:00:00. > :00:16.the missing schoolgirls and the Boko Haram Insurgency.
:00:17. > :00:24.Welcome to this special edition of Reporters. I'm here in the Nigerian
:00:25. > :00:27.capital. As the world waits for the news of the schoolgirls kidnapped by
:00:28. > :00:36.Islamist militants, we have a range of reports from our correspondents.
:00:37. > :00:39.In this week's programme: The search for the missing children ` John
:00:40. > :00:42.Simpson travels to the state where the girls were abducted. He finds
:00:43. > :00:47.growing anger against the Nigerian authorities. This is extraordinary.
:00:48. > :00:54.The governor, and the rest of us, are being thrown out of here by the
:00:55. > :00:57.anger of the crowd. How safe are Nigeria's schools? Mark Doyle speaks
:00:58. > :01:11.to teachers and schoolchildren, living in fear of the militants.
:01:12. > :01:14.They make me frightened. I'm scared. Nigeria's war against Boko Haram `
:01:15. > :01:17.Gordon Corera investigates the group behind the abductions, who've waged
:01:18. > :01:23.a bloody campaign of violence across Nigeria. And bring back our girls `
:01:24. > :01:28.we speak to mothers of the abducted girls who are going through every
:01:29. > :01:34.parent's nightmare. When I think of her I feel a deep pain inside. I
:01:35. > :01:40.pray for her, hoping God will answer.
:01:41. > :01:44.It's a month since Islamist militants abducted more than 200
:01:45. > :01:47.girls from a school in north east Nigeria. It's an act that sparked
:01:48. > :01:51.outrage and condemnation across the globe. The authorities say all
:01:52. > :01:57.options are being considered to free them. Nigeria's President has said
:01:58. > :02:02.there is no question of swopping any of the girls for prisoners of the
:02:03. > :02:05.insurgency, held by the government. John Simpson travelled to Boko Haram
:02:06. > :02:17.territory and found growing anger against the Nigerian authorities.
:02:18. > :02:30.136 girls, most Christian until a month ago, obediently chant the
:02:31. > :02:37.first part of the Koran. If you look closely, not all of them are
:02:38. > :02:41.chanting. It's the first sighting of them, yet more than half of the 270
:02:42. > :02:44.girls kidnapped aren't here. Whether because they refused to convert, or
:02:45. > :02:51.for some other reason, we don't know. One of the girls is led to the
:02:52. > :02:54.front of the group and told to give a Muslim name, rather than her
:02:55. > :03:05.Christian one. She's clearly frightened. In the video, Boko
:03:06. > :03:19.Haram's leader ` said to be flamboyant and mocking ` launches
:03:20. > :03:23.into a long speech. These girls you're so concerned with, we've
:03:24. > :03:34.liberated them. They're Muslims. They're staying with us. This man is
:03:35. > :03:40.desperate for news. He's made the dangerous journey from where they
:03:41. > :03:42.were kidnapped to here. No fewer than six of his relatives were
:03:43. > :03:50.kidnapped ` sisters, nieces, cousins... He can't spot them in the
:03:51. > :04:00.video. This must be shocking for you to see? One of the most shocking
:04:01. > :04:07.moments ever. This is inhumane. It's not correct. It's unfair. There is
:04:08. > :04:17.no reason for them to impose religion on them. Everyone has the
:04:18. > :04:23.right to choose. This whole part of Nigeria is Boko Haram territory. To
:04:24. > :04:27.get round it you need lots of firepower. We had 40 official
:04:28. > :04:32.vehicles, packed with armed men, to guard us. We're going with the local
:04:33. > :04:36.governor, heading to the scene of one of the worst attacks. It
:04:37. > :04:44.happened last week but was scarcely reported, even in Nigeria. This is
:04:45. > :04:48.hostile territory. The road we're on would normally be very busy. It's
:04:49. > :04:56.almost empty because no`one wants to drive along here after the attacks.
:04:57. > :05:05.Villages are deserted, because people are scared. After a couple of
:05:06. > :05:12.hours, we reach a small town. The bridge was blown up last Wednesday.
:05:13. > :05:19.But two days earlier, this place was hit by an army of Boko Haram men.
