Federal Government will arraign suspects in Benue killings on Monday. The prosecutions signal accountability efforts following high-profile deadly attack that shocked communities.

For victims' families, court proceedings matter tremendously. Justice requires prosecution. Accountability requires trials. Seeing suspects face charges provides some closure, some sense that violence won't go completely unanswered.

But prosecution doesn't prevent next attack. Court cases don't stop violence currently happening. They respond to violence already committed, victims already dead, communities already traumatized.

When killings trigger arrests and prosecution, it shows systems responding. Investigations happen. Evidence gets gathered. Suspects face courts. This is how rule of law functions—violence leads to legal consequences.

When killings continue despite prosecutions, it shows response isn't prevention. You can prosecute every attack's perpetrators and still have attacks every week. Accountability for past violence doesn't create safety from future violence.

Benue has faced recurring communal and herder-farmer violence for years. Attacks happen, deaths mount, arrests follow, prosecutions proceed. Then next attack happens.

What communities want is both—justice for past violence AND safety from future attacks. Prosecutions provide the first. Preventing attacks requires different interventions: dispute resolution mechanisms, grazing reserves, economic alternatives to land competition, security presence that deters rather than responds.

Monday's arraignment matters for accountability. But it won't prevent next week's potential attack. For that, Benue needs sustained security that makes violence too risky and dispute resolution that makes violence unnecessary.

Justice through courts and safety through prevention aren't the same thing. Communities need both.