The first Chibok teenager to escape from Boko Haram’s Sambisa Forest stronghold has been flown to Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, where she is expected to be feted by the president, even as her freedom adds pressure on the Government to do more to rescue 218 other missing girls.
Joy and renewed hope have met the discovery of the 19-year-old, who was 17 when she was abducted, though she appears too traumatised to understand her central role in the tragedy that captured worldwide attention and shone a spotlight on the violent methods of Nigeria’s home-grown Islamic extremists.
Officials say she will meet, perhaps as early as Thursday, with President Muhammadu Buhari. Aid workers say the young woman, who was found with her 4-month-old baby, urgently needs reproductive health services and psychosocial counseling.
Hunters found the young woman wandering on the fringes of the remote northeastern forest on Tuesday and reunited her with her mother, Danladi said after speaking with the mother.
The young woman already has provided valuable information, revealing that some of the Chibok girls have died in captivity and the others continue to be held hostage, according to family doctor Idriss Danladi.
Authorities will be asking her where her classmates are being held. If Boko Haram tries to move large groups of girls because of her escape, those movements can be captured by satellites and air reconnaissance.
The woman, with her mother and baby were taken to a military camp and flown by helicopter Wednesday to Maiduguri, the biggest city in the northeast that is the birthplace of Boko Haram and the headquarters of Nigeria’s war against the extremist group.
They were handed over to Borno State Gov. Kashim Shettima, who declared he would in turn hand her to President Muhammadu Buhari "to present to the nation." The woman’s uncle confirmed she arrived in Abuja on Thursday for an expected meeting with Buhari later in the day.
The woman probably has not been asked what she wants to do, but aid workers say she likely is a victim of sexual assault, which is why The AP is not identifying her by name.