The parents of Leah Sharibu have joined Voices for Justice (V4J), a global collaborative community advocating for those targeted for their religious beliefs, to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict by calling for justice for all of ‘Nigeria’s Leahs’.
Leah Sharibu was abducted from Government Girls Science and Technical School in Dapchi, Yobe State, when she was just 14 years old in February 2018. Eight years later, she is still being held as a ‘slave for life’ by the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), after refusing to renounce her Christian faith as a precondition for release.
Ms Sharibu is one among thousands of women and girls from vulnerable communities in northern and central Nigeria who have suffered abductions and sexual violence at the hands of violent extremists.
In a statement, her parents Nathan and Rebecca Sharibu, said: ‘Leah was taken alongside 109 other girls. Most were eventually released, but our daughter was held back solely because she refused to renounce her Christian faith and convert to Islam. She stood firm in her belief, choosing to remain true to Christ even at the cost of her freedom.
‘For this courage, she has endured unimaginable hardship in the wilderness, reports from those who escaped speak of forced marriage, repeated trauma, childbirths in captivity, and the constant shadow of sexual violence used as a weapon of war and control. As her parents, every day without Leah is a wound that deepens. We miss her and her dreams of a better future. Birthdays pass in silence, milestones are stolen, and our family lives with a pain no words can fully capture. Yet we hold onto our faith. We believe, as we have always told Leah and the world, that God who sees the oppressed will bring her home.’
Mr and Mrs Sharibu told the organisations participating in the Religious Liberty Partnership V4J campaign that they spoke with heavy hearts but also ‘unwavering hope’, adding: ‘Leah’s freedom is a matter of national urgency and moral imperative. Her case highlights the broader plight of countless girls and women suffering in similar conflicts across Nigeria and beyond.’
As part of the V4J campaign, a series of prayer and peaceful protest events have been organised in several countries, including in New Zealand, Nigeria, Sweden, Switzerland and the USA. Advocacy efforts and social media campaigns will take place globally, including in Europe, the UK and the USA, calling for the release of Ms Sharibu and other girls held captive, and for accountability for perpetrators.
Roshini Wickremesinhe, Executive Director of the coordinating organisation Religious Liberty Partnership said: ‘Leah Sharibu’s prolonged captivity lays bare the severe violence and systemic intimidation facing Christian and other minority girls and women across northern and central Nigeria. As a global community, we raise our voices in unity, calling on the Nigerian authorities to take immediate, decisive action to secure the freedom of captive girls, for the protection of girls and women, freedom of religion, and justice.’
CSW-Nigeria’s Chief Executive Officer Reverend Yunusa Nmadu added: ‘CSW is deeply inspired by the continued hope and faith of Nathan and Rebecca Sharibu. We will stand with them in prayer, solidarity and continued advocacy until Leah is free and all those who have subjected her and her family to these eight years of unimaginable trauma have been held to account.’
In a statement released by five human rights experts on 8 June urged the Nigerian authorities to take immediate measures to protect those at risk, secure the release and recovery of abducted girls and women, ensure independent impartial and thorough investigations, prosecute perpetrators, and guarantee effective remedies and support for victims and survivors.
‘Impunity for these crimes only fuels further violence,’ they said. ‘Nigerian authorities must act urgently to prevent further irreparable harm and ensure accountability for all violations.’
CSW’s Director of Advocacy and Team Leader for Africa and the Middle East, Dr Khataza Gondwe, said: ‘CSW welcomes and echoes the calls of five United Nations human rights experts urging Nigeria to respond decisively to the security crisis that has plagued the country for over 15 years and continues to escalate alarmingly. We also emphasise that the government must be transparent about the asymmetry with which specific communities are being targeted in order to ensure an effective response to the terrorism that has blighted the lives of vulnerable citizens in the north and centre of the country for far too long.’
Notes to Editors:
- Voices for Justice (V4J) is a collaborative advocacy platform launched in 2025 by the Religious Liberty Partnership (RLP) that mobilizes organizations to speak with one voice for justice, dignity, and freedom for vulnerable communities facing violations of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB).
- Follow the V4J Facebook page for updates and images from prayer and protest events around the world.