From Umar Dankano, Yola
A human rights organisation under the auspices of Bedada Care Foundation and its partners has called on the Federal Government to direct the military high command to fish out and prosecute the soldiers allegedly responsible for the killing of 11 protesting women in Lamurde Local Government Area of Adamawa State.
It could be recalled that on December 8, 2025, exactly eight months ago, at the peak of the communal crisis between the Bachama and Chobo communities over farmland and demands for the creation of a chiefdom, Bachama women in their numbers staged a peaceful protest against the invasion of their villages by Chobo militias.
However, in the process, the women blocked troops believed to be attached to the 23 Armoured Brigade, Yola, who allegedly fired warning shots that were suspected to have hit the direction of the women, killing 11 of them.
Speaking at a press conference in Yola on Wednesday, a representative of the foundation, Elizabeth Jatau, said that eight months later, the Lamurde community had still not been told the truth, noting that the families of the slain women had still not seen justice, while the survivors continued to suffer in silence.
Jatau narrated that the women of Lamurde took to the streets because their community had been left exposed. “Communal attacks had put lives and livelihoods at risk, and the military deployment promised to protect them had arrived. In a peaceful, unmistakable protest, the women assembled with leaves in their hands and songs on their lips.
“It is precisely because the facts are contested that an independent, impartial investigation, and not competing public statements, must determine what happened and who is accountable. That is why Bedada Care Foundation and its partners commissioned an independent legal investigation into the shooting.
“The Bedada Care Foundation and its partners will not allow this silence to stand,” Jatau stated.
The foundation acknowledged the efforts of the state government in the aftermath of the killings through its Peace Commission by engaging youths, traditional and religious leaders, as well as community representatives, and providing some families of the victims with support for education and livelihoods, but insisted that more needed to be done.
“These measures matter, and we welcome them. But peace-building and welfare support are not substitutes for justice. Calming a community without holding perpetrators accountable leaves the underlying wound open and leaves the door open for it to happen again.
“We therefore demand a prompt, independent and transparent prosecution of the soldiers responsible for the shooting and killing of the 11 women through the appropriate civil justice channels, and the immediate provision of medical care to surviving victims still suffering from injuries sustained on December 8, 2025.
“We also demand livelihood restitution for survivors who can no longer farm, trade or work because of the injuries sustained during the shooting, and protection guarantees for survivors and witnesses who come forward, so that seeking justice does not expose them to further harm. Also, a credible mechanism to establish the real facts of December 8, 2025, and make the findings public,” the foundation solicited.
Our Correspondent reports that Bedada Care Foundation is a women and Human Rights Defenders (WHRD) organisation working at the forefront of women’s rights and civic participation in the country.