Security analysts have rubbished a series of stories by the Reuters news agency claiming the Nigerian army performed forced abortions on girls and women who were rescued from insurgent groups.
“I read the report, I’ve watched some of the videos and I can tell you that everything content there is a very good storyline for a movie,” CEO of Security Watch Africa Initiative, Patrick Agbambu told the Village Square Africa.
The investigative piece alleged that at least 10,000 abortions were committed without prior knowledge or consent of the girls some of whom were teenagers. The report said one soldier had admitted to terminating 3900 pregnancies while some 7000 others were gleaned from hospital documents seen by Reuters.
Director-General of the International Institute of Professional Security, Dr. Tony Ofoyetan who questioned the veracity of the report said there is no way to “silence 10,000 women” if indeed their pregnancies were terminated.
“That figure is not just exaggerated but it is non-existent,” said Agbambu who has knowledge of military operations and rescue camps in the Northeast of Nigeria where he claimed women and girls there are being cared for and not “harassed or threatened in any form.”
According to Agbambu, the nature of the military facilities will make it difficult for anyone to commit such widescale abortions without notice. He said interactions between the people, the military and medical workers is minimal and only when necessary.
Reuters’ findings are drawn from speaking to 33 rescued girls and women, some soldiers, and civilian health workers. Additionally, the investigators sourced information from documents they had seen. They say the abortions took place to “sanitize” the society of Boko Haram children who carried the blood of their murderous fathers.
Since the report broke last week, army chiefs have been on the defense, denying the existence of a covert abortion farm or operation.
In a five-page response to Reuters and later published by the news agency, the army accused the agency of undermining the efforts of the army in combating militant activities.
A position that resonates with Agbambu who said: “anytime the Nigerian military seems to succeed in the fight against insurgency and terrorism there seem to be some damning reports that come out either from Amnesty International or Transparency International or now Reuter doing this.”
This will not be the first time the army is being accused of human rights abuses. In 2016 and 2018. Amnesty International accused the army of brutalities that had led to the killing of civilians in its anti-terror war.
The army denied those allegations because it said there wasn’t enough evidence to show human rights abuses existed.
In addition to the abortion farms, the series of reports also allege that the army indiscriminately killed children believed to be fathered by insurgents.
In its response to Reuters, the army’s Major General Jimmy Akpor challenged the findings. He disclosed that about 41,000 children continue to live unharmed in the care of the army and other international partners in Borno State. In total Akpor wrote that more than 82,000 women, men, and children lived in their camps.
“If in IDP camp and then if the so-called repentance has been giving birth to children and they didn’t kill those children and what grants we do not commit an abortion on those ones that are pregnant.” Ofoyetan queried.
Like the army, Ofoyetan said it is impossible for infanticide or an abortion farm to operate without the notice of even the international partners. He challenged the journalists to make available their evidence of the abortions “other than the fact that you said that you interrogated just one or two people.”
“We are not convinced,” He concluded.
In the meantime, Ofoyetan encouraged the military to take legal action against the news agency for defamation while urging the army to audit and probe its ranks.