Surrendered insurgents who were genuinely repentant should be welcomed back into communities even though some might find it hard to live with the former killers of their loved ones, Babagana Umara Zulum, Borno State governor, told a meeting on Sunday, August 29, held to discuss security issues.

He was referring to the surrender of about 2,600 members of the Jamā’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’way Wa’l-Jihād (JAS), more commonly known as Boko Haram, who had laid down their arms and had surrendered to the military. He told the meeting that more members of the JAS had surrendered to Cameroon.

Among the 2,600 were women and children of all ages, farmers and their families and others who had been conscripted and held hostage.

The meeting followed consultations last week between Zulum, President Muhammadu Buhari, the chief of defence staff and community members from some parts of the state.

They were seeking ways to address the concerns about the surrender of the JAS fighters and the need to find ways to end the 12-year insurgency, during which more than 100,000 people had been killed in the northeastern region of the country.

The meeting on Sunday, which lasted five hours, was attended by representatives of the victims of attacks, national and state assembly members, all traditional leaders across the state, elders, heads of security operatives, leaders of different religions, academics, the Nigerian Union of Journalists, women representatives, labour unions, civil society groups, local and international non-governmental organisations, politicians and government officials.

Stakeholders presented their views on how the former insurgents should be accepted and treated in communities. At the end of the meeting a communique detailing their resolve to accept the repentant insurgents was issued.

Zulum said those who had surrendered would be subject to the existing laws of the country.

He said they would undergo proper profiling so that those who needed it would be rehabilitated before being reintegrated into communities.

The stakeholders urged the military and other security operatives to intensify their efforts to quash the unrepentant JAS members who were still attacking remote villages in and outside Borno State.

Zulum said that although “it is certainly difficult accepting the killers of our loved ones, it is equally important to find ways to end the 12-year insurgency”.

He conceded that accepting the insurgents had serious implications for community members.

But, he said rejecting the insurgents could swell the ranks of the rival Islamic State West Africa Province [ISWAP] faction that was still armed and waging war.

Zulum used Afghanistan as an example, saying that, when the 20-year military fight ended there, the Taliban had taken control of the government.

Abubakar Ibn Umar Garbai Elkanemi, the Shehu of Borno, urged residents to consider genuine reconciliation to allow peace to reign in the state and urged traditional leaders to preach forgiveness and tolerance as a way forward.

During the meeting, a district head said “it would be very difficult” to convince community members to forgive and accept the repentant insurgents unless the government embarked on serious sensitisation “on the need to forgive and forget”.

The communique was signed by the state’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Kaka Shehu Lawan. It said:

1. The stakeholders appreciated the untiring efforts and support of President Muhammadu Buhari towards ending the insurgency and other criminalities in Borno State and the country at large.
2. The stakeholders commended the zeal and determination of Borno State governor Babagana Umara Zulum towards restorating a lasting peace in the state. The meeting also noted his unparalleled support rendered to the internally displaced persons (IDPs) and the vulnerable.
3. The stakeholders welcomed the effort of the federal and state governments in the provision of state-of-the-art equipment and other logistics to the security operatives that led to the renewed vigour in the fight against insurgents which resulted in the recent surrender.
4. The meeting urged the federal and state governments to handle the issues of repentant insurgents with the utmost care and within the instrumentality of the law.
5. The meeting emphasised the need for proper profiling of repentant insurgents to avoid the hasty release of hardened elements into communities.
6. The meeting welcomed the recent massive surrender by the insurgents and urged those still in the bush to follow suit.
7. The meeting called for all firearms and offensive weapons used by the repentant insurgents to be retrieved from them.
8. The meeting strongly advocated for the strengthening of the deradicalisation mechanism of Operation Safe Corridor so as to involve the parents of the surrendered insurgents, Ulamas (religious interpretors), traditional/community leaders and the media.
9. The meeting urged citizens to key into the educational opportunities created by the state government, especially by enrolling their children and wards to schools as a countermeasure for indoctrination.
10. The stakeholders reiterated the need for further support to all victims of the insurgency, especially women and children.
11. The meeting called on the federal government to establish a world-class deradicalisation/rehabilitation centre in Borno State, the epicentre of insurgency.
12. The meeting called for a true reconciliation among the affected people.
13. The meeting appreciated the support of the federal government to the state, but requested more funding, especially in the areas of reconstruction, resettlement, reintegration, education and health, as the meagre resources at the disposal of the state were not sufficient in view of the magnitude of the cost involved.
14. The meeting urged the military to sustain the ongoing offensive on the activities of the ISWAP.
15. The meeting resolved to have a periodic briefing on the activities of the surrendered insurgents to create awareness among the public.
16. The meeting resolved that the North East Development Commission (NEDC) as a matter of priority be involved in all aspects of the rehabilitation and integration of surrendered insurgents into mainstream society.