Benue Conflict: Human Trafficking Children Exploited Amidst Displacement

• Conflict and economic hardship in Benue State, Nigeria, create fertile ground for human trafficking, targeting children and women with false promises of employment.
• Joy Tervershima, 15, was trafficked from Zaki Biam to Libya for prostitution after her family was displaced by armed conflict, with many fellow victims reportedly dying during the journey.
• Two 17-year-olds, Chivirter and Kashimana, were lured from Logo Local Government Area to Benin City with job offers, highlighting a pattern of exploitation facilitated by a relative.
• Security checkpoints along trafficking routes reportedly failed to intervene, with personnel allegedly accepting bribes instead of questioning the minors' travel.
• Victims face severe psychological trauma, and their families endure immense suffering, underscoring the devastating impact of these criminal networks and the urgent need for robust due diligence.

The promise of jobs abroad or in other Nigerian cities becomes a cruel lure for those desperate to escape poverty and insecurity.

The ongoing conflict, widespread displacement, and severe economic hardship in Nigeria's Benue State have created a perilous environment that human traffickers readily exploit, preying on vulnerable women and children. This grim reality is starkly illustrated by the disappearance of Joy Tervershima, who was just 15 years old when she vanished in May 2024 from Zaki Biam, the principal urban and commercial center of Ukum Local Government Area. Her family had previously been forced to flee their ancestral home in Guma Local Government Area due to armed attacks, seeking refuge in Zaki Biam with hopes of rebuilding their lives, only for those hopes to be shattered by Joy's abduction.

Months after her disappearance, police investigators informed Joy's family that she had been trafficked through Lagos to Libya. Nearly a year after she went missing, Joy managed to make a single call from an international number, revealing the horrifying truth to her mother, Hembadoon Tervershima. She recounted being lured by a man she knew in Zaki Biam, who promised her and several other girls jobs abroad. Upon arrival in Libya, they discovered the true purpose of their journey was forced prostitution, and tragically, many of the girls who traveled with her from Benue perished during the arduous journey. Joy has only spoken to her mother twice since that initial call, and her number has since become unreachable, leaving her family in agonizing uncertainty about her fate. The emotional toll on the family has been immense; Joy's father, for instance, suffered a stroke and passed away in December 2024. The suspected trafficker, reportedly well-known around the Zaki Biam International Yam Market, remains at large, his current whereabouts unknown.

Hundreds of kilometers away in another rural part of Benue, a similar trafficking network operated, targeting vulnerable teenagers with identical promises of employment. Among those ensnared were Chivirter and Kashimana, two 17-year-old friends from Logo Local Government Area. Their communities, like many others in Benue, had been ravaged by incessant violent attacks, which had decimated farming and other traditional livelihoods, leaving families economically desperate. A relative of one of the girls offered them jobs in Benin City, Edo State, a common tactic used by traffickers to gain trust.

Neither teenager informed their parents before embarking on the journey with the man. Chivirter's mother, Nancy, was in Taraba State at the time and expressed profound shock upon learning of her daughter's disappearance. The journey to Benin City spanned nearly two days, during which the girls reported passing multiple security checkpoints. Disturbingly, Kashimana stated that security personnel only demanded money and never inquired about their destination, highlighting a critical lapse in oversight that facilitates these illicit operations. In Benin City, the girls were separated and handed over to different women; Kashimana was placed with a 'Madam' named Mama Osas in the Akiwa area of the Edo State capital. Chivirter, however, managed to access a mobile phone and, within a week, orchestrated her escape, returning to Benue and informing her parents of her trafficking ordeal. Kashimana remained in Benin City for over a year, telling her parents she had married to alleviate their worry, though she later alleged that a person named Atsuku pressured her to recruit other girls from Benue, offering between ₦90,000 and ₦120,000 for each new victim.

The cases of Joy, Chivirter, and Kashimana underscore a deeply troubling pattern where the chaos and deprivation caused by the Benue conflict are directly leveraged by criminal networks for human trafficking, particularly targeting children and women. The promise of jobs abroad or in other Nigerian cities becomes a cruel lure for those desperate to escape poverty and insecurity. These incidents reveal not only the ruthlessness of traffickers but also systemic vulnerabilities, such as the apparent corruption or negligence at security checkpoints that allows minors to be transported across state lines without proper scrutiny. This environment necessitates a critical re-evaluation of security protocols and accountability measures.

Even after returning home, the victims and their families grapple with profound and lasting consequences. Chivirter's father noted that his daughter became withdrawn following her return, a common psychological impact of such traumatic experiences. The emotional and mental scars left by these ordeals are deep, affecting the victims' ability to reintegrate and rebuild their lives. These narratives highlight the urgent need for enhanced human rights due diligence for businesses operating in or sourcing from conflict-affected regions like Benue State, Nigeria, to identify and mitigate risks of complicity in human trafficking and exploitation of vulnerable populations. Lawyers should advise clients on robust compliance frameworks to prevent inadvertent support of such criminal networks, ensuring that economic activities do not inadvertently fuel or benefit from the exploitation of those most at risk.

This article highlights the critical need for enhanced human rights due diligence for businesses operating in or sourcing from conflict-affected regions like Benue State, Nigeria, to identify and mitigate risks of complicity in human trafficking and exploitation of vulnerable populations. Lawyers should advise clients on robust compliance frameworks to prevent inadvertent support of such criminal networks.

Source: Original reporting via Premium Times