:05:20. > :05:23.They arrived at 1:30pm. We counted hundreds of burned out cars. Boko
:05:24. > :05:34.Haram didn't want anyone following them afterwards. They massacred 375
:05:35. > :05:43.people. Almost unnoticed in the outside world. The town centre was
:05:44. > :05:50.simply destroyed. The sheer scale of the destruction is extraordinary. I
:05:51. > :05:53.didn't expect this. All the attention around the world has been
:05:54. > :06:03.on the abduction of the schoolgirls, but this is going on all the time in
:06:04. > :06:06.this part of Nigeria. The governor came here to offer help and money,
:06:07. > :06:12.but the survivors are working themselves up into a frenzy of
:06:13. > :06:24.anger. They're angry that the government is doing so little. They
:06:25. > :06:35.have let us down. The crowd is getting angry... We are going to
:06:36. > :06:45.compensate them. We will talk to the President. Are you frightened? No. I
:06:46. > :06:53.have gone through situations like this. But there was no calming them.
:06:54. > :07:01.The governor was lucky to get away unhurt. This is extraordinary. The
:07:02. > :07:06.governor, and the rest of us, are being thrown out of here by the
:07:07. > :07:12.anger of the crowd. We're having to get back to our cars pretty quickly.
:07:13. > :07:16.All this anger isn't surprising. People here feel utterly abandoned.
:07:17. > :07:20.They can't understand why a world that cares so much about the missing
:07:21. > :07:31.schoolgirls seems to care so little about the destruction of an entire
:07:32. > :07:34.town. The capture of the schoolgirls has
:07:35. > :07:39.raised questions about the security of children in Nigerian schools.
:07:40. > :07:44.Mark Doyle has been to a government school to hear how children and
:07:45. > :07:47.teachers feel about their safety. It's become every schoolchild's
:07:48. > :07:49.nightmare ` even here in the Nigerian capital, the children's
:07:50. > :08:05.thoughts are with their kidnapped colleagues. I feel terrible. They
:08:06. > :08:20.are like me. No`one knows how they are. Boko Haram are wicked. They
:08:21. > :08:32.make me frightened. I'm scared. I don't know how they are. I pray for
:08:33. > :08:36.them, so God protects them. Nigeria is a very big country and schools
:08:37. > :08:39.like this are part of the reality too. The mass kidnapping has served
:08:40. > :08:44.to highlight the vicious war taking place between Boko Haram and the
:08:45. > :08:53.Nigerian government. But Boko Haram have attacked targets here as well.
:08:54. > :08:55.The head of the school follows the government's security advice ` with
:08:56. > :09:11.walls and fencing around her charges. The schools are fenced now.
:09:12. > :09:22.They have security, to check in and check out. The boarding school
:09:23. > :09:32.attacked in the north east would have needed more than good fencing.
:09:33. > :09:38.It's a war zone. Boko Haram means 'Western education is a sin'. And
:09:39. > :09:41.the leader of the Nigerian Union of Teachers says over 170 of his
:09:42. > :09:52.members have been killed by the group. These people come from
:09:53. > :10:02.nowhere and shoot. Teachers are a target because they're educators.
:10:03. > :10:16.These people don't want that. They want Arabic education. They are a
:10:17. > :10:20.target. Enemy number one. So it's come to this. Parts of Nigeria are
:10:21. > :10:33.not safe for schoolchildren or their teachers.
:10:34. > :10:38.The the girls has sparked worldwide interest and a campaign to free
:10:39. > :10:44.them. It is also focused on the world's attention on Boko Haram. As
:10:45. > :10:49.Nigeria marks the first anniversary of the state of emergency against
:10:50. > :10:54.Boko Haram, Gordon Corera investigates the Islamist group.
:10:55. > :10:58.More than 100 Nigerian schoolgirls seen this week for the first time
:10:59. > :11:06.since their abduction. The latest incident in a growing campaign of
:11:07. > :11:11.violence by one group. Who are Boko Haram? This man took on the
:11:12. > :11:22.leadership of Boco RAM in 2009 `` Boko Haram, steadily increasing the
:11:23. > :11:26.use of violence. The founder of Boko Haram aims to create an Islamic
:11:27. > :11:30.state in the north of the country. The name of the group loosely
:11:31. > :11:37.translates as Western education is forbidden, opposing outside
:11:38. > :11:45.influences. Boko Haram has always been looked at as basically a
:11:46. > :11:48.domestic terrorist group, one whose aims were largely focused on
:11:49. > :11:57.upsetting and undermining the Nigerian state.
