Reports are fast emerging that Boko Haram militants are transporting the abducted girls out of Nigeria to the Central African Republic, where it may be easier for them to sell the girls off into slavery.
The conflicted Central African Republic (CAR) that still has pockets indulging in slavery is bordered by Chad in the north, Sudan in the northeast, South Sudan in the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west.
It is widely believed that slave traders in the area may easily be able to smuggle the girls to other regions from CAR.
A news report found that about 50 young girls, who seem to have had an English education, were brought into a small town called Birao in CAR. The eye-witness account found that the girls were brought in a truck and were heavily guarded by armed men.
"Upon arrival, some were frightened, cried and were violently reprimanded in English," a source told Jeune Afrique, a French weekly news magazine.
There have also been rumors that Boko Haram militants have divided up the girls into small groups, and are now in the process of transporting them out of Nigeria for the purpose of selling them into sex slavery.
However, Nigerian authorities have maintained that the girls are still in the country, though since April 14, there has been no information on the locations of Boko Haram or the girls.
In a video released last week, Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau claimed responsibility for kidnapping more than 200 Nigerian girls, and declared that the girls will be sold into slavery. He claimed in the video that the girls had become the "property" of Allah, presumably because of their Western education, and that he plans to sell them as his "slaves" in the market.
The incident has sparked off an international concern and, on Twitter, the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls has gained a worldwide following. However, the efforts have to be implemented earnestly and swiftly as time is running out for the abductees.
As per reports, if the militants are able to get the girls into the market, they may get sold off as sex slaves for prices as low as $12.
