₦airaland Forum

Fayina Akilawus, a survivor of prolonged captivity by Boko Haram, has recounted harrowing experiences of coercion, forced labour, and repeated punishment.

She described how abductees were forced to choose between converting to Islam or living as slaves, enduring years of suffering before eventually regaining her freedom.

Speaking in an interview on Arise Television on Wednesday, Akilawus said she consistently refused to renounce her Christian faith, a decision that, according to her, condemned her to slavery under what the captors described as their “law.”

“They wanted me to convert to Islam and I said no,” she recounted. “They told us that if we did not convert, we would become their slaves.”

She explained that refusing conversion meant being subjected to forced domestic labour, including fetching water, carrying firewood and performing household chores for members of the camp.

“I am a Christian, and they wanted us to convert to Islam. If we refused, we became their slaves. They told us that if we didn’t want to be slaves, we should become Muslims. But if we remained Christians, then we would be their slaves,” she said.

“We would do house chores and other things for them. We carried firewood, fetched water, and did all sorts of work.”

According to her, the pressure to convert was relentless and lasted for several months.

“It wasn’t only once. They normally came to our place and said they were preaching to us, that they wanted us to become better people in life. They told us that if we accepted their religion, life would be better for us,” she said.

She said she resisted the pressure for nine months, alongside other captives who also refused to convert. Eventually, she said, the captors decided to separate them and distribute them to different homes to serve as slaves.

“We were in that place for nine months before they started separating us. Since we were not Islamised, they said they would separate each and every one of us and take us to their houses to become their slaves,” she said.

Recounting her first escape attempt, the survivor said she and another captive, identified as Auntie Jumai, tried to flee just days after arriving at the camp.

The two women reportedly trekked through the night, navigating bush paths and water routes. However, their escape was cut short the following morning when they unknowingly walked into a settlement.

She narrated, “From the time we arrived; Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, on Saturday night, around 7 p.m., Auntie Jumai, whom I was with from the place where we were captured, and I tried to escape.

“So, we escaped that Saturday night. We walked throughout the night. In the morning, when we heard a baby crying, we didn’t know there were families and children living there. When we heard the baby’s voice, we thought it was those armed men who used to raid cows. So, we greeted them with ‘Salam Alaikum’ and entered.”

She said their unfamiliar dressing immediately raised suspicion, leading to their recapture.

“When we entered, the people came out and saw us. They started shouting because our dressing was different from theirs. They were shouting, asking, ‘Who are these people?’ Someone said her husband was not around.

“When we realised, we knew it was them again. They captured us and took us back. This first time, they didn’t chain us, but they beat us severely. The place we had trekked to was very far. From there, they beat us all the way back to the camp we had escaped from. It was at night, through the bush and through water.”

She said her determination to escape never wavered, despite repeated punishment.

“With God, all things are possible. We prayed, and God had mercy on us. I tried to escape once, twice, three times, four times. This was the fifth time. Whenever they caught me, they tied my legs with chains; motorcycle chains. I told myself I would keep trying until I succeeded,” she said.

“We had heard that escape was possible if you met the right people, but money was required,” she added.

“We had to pay ₦250,000. We sold some of their belongings and some things we bought ourselves. Sometimes they gave us small amounts of money, and we saved it.”

SaharaReporters

Recounting her first escape attempt, the survivor said she and another captive, identified as Auntie Jumai, tried to flee just days after arriving at the camp.

This is indeed a strong woman..

Religion is our problem in this world

Reading this made my eyes wet with tears
This lady's only offence was confessing Jesus as her Lord and Saviour
This is a true Christian and a true soldier of Christ
Reminds me of Leah Sharibu
God bless her wherever she is now
Nobody deserves to suffer on account of their faith speak less a woman
I thought these guys said their religion respects women and upholds their rights
And they will tell us there's no Christian genocide or persecution?

It is their way, forceful, anywhere they are peace elude the place.

Blessed God you endured sis. No religious persecution or genocide against Christians. But it is one gory tale or the order in Nigeria. Islam is a wicked religion.

Tell me another story abeg

Rexymania:
ISLAMis our problem in this world

Fixed !!


More characters needed !

Dem no protest against this one.

Na Palestine thousands of miles away, na that one dem go protest. Evil people

Islamabad is a cancer to the world 📌💯

Religion will destroy this world because of fools who have become slaves to it

USUAL EVIL SUSPECTS, WHY FIGHT FOR YOUR god, everything there na by force, if you join and want to leave is deatht

dederocs:
. ISLAM will destroy this world because of fools who have become slaves to it

.



Fixed !

More characters pls

Well hope Seun is seeing what his belief is doing to others.. Seun and his bots are the local terror here.. they force you to accept being a muslim before u can comment on an Islamic post meanwhile it's not the same with other religions. What is good for the goose should be good for the gander

And our Lord never forsake you.. my sister. Your vengeance is coming... Just believe it

Refuse to convert to what?
Islam i guess

Just watch and see how they tactically avoid this thread......

Run for your life if you hear mosque prayer in haste, very fast, Iman panting ( a call for jihad). Watch out for new faces in your neighborhood and run if you hear Alahu Akbar.

Those who have lived in the north and experienced this madness know what am talking about 📌💯

And some folks will say religion is not a reason for the ongoing insecurity.

emillysmigael:
This is indeed a strong woman..

Very strong. I can't even imagine what she went through.

Hummmm.....up islam ☪️. Una dey try walahi

Islam is the Antichrist as foretold by scriptures..

See how they are carefully taking over Europe, infiltrating America bits by bits..

What they do is, they enter quietly and start building patiently until they are sure of dominion, then they start with the government (appointments, elections, enlistments, etc). Once they become solid in government (which controls everything), they start showing the radicalism, systematically..

I'm tired of typing, just read about the last days as we know and connect the dots...

This is Islam in all its ugliness. Don't allow anyone fool you. Their ultimate goal is to dominate and control.
I saw one Arab islamist saying Islam doesn't intend to share it's position with any religion. He said Islam's ultimate goal was to dominate and control the entire world. They are already doing it in the west as we can see.

DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA RELIGIONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN OF PEACEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE IS THE PROBLEM.

Rexymania:
Religion is our problem in this world

Believe this story at your own peril, especially the last paragraph. Fabricated story.

They edited the part she was raped