:11:58. > :11:59.Starting off with Lone gunmen assassinated and officials, they
:12:00. > :12:05.have now evolved, killing thousands in recent years. Tactics employed by
:12:06. > :12:13.the Government have not been very effective. I think the group has
:12:14. > :12:19.become more emboldened, more sophisticated. The girls were taken
:12:20. > :12:24.from the town of Chibok in the Boko Haram stronghold. For them past year
:12:25. > :12:29.there has been emergency rule in three states to cope with the
:12:30. > :12:34.threat. This is a region where people feel earlier netted from the
:12:35. > :12:38.capital and the federal government. Boko Haram draws local support on
:12:39. > :12:45.the ground from those in poverty and lacking education. They also have
:12:46. > :12:49.ample funding. At present they have a diversify the funding pool. They
:12:50. > :12:55.are involved in a number of criminal activities, such as bank robbery,
:12:56. > :12:58.car snatching and possibly drugs. They kidnap individuals for the
:12:59. > :13:04.purpose of extortion. They are possibly getting some support from
:13:05. > :13:13.local business people and possibly northern politicians. And they are
:13:14. > :13:18.also getting some funding elsewhere. Estimated numbers of fighters range
:13:19. > :13:22.from the hundreds to the thousands. The group so far has been primarily
:13:23. > :13:30.focused on Nigeria, but it's threat has been growing?
:13:31. > :13:32.There are fears among Nigerians `` Nigeria's North African neighbours
:13:33. > :13:37.that Boko Haram will spread across its borders. Over 50,000 people are
:13:38. > :13:44.reported to have fled to Niger to flee the violence. The insurgents
:13:45. > :13:54.may be paying to recruit fighters from Niger. In the Sahara, a
:13:55. > :13:58.sandstorm. At least it feels safer here. These Nigerian refugees were
:13:59. > :14:00.pushed across the border into Nigeria after Islamist militants
:14:01. > :14:08.from Boko Haram raided their village. On Lake Chad, Nigerians are
:14:09. > :14:15.fleeing by boat. The UN estimates 500 cross into Niger every week.
:14:16. > :14:21.This man arrived last month with his two wives and six children.
:14:22. > :14:28.TRANSLATION: I was going to bed when we heard the first gunshots, when we
:14:29. > :14:36.rent to escape, the little girl was shot as she fled her burning
:14:37. > :14:41.Hauritz. `` house. It is a growing refugee crisis but without camps.
:14:42. > :14:45.The authorities say they could become recruitment centres for Boko
:14:46. > :14:49.Haram. Boko Haram have shown they can hit the Nigerian state in
:14:50. > :14:55.different ways. Bomb attacks, raiding villages, abduction of
:14:56. > :14:58.children. For now, Nigeria's neighbours are only dealing with the
:14:59. > :15:02.consequences of this violence. But the prospect of the same violence
:15:03. > :15:11.spilling over is becoming more of a question of not if, but when they
:15:12. > :15:18.may strike you. Niger's security forces patrol the border. Dozens of
:15:19. > :15:21.men suspected of links with Boko Haram have been arrested. We have
:15:22. > :15:24.made contact with the local gang whose members claim they are
:15:25. > :15:30.collaborating with Boko Haram. They have agreed to talk to us but they
:15:31. > :15:36.`` but we cannot show their faces. The gang members are in their early
:15:37. > :15:40.20s. Five of their group have joined the Nigerian militants. Two have
:15:41. > :15:48.been killed on operations. TRANSLATION: Some of us give them
:15:49. > :15:53.information about what is going on. They come to us and we informed
:15:54. > :15:59.them. If they tell you to launch an attack, would you be ready? Yes,
:16:00. > :16:05.we're ready. We have no jobs, so we are ready. That is what we are here
:16:06. > :16:10.for. Boko Haram have paid them ?2000 to join their insurgency. It is the
:16:11. > :16:14.cash they want. They have no interest in defending Sharia law.
:16:15. > :16:19.Drought and hunger have made communities in Niger vulnerable.
:16:20. > :16:24.Clues and rebellions have made it on stable. It's fragile state is now
:16:25. > :16:34.threatened by the crisis next door are fuelled by poverty and neglect.
