The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, has urged the Kaduna State Government to move beyond the recovery of farmland from bandits and ensure the safe return and rehabilitation of displaced farmers.
HURIWA made the call while commending Governor Uba Sani over the reported recovery of more than 500,000 hectares of farmland previously controlled by bandits across the state.
Kaduna State Commissioner for Information and Culture, Ahmed Maiyaki, disclosed the development at a gala night organised by the Kano Correspondents’ Chapel during its 2026 retreat in Kaduna.
Maiyaki said improved security, community-based strategies and early-warning mechanisms had enabled farmers to return to their farms after years of insecurity.
Reacting in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, HURIWA described the recovery as a significant security, humanitarian and economic development.
The rights group said the development should not be treated merely as a security statistic, stressing that the real objective should be the restoration of citizens’ livelihoods, property rights and dignity.
HURIWA said bandit occupation of rural communities had destroyed farms, disrupted food production, separated families and pushed many residents into prolonged displacement and poverty.
The association therefore called on Sani to establish a comprehensive “recover, restore and rebuild” programme to identify legitimate landowners, document recovered communities and facilitate the safe and dignified return of displaced residents.
It also demanded stronger security around the recovered areas to prevent bandits from regrouping and forcing residents out again.
“Recovering territory without rebuilding affected communities could leave returning residents exposed to renewed attacks and displacement,” HURIWA warned.
The group called for roads, schools, healthcare facilities, water, electricity and other basic services to be restored in communities affected by years of insecurity.
It further urged the state government to support returning farmers with agricultural inputs, affordable credit, equipment and extension services to enable them rebuild their livelihoods.
HURIWA also advocated stronger community-based early-warning systems and greater involvement of traditional rulers, religious leaders, youth and women groups, farmers’ associations and representatives of displaced persons in peacebuilding.
The association said lasting peace could not be achieved through military operations alone, but required justice, dialogue, reconciliation, community trust and economic recovery.
HURIWA equally demanded accountability for those responsible for killings, kidnappings, unlawful occupation of property and destruction of livelihoods, urging security agencies to identify, arrest and prosecute perpetrators.
The group called on the Federal Government to provide states facing rural insecurity with adequate intelligence, equipment and personnel to prevent terrorists and bandits from regrouping.
It said the ultimate test of Kaduna’s reported security gains would be whether ordinary residents could return home, cultivate their farms, send their children to school and conduct their businesses without fear.
HURIWA described the reported recovery of the farmland as an important beginning, but said the ultimate victory over terrorism must be measured by the restoration of human dignity, lawful ownership, livelihoods and peaceful community life.