ICRC urges intensified search for missing persons in Borno
By Ahmed Ahmed
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has called for intensified efforts to trace missing persons and provide their families with information on their fate and whereabouts.
Ms Diana Japaridze, Head of ICRC Sub-Delegation in Maiduguri, made the call during commemorating the International Day of the Disappeared on Thursday in Maiduguri.
Japaridze said the disappearance of loved ones remained a daily source of emotional, psychological, legal, economic and psychosocial difficulties for affected families.
“For the families of missing persons, the disappearance of their loved ones is not an incident of the past.
“Every single day without answers, they live and cope with the uncertainty,” she said.
She said the ICRC, in collaboration with the Nigerian Red Cross Society (NRCS), was working across Borno to protect and restore family links.
Japaridze urged stakeholders to strengthen efforts to prevent family separation, facilitate communication and reunification, clarify the fate of missing persons and protect the dignity of the deceased.
“Time does not heal, answers do,” she said,
She stressed the need to listen to affected families and recognise their rights.
Mr Zanna Barma, Secretary of the NRCS, said the organisation was working closely with the ICRC to address cases of missing and disappeared persons, promote reconciliation and reunite separated families.
Aisha Shettima, Director, Borno Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, said the state government was working to trace and reconcile separated families.
She added that counselling services in internally displaced persons’ centres remained ongoing.
Kashim Mohammed, President of the Disappeared Family Association, appealed for greater support for affected families, particularly children whose education had been disrupted.
He said families continued to live with uncertainty over whether their loved ones were alive, calling on the government to take responsibility for the education and welfare of affected children.
Alhaji Bukar Tijjani, Secretary to the State Government, represented by Permanent Secretary, General Administration, Danjuma Ali, said the government recognised the plight of families of missing persons.
Tijjani said the government would strengthen collaboration with traditional institutions, civil society organisations and other relevant agencies to facilitate the search for missing persons.
He assured families that “no missing person is forgotten,” adding that the government remained committed to providing support and restoring their sense of belonging.
The International Day of the Disappeared is observed annually to draw attention to the plight of people whose whereabouts remain unknown and the suffering endured by their families.
