International Committee of the Red Cross, for use in North East Nigeria. Additionally, Ireland has in the last year deployed five Rapid Response personnel to Maiduguri for three months to work in logistics, gender, coordination and engineering.