:16:35. > :16:38.Both conditions exist here. Nowhere in the north`east of Nigeria
:16:39. > :16:44.is safe from Boko Haram these days. It is also carried out attacks in
:16:45. > :16:48.distant cities such as Abuja `` Abuja, and one of the worst a couple
:16:49. > :16:57.of years ago in Canada were 185 people were killed. `` Cano. This is
:16:58. > :17:02.what Cano is known for. Its trade in textiles has made it a major
:17:03. > :17:05.commercial hub. Now the state is it has had for centuries has been
:17:06. > :17:10.threatened by the surge in violence in recent years. The bloodshed has
:17:11. > :17:18.mostly been in other parts of the North. Business year has dipped
:17:19. > :17:25.since an attack two years ago. Since January 2012, our business has gone
:17:26. > :17:31.down. Our customers are afraid to come here. It is not possible they
:17:32. > :17:40.cross the border into Nigeria because some of them... Now it is
:17:41. > :17:44.very difficult. This may not be under a state of emergency, but the
:17:45. > :17:49.spill`over effects of the violence in the north`east of the country are
:17:50. > :17:53.clearly being felt here. The city has suffered its own violence, and
:17:54. > :17:59.that has prompted widespread caution in this centre of commercial
:18:00. > :18:04.activity. This group, made up mostly of volunteers, is part of a
:18:05. > :18:09.neighbourhood watch organisation. This unit has become part of the
:18:10. > :18:13.fight against Boko Haram. They may not have the firepower but they are
:18:14. > :18:18.armed with information that the police and army would not ordinarily
:18:19. > :18:24.have. We help them in terms of information gathering. So through
:18:25. > :18:28.this insurgency that has come to Cano, we give vital information so
:18:29. > :18:34.we can curtail the issues here. We are assisting greatly. After some
:18:35. > :18:38.time Boko Haram has come to realise that we are assisting police. They
:18:39. > :18:44.killed about ten of our members. We cannot relent our efforts. Well
:18:45. > :18:49.cities like this are able to pick up the pieces, there is no song and
:18:50. > :18:57.dance in the worst affected areas. Boko Haram's violent campaign has
:18:58. > :19:01.brought grief too many, and it could result in more. The schoolgirl
:19:02. > :19:05.abductions are every parent's worst nightmare. The mothers and fathers
:19:06. > :19:09.have felt powerless and have also accused the Government of doing
:19:10. > :19:12.nothing to secure the release of the girls. Will Ross has been speaking
:19:13. > :19:19.exclusively to some of them. The protests keep coming, this one in a
:19:20. > :19:24.coastal city. The message is the same. The BBC has secured the first
:19:25. > :19:31.ever TV interviews with the mothers in Chibok. They are in agony.
:19:32. > :19:34.Since they were taken away it has been very difficult. Many people
:19:35. > :19:38.come to our house during the day to sympathise. But then at night our
:19:39. > :19:43.family stays awake all night, thinking of our daughter and all the
:19:44. > :19:50.other girls and what they are going through, and where they are being
:19:51. > :19:53.held. It is ready difficult for us. When my daughter was leaving for
:19:54. > :19:58.school, she told me she would come back soon. I get the Fairford
:19:59. > :20:04.transport and we said goodbye. She promised to come back soon and me
:20:05. > :20:10.with my work. But then I was told that she had been abducted. Since
:20:11. > :20:15.our children were abducted, life has been very difficult. We hardly sleep
:20:16. > :20:24.well. In fact, I am suffering from high blood pressure. We hardly eat
:20:25. > :20:27.because of this situation. Nigeria's president has been accused
:20:28. > :20:45.of not doing enough to rescue the girls.
:20:46. > :20:50.Seeing as the president admitted that the abducted girls have not
:20:51. > :20:55.even been located that anon rescued, the demonstrations within
:20:56. > :21:01.and without Nigeria are not expected to die down. The international
:21:02. > :21:03.outrage is growing stronger. Beyond putting pressure on the Government
:21:04. > :21:08.to talk about the missing girls, there is no evidence to suggest the
:21:09. > :21:14.parents are any closer to getting their daughters back on. My daughter
:21:15. > :21:23.is a very obedient child. She is always eager to learn. That is why I
:21:24. > :21:27.feel a deep pain inside me. We only play `` pray day and night, hoping
:21:28. > :21:32.that God will answer our prayers. That is all we can do. The mothers
:21:33. > :21:36.of the missing girls have already been on the streets. They say nobody
:21:37. > :21:40.has said a word to them about rescue efforts. Maybe that is why they put
:21:41. > :21:47.their faith in God rather than government.
:21:48. > :21:48.That is all for this special edition of Reporters this week.
:21:49. > :22:12.Goodbye for now. Good evening. Lots of warm sunshine
:22:13. > :22:17.this weekend across England and Wales. There is some more to take us
:22:18. > :22:18.into the new week. Warm