Sunday 4 May saw over 50 Nigerians with families and friends assembled in front of the Nigeria High ?commission on Metcalfe street, to protest recent abduction of over 200 young girls at a boarding school in Borno State of Nigeria. Shock and outrage had greeted this dastardly and cowardly act, attributed to the terrorist Boko Haram, which had been wreaking havoc on innocent civilians in Nigeria’s north. The march was organised by the Carleton University Nigerian students Association led by Bade Obasa, and the Nigerian Canadian Association of Ottawa with President John Adeyefa. Starting with speeches in front of the high commission, where there was pointedly no Nigerian government official to receive them, the placard-carrying demonstrators headed up to Elgin Street chanting: “All we are saying is bring back our girls”. Converging at the Canadian Tribute to Human Rights monument, there were more speeches exhorting the governments of Nigeria, Canada and the international community, to band together to bring this disgraceful outrage to a peaceful end and have the girls returned to their grieving parents.
Monday 12 May, a group of activists organised a town hall meeting to share information on the plight of the girls. Hosted by CHUO FM’s Sarah Onyango and sponsored by the Black Ottawa Business Network Social Group, , the Caribbean Union and Amnesty International, the event was held at the Bronson Centre, attracting some 60 people of different nationalities. Speakers included Paul Dewar NDP Federal Member of Parliament, Severign Jr. Ndema-Moussa of the Caribbean Union of Ottawa, Sophia Jacob of the Black Ottawa Business Network Social Group, Jacqueline Hansen of Amnesty International Ottawa, Nigerian Canadian Association Ottawa PRO. Tomisin Olawale, Prof. Andrew Cardoza of the Carleton School of Journalism, with prayers and invocations by Imam Mohammad Jebara and Pastor James Hurd.
