Nigeria: Boko Haram Debate
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Lord St John of Bletso
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Nigeria: Boko Haram
Lord St John of Bletso Excerpts(10 years ago)
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Baroness Anelay of St Johns
My Lords, I have read those reports. Anyone who is kidnapped in any situation is a bargaining chip. The difficulty is knowing with whom one strikes the bargain and at what price for all.
Lord St John of Bletso (CB)
Does the Minister consider that the forthcoming elections on 14 February next year are a major contributing factor in the approach taken by the Nigerian Government to tackling this problem with Boko Haram?
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
My Lords, the noble Lord is right to refer to the forthcoming elections. We continue to engage regularly with our counterparts in Nigeria to convey our expectation that the February presidential elections must be free, fair and peaceful. Security in elections can help to have security in a country.