Hannah, 15 years old. Boko Haram stormed into my house on the night of the 28th of September 2013. I was in a deep sleep, they asked my sister, mother and I to come outside. My father was not around at the time. They asked our names and upon hearing our Christian names they decided to take me away. I am the daughter of a pastor, and at the time I was only 14 years old. When I left the house with them, they burnt a church and then we journeyed for two days to reach their camp in the Gwoza hills, it was a long and difficult journey. Once I reached the camp I was forced to join Islam, given a new name and they married to one man. I managed to escape one night with two other girls. I am still struggling with the memories but I am trying to focus and to continue with school and become a businesswoman. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Plateau State Nigeria. All of the young people that were abducted had to move to new cities for security reasons. Plateau State is one of the new homes where some have been re-located to. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Lydia, born in 1994. I was traveling in a public bus after paying my school fees on the 7th May 2013, while on the road a Boko Haram member stopped and entered the vehicle. Everyone was telling me to say I’m a Muslim, otherwise I will be killed. We entered a Boko Haram camp in the Sambisa forest, I stayed there for three days and each night we would sleep under big trees. I saw young boys in the camp carrying guns, some as even as young as 10 years. I didn't eat food for three days, I was thinking it could be human flesh, because there are rumors that Boko Haram eat human flesh, so I would throw the food on the ground each day and pretend I ate. Eventually some insurgents asked which village I was from, and realized they knew my father's brother. So they decided to let me go, and dropped me off at a main road, they made me wear hijab and gave me 2000 naira. My family are now taking refugee in Cameroon, but I'm not staying with them. I burnt my hijab after I escaped. I have dreams of Shekau in the night, coming to kill me. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Blessing, 19 years old. At about 8 pm on the 30th of September 2013, Boko Haram came into my brother’s room and shot him. They took his wife and put a gun to her head, they asked for all the ladies in the house to come outside. They took me away with my sister and sister in law. When we reached the Boko Haram camp they asked me to denounce Christ and accept Islam, if not they will slaughter me. Out of fear I agreed and then they gave me a hijab to wear. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Plateau State Nigeria. All of the young people that were abducted had to move to new cities for security reasons. Plateau State is one of the new homes where some have been re-located to. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
(Markus), 28 years old. I was involved in a bad road accident in 2012, my leg was severely injured and doctors wanted to amputate it. I spent the next 18 months in and out of hospitals across the country trying to find a surgeon that could properly fix my leg. In January 2014 I was on my way to the hospital again after Christmas celebrations. While travelling Boko Haram had blocked the road, they stopped the car. I was abducted that day along with an old pastor from the south. The Boko Haram members knew we were Christians, they decided to keep us in the camp to bring us out of the darkness and into the light by teaching us the Koran. Everywhere we were surround by Boko Haram camps on every side. During the first night of our escape their were two large snakes that were two metres from where us. We prayed that night the snakes would not disturb them and they just stayed where they were. We would stay under the thick canopy of the trees to hide from military helicopters seeing the camp. Me and the pastor spent all of our days praying and planning for an escape. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Mairama, Abeokuta, 16 years old. Boko Haram attacked my village and came to my house in the night of 30th September 2013. I was sent to a camp in the Gwoza hills where I spent three weeks in the camp. I would fetch water and cook for the insurgents and spent a lot of time sad and crying. They arranged for me to marry, but I refuse to sleep with the man, so he threatened he would kill me next time. One night a wife of one of the commanders showed the path to escape, so me and two other girls spent two days walking and running through the bush until we reached a safe city. It was just the grace of God that saved me. I am now back in school and would like to become a nurse one day. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Jos, Nigeria. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Hauwa, 15 years old. In 2009, during a crisis in Maiduguri city Hadiza my friend and me were taken by my mother’s friend who lived nearby. The woman and her husband were Boko Haram members. The neighbor locked us inside her house and wanted us to become her Muslim daughters. The woman tried to force me to convert to Islam and change my name, when I refused I would be severely beaten. After one week passing while the woman was in the home, my friend held a brick and hit the lady in the head, and then we grabbed the house key, and locked the woman inside. I ran away back to my house to discover my father had just been killed during the crisis.. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Many of the young people who were abducted have been relocated. In their new homes, they slept under trees and in terrain like this image. