Across Africa the International Committee of the Red Cross has registered some 71,000 people as missing; the true number must be far bigger. Perhaps 40% of them are children
across swathes of territory. Yet the ranks of the missing are swelling elsewhere in Nigeria, because of kidnappers, separatists and clashes between farmers and herders. Even in the north-east, countless cases are never registered.has registered some 71,000 people as missing; here, too, the true number must be far bigger. Perhaps 40% of them are children.
Not knowing if loved ones are alive is excruciating. Ms Adamu, softly-spoken and shy, was in her twenties when her parents were taken. Suddenly she had to look after five distraught siblings. The youngest, only five at the time, “kept on asking where his parents are”. Those left behind often become destitute, especially if the breadwinner has gone missing. In Nigeria there is no legal definition of a missing person. After seven years the family can apply to the high court to declare a person presumed dead. Until then, his or her bank account, pension and inheritance cannot be touched. Land may not be divided up or sold. Spouses cannot get a divorce or remarry.
A few African countries such as Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast and Senegal can legally declare a person as missing, though it can take several years. But almost all African countries lack the legal protections of countries such as Colombia, where there is a national registry of missing people, a commission to search for them and state support for those left behind.programme that provides mental-health support, guidance on legal troubles and help with finance. “It has healed my trauma,” says Mr Audu.
Reunifications are rare. There were only 15 last year in Nigeria. “Today brings more joy to me and my wife than the day he was born,” says the father of a 15-year-old reunited with his family in February. The boy had been missing for more than a decade. He fled across the border into Cameroon, aged five, after jihadists attacked his uncle’s village where he had been attending a religious school. His uncle was killed.
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