III 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 433 

Condemning the abduction of female students by armed militants from the 

Government Girls Secondary School in the northeastern province of 

Borno in the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 1, 2014 

Ms. LANDRIEU (for herself, Mrs. BOXER, Mr. INHOFE, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. 

COONS, and Mr. MENENDEZ) submitted the following resolution; which 

was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Condemning the abduction of female students by armed militants from the Government Girls Secondary School in 

the northeastern province of Borno in the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 

Whereas, on the night of April 14, 2014, as many as 234 female students, most of them between 16 and 18 years 

old, were abducted by armed militants from the Government Girls Secondary School, a boarding school located 

in the northeastern province of Borno in the Federal Republic of Nigeria; 

Whereas the militants burned down several buildings before 

opening fire on soldiers and police who were guarding the 

school and forcing the students into trucks; 


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•SRES 433 IS 

Whereas, according to local officials in Borno state, about 43 

students were able to flee their captors, and the rest remain missing; 

Whereas all public secondary schools in Borno state were 

closed in March 2014 because of increasing attacks in 

the past year that have killed hundreds of students, but 

the young women at the Government Girls Secondary 

School were recalled to take their final exams; 

Whereas the group popularly known as ‘‘Boko Haram’’, 

which loosely translates from the Hausa language to 

‘‘Western education is sin’’, is known to oppose the education of girls, has kidnapped girls in the past to use as 

cooks and sex slaves, and is thought to be responsible for 

the April 14th kidnapping in Borno state; 

Whereas there are reports that the abducted girls have been 

sold as brides to Islamist militants for the equivalent of 

$12 each; 

Whereas Boko Haram has targeted schools, mosques, churches, villages, and agricultural centers, as well as government facilities, in an armed campaign to create an Islamic state in northern Nigeria, prompting the president 

of Nigeria to declare a state of emergency in three of the 

country’s northeastern states in May 2013; 

Whereas, according to the Brookings Institution, Boko 

Haram burned down or destroyed 50 schools and killed 

approximately 30 teachers in Nigeria in 2013, leaving 

tens of thousands of children unable to attend school; 

Whereas, on April 14, 2014, hours before the kidnapping in 

Borno state, Boko Haram bombed a bus station in 

Abuja, Nigeria, killing at least 75 people and wounding 


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•SRES 433 IS 

over 100, making it the deadliest attack ever in Nigeria’s 

capital; 

Whereas Amnesty International estimates that more than 

1,500 people have been killed in attacks by Boko Haram 

or reprisals by Nigerian security forces this year alone, 

and the Council on Foreign Relations estimates that almost 4,000 people have been killed in Boko Haram attacks since 2011; 

Whereas the Department of State designated Boko Haram as 

a Foreign Terrorist Organization in November 2013, recognizing the threat posed by the group’s large-scale and 

indiscriminate attacks against women and children; 

Whereas, according to the United Nations, girls’ education is 

a major challenge in Nigeria; 

Whereas, according to the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), some 4,700,000 children of primary school age are still not in school in Nigeria, with 

attendance rates lowest in the north; 

Whereas a study conducted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) 

found that school children in Nigeria, particularly those 

in the northern provinces, are at a disadvantage in their 

education, with 37 percent of primary-age girls in the 

rural northeast not attending school, and 30 percent of 

boys not attending school; 

Whereas, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global 

Gender Gap Index, Nigeria is ranked 106 out of 136 

countries based on women’s economic participation, educational attainment, and political empowerment; 

Whereas, according to the United Nations, women held only 

6.7 percent of the seats in Nigeria’s parliament in 2013; 


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Whereas the advancement of women around the world is a 

foreign policy priority for the United States; 

Whereas, according to the United States Agency for International Development, ‘‘Broader, more equitable access 

to education encourages political participation, enhances 

governance, strengthens civil society, and promotes transparency and accountability.’’; 

Whereas a 100-country study by the World Bank shows that 

increasing the share of women with a secondary education by 1 percent boosts annual per capita income 

growth by 0.3 percentage points; 

Whereas, according to UNICEF, adolescent girls that attend 

school are less likely to be married as children, ‘‘are less 

vulnerable to disease including HIV and AIDS, and acquire information and skills that lead to increased earning power. Evidence shows that the return to a year of 

secondary education for girls correlates to a 25 percent 

increase in wages later in life.’’; 

Whereas, according to the World Bank, ‘‘The benefits of 

women’s education go beyond higher productivity for 50 

percent of the population. More educated women also 

tend to be healthier, participate more in the formal labor 

market, earn more income, . . . and provide better 

health care and education to their children, all of which 

eventually improve the well-being of all individuals and 

lift households out of poverty. These benefits also transmit across generations, as well as to their communities 

at large.’’; and 

Whereas women and girls must be allowed to go to school 

without fear of violence and unjust treatment so that 


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they can take their rightful place as equal citizens of and 

contributors to the world: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) expresses its strong support for the people 

3 of Nigeria, especially the parents and families of the 

4 girls abducted by Boko Haram in Borno state, and 

5 calls for the immediate, safe return of the girls; 

6 (2) condemns Boko Haram for its violent at7 tacks on civilian targets, including schools, mosques, 

8 churches, villages, and agricultural centers in Nige9 ria; 

10 (3) encourages the Government of Nigeria to 

11 strengthen efforts to protect the ability of children 

12 to obtain an education and to hold those who con13 duct such violent attacks accountable; 

14 (4) encourages efforts by the United States 

15 Government to support the capacity of the Govern16 ment of Nigeria to provide security for schools and 

17 to hold terrorist organizations, such as Boko Haram, 

18 accountable; 

19 (5) urges timely civilian assistance from the 

20 United States and allied African nations in rescuing 

21 and reintegrating the abducted girls; 

22 (6) recognizes that every individual, regardless 

23 of gender, should have the opportunity to pursue an 

24 education without fear of discrimination; 


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1 (7) reaffirms its commitment to ending dis2 crimination and violence against women and girls, to 

3 ensuring the safety and welfare of women and girls, 

4 and to pursuing policies that guarantee the basic 

5 human rights of women and girls worldwide; 

6 (8) recognizes that the empowerment of women 

7 is inextricably linked to the potential of countries to 

8 generate economic growth, sustainable democracy, 

9 and inclusive security; and 

10 (9) encourages the Department of State, the 

11 United States Agency for International Develop12 ment, and the Department of Defense to continue 

13 their support for initiatives that positively impact 

14 the ability of women and girls to fully access their 

15 human rights. 

Æ 


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