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Martha, 14 years old. On the 7th of September 2014 while I was travelling to a wedding, I was captured by Boko Haram. They killed my brother in law and my sisters fiancé. They carried me and my two sisters to their camp in Gulak. I stayed there for four months. I suffered greatly during this time, sometimes there was not enough food and I hardly bathed. They told me not to walk around outside, and when I did they would beat me, they told me not to talk, and I would talk, so they would beat me, they told me not to sing, I would sing and they would beat me. They taught me how to use a gun, and I went on two operations with them where I would carry ammunitions they wanted me to kill people, but I could never bring myself to kill anyone... © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016 © Ruth McDowall
Martha, 14 years old. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
(Sarah), 20 years old. On May 7th 2013 I was traveling in a public bus with my friend. A Boko Haram member stopped us on the road, he entered the vehicle. We also realized the driver of the bus was a Boko Haram member. I was in the camp for three days until they released us. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
Ladi. I was abducted from my hometown of Gwoza in 2013 while farming. I spent three months in a Boko Haram camp. They were about to slaughter me by slitting my throat. One of them begged me not to resist, so I relented and converted to Islam. I read from a Koran, and they put a veil on me. They put my "bride price" at 15,000 naira ($75). One day, I preteneded to have stomach pains, so an old lady escorted me to a nearby hospital. Once we were in the town, I threatened to turn her into police so she ran and left me there. That is how I escaped. I am not in school any more and I still remember everything from my experience—which is very upsetting. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
A drawing by Hannah. We were kept in a room all together, the room next to us was full of ammunitions. Outside Boko Haram members would be praying on their matts. We escaped down several paths through the bush, the bush was scary. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
A drawing by Hauwa. Me and my friend were tied up in my mothers friends house, where she would try and force us to convert, and beat us when we refuse. One day when the lady was out, my friend sneaked into the other room and got the key for the front door. When the lady came back she broke free, and hit the woman in the head with a brick. The lady fell down, we quickly ran out of the house, and locked her inside the house with the key. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
A drawing by Mairama © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
A drawing by Markus. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
(Lydia), born in 1994. Lydia. I was travelling in a public bus after paying my school fees on the 7th May 2013, while on the road a Boko Haram member stopped and entered the vehicle. Everyone was telling me to say I’m a Muslim, otherwise I will be killed. We entered a Boko Haram camp in the Sambisa forest, I stayed there for three days and each night we would sleep under big trees. I saw young boys in the camp carrying guns, some as even as young as 10 years. I didn't eat food for three day, I was thinking it could be human flesh, because there are rumors that Boko Haram eat human flesh, so I would throw the food on the ground each day and pretend I ate. Eventually some insurgents asked which village I was from, and realized they knew my father's brother. So they decided to let me go, and dropped me off at a main road, they made me wear hijab and gave me 2000 naira. My family are now taking refugee in Cameroon, but I'm not staying with them. I burnt my hijab after I escaped. I have dreams of Shekau in the night, coming to kill me. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
(Hauwa), 15 years old. After one week passing while the woman was in the home, my friend held a brick and hit the lady in the head, and then we grabbed the house key, and locked the woman inside. I ran away back to my house to discover my father had just been killed during the crisis. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
(Lydia), born in 1994. Part 1: I was travelling in a public bus after paying my school fees on the 7th May 2013, while on the road a Boko Haram member stopped and entered the vehicle. Everyone was telling me to say I’m a Muslim, otherwise I will be killed. We entered a Boko Haram camp in the Sambisa forest, I stayed there for three days and each night we would sleep under big trees. I saw young boys in the camp carrying guns, some even as young as 10 years. I didn’t eat any food for three days, I was thinking it could be human flesh, because there are rumours that Boko Haram eat human flesh, so I would throw the food on the ground each day and pretend I ate. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016
(Hannah), 15 years old. Part 2: When I left the house with them, they burnt a church and then we journeyed for two days to reach their camp in the Gwoza hills, it was a long and difficult journey. Once I reached the camp I was forced to join Islam, given a new name and they married to one man. I managed to escape one night with two other girls. I am still struggling with the memories but I am trying to focus and to continue with school and become a businesswoman. © Ruth McDowall. Finalist, LensCulture Portrait Awards 2016