Prominent Australian cleric, Dr. Stephen Davis a hostage negotiator, who was hired by President Goodluck Jonathan to broker the release of the girls.According to the clergyman who was once the Canon Emeritus at the Coventry Cathedral in London and a friend of The Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, has been in Nigeria working secretly on the release of the girls for almost a month now.Some of the 219 schoolgirls still in the custody of Boko Haram insurgents have taken ill. see more
He added that he was asked by the President to
come to Nigeria after previously brokering a truce between the Federal
Government and Niger Delta militants in 2004.Along with Welby, he was
frequently blindfolded and held at gunpoint during his peace work in the Niger
Delta.In the email, Davis revealed he had had ‘‘ongoing contacts’’
with the groups involved in the kidnapping in the North-East for seven years.He
attributed his success in hostage negotiations in Nigeria to “a long process of
building trust on both sides.”The Perth-born Australian described how fraught
the negotiation process had been but expressed optimism that the girls would be
freed.
He said, ‘One of that small group of girls is ill
and we had hoped we might convince the commander of the group holding her that
she should be released so we could give her medical treatment.
‘There are other girls who are not well and we
have come close to having them released but their captors fear a trap in which
they will be captured in the handover process.
‘One girl has what I assume is a broken wrist as
they demonstrate to me how she holds her hand. I have been told that others are
sick and in need of medical attention.
“But I am encouraged by the progress. Every day
there is the possibility of the release of the girls.
‘This is painful for the parents and the nation.
The well-being of the girls is constantly on our minds and we want to see their
release as soon as possible.”
The secret negotiator however ruled out the
possibility of a rescue since the girls were not being held in one location.
He said, “There are several groups to deal with as the
girls are held in several camps across the Nigerian border in Cameroon, Chad
and Niger.
This makes any thought of a rescue highly improbable. To attempt to rescue one
group would only endanger the others. We must not endanger their lives any
further.“ Source: Punch
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