尼日利亚学校照常教学回应博科圣地的反教育运动

Nigerian Answers Boko Haram's Anti-Education Campaign with Schools

In Nigeria, the militant¹ Islamist group Boko Haram wants to end anything related to Western society – especially Western-style education. Even the name “Boko Haram” means “Western education is forbidden.”

But some activists² are turning Boko Haram’s target into a weapon. In 2014, Rebecca Gadzama and her husband started a group called Education Must Continue, or EMC. It aims to bring quality education to an area where Boko Haram militants³ have destroyed most of the government schools.

“We are just private individuals, just good citizens, natives of this area, so…because we weren’t sure when the government would start their school, we just found this place,” Gadzama said.

EMC manages two schools for displaced children, one in Lassa and one in the city of Yola. Gadzama said the schools have 1,600 students and 80 teachers.

The teachers sometimes meet outdoors, under trees in open fields. The location gives them a chance to see danger and run in case of an attack.

But classes with students are held under roofs, either in newly built buildings or tents provided by the government.

Lassa

Except for the tents, the schools are supported mostly by donations. One reason, Gadzama says, is because the government does not appear to be rebuilding in the Lassa area.

She thinks the little help might be because Lassa is a mostly Christian⁴ town, while the majority of people in northern Nigeria are Muslim. When Boko Haram launched its violent insurgency⁵ in 2009, Christians⁶ and their churches were the group’s early targets.

Maimuna Zhubairu is a 23-year-old school teacher from Lassa. Boko Haram killed three of her uncles and her older brother. She feels the government has given up on helping⁷ Lassa.

“Most of the help comes from NGOs,” she said. “The government, they are not doing much help.”

Muhammed Bulama, the Borno state minister of information, says the government has begun working in Lassa, helping to rebuild a church. “Reconstruction is not an event, it is a process,” Bulama said, adding that the government has not forgotten about any area.

But he also told VOA the government is overwhelmed by the amount of damage Boko Haram caused: $9 billion in northern Nigeria and $6 billion in Borno state alone.

He said that most of the rebuilding work is done in northern Borno because that is where most of the damage is. He also said parts of southern Borno are still not possible to enter.

Still suffering

Most of the students at EMC schools are Christians still suffering from what they have seen. Some of them want to become soldiers when they get older to punish Boko Haram.

“Boko Haram, I see them use knife, chop my grandfather head,” 13-year-old Ibrahim Daniel told VOA, speaking in pidgin English. He adds that he wants to become a soldier. He says if he sees people from Boko Haram, he will kill them.

Sometimes kids in Lassa play war games outside. One side pretends to be soldiers and the others act like Boko Haram.

Rebecca Gadzama, the EMC founder⁸, hopes the school library she is working on will help heal the students’ minds.

“It is not an issue of fighting back,” she said. “It’s an issue of how do we get over this? How do we become one again, because the guys in the Boko Haram are also children.”

Part of the answer can be found, Gadzama believes, in education.

I’m Phil Dierking.

Words in This Story

allocate⁹ - v. to divide and give out (something) for a special reason or to particular people, companies, etc.?

chop - v. to cut (something) into pieces by hitting it with the sharp edge of an ax, knife, etc.?

counseling - n. advice and support that is given to people to help them deal with problems, make important decisions, etc.?

displace - v. to take the job or position of (someone or something)?

NGO - n. nongovernmental organization?

overwhelm - v. to cause (someone) to have too many things to deal with?

psychosocial - adj. relating to the interrelation of social factors and individual thought and behavior.?

tent - n. a portable shelter that is used outdoors, is made of cloth (such as canvas or nylon), and is held up with poles and ropes

1 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

2 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

4 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

5 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

6 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

7 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

8 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

9 allocate   

vt.分配，分派；把…拨给；把…划归

参考例句：

• You must allocate the money carefully.你们必须谨慎地分配钱。
• They will allocate fund for housing.他们将拨出经费建房。