Rights Group Tasks Fed Govt On Niger Abductions

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has demanded urgent action from the Federal Government over the reported abduction of about 600 residents during an August 22 attack on communities in Niger State.

The rights group also expressed concern over reports that at least 40 people were killed in the attack, describing the incident as a grave national security and humanitarian emergency requiring immediate government intervention.

In a statement issued to journalists yesterday in Abuja, HURIWA’s national coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, said the reported abductions in Dekera, Gidan-Zana and Sabon Gida should not be treated as another routine security incident.

HURIWA urged President Bola Tinubu and the security agencies to provide Nigerians with clear and credible information on efforts to locate and rescue the victims.

The association said it was particularly disturbed by reports that families of the abducted residents had received no communication from the kidnappers for about two weeks, while government authorities had also failed to provide sufficient information about rescue efforts.
It said the families deserved to know what concrete measures were being taken to secure the safe return of their loved ones.

According to HURIWA, while President Tinubu had directed security agencies to rescue the hostages, such directives must produce visible and measurable results.

“A presidential order to rescue abducted citizens cannot end as a statement in the media. Nigerians need results. Families need information. The abducted citizens need to come home alive,” the group said.

HURIWA also expressed alarm over reports that a woman who had reportedly given birth barely a week earlier was abducted alongside her husband and three children, including the newborn baby.

The association said the reported case demonstrated the devastating human cost of Nigeria’s worsening insecurity.

“What kind of country allows a mother and her newborn baby to disappear into the hands of armed criminals while government agencies remain unable to tell the family what they are doing to rescue them?” HURIWA asked.

The group also condemned the reported destruction of homes and displacement of residents following the attack.

It stressed that government responsibility should not end with the deployment of security personnel, arguing that displaced victims also require food, shelter, medical care and protection from further attacks.

“Citizens whose homes are reduced to ashes cannot be abandoned to the mercy of the rains and hunger. The government has a constitutional responsibility to protect lives and property,” HURIWA said.

The rights organisation called on the Federal Government, Niger State Government and security agencies to establish an immediate and credible communication channel through which affected families could receive regular updates on rescue operations.

HURIWA also demanded an urgent investigation into how the attackers were able to carry out what residents described as a coordinated assault resulting in mass abductions and killings.

“The government must explain how hundreds of Nigerians can be taken hostage in a single operation without an effective intervention. Nigerians cannot continue to live in communities where terrorists and kidnappers determine who lives, who dies and who disappears,” the group said.

The association urged security agencies to intensify intelligence gathering, surveillance and coordinated operations aimed at locating the abducted residents, while ensuring that the safety of the victims remains the priority during any rescue operation.

It further warned that prolonged government silence could deepen public distrust and leave victims’ families feeling abandoned.

“Every abducted Nigerian is a citizen whose life is protected by the Constitution. Their families are not asking for charity. They are demanding the most basic duty of government — protection of life and the safe return of their loved ones,” HURIWA said.

The group therefore demanded urgent action, transparent communication and accountability over the reported mass abduction, insisting that the government must demonstrate that the lives of ordinary Nigerians are not expendable.