Preamble: Lately, President
Buhari and the Minister of Information – Mr. Lai
Mohammed separately affirmed that the Nigerian
government was in talks with Boko Haram with a view to swopping the over 200
Chibok school girls abducted by Boko Haram Islamic Sect over two years ago with
detained Boko Haram members. In addition to insinuations of 800 ‘repentant’
Boko Haram insurgents purportedly granted amnesty, the Imo and Rivers State governors in recent times, granted
amnesty to so-called militants, cultists and criminals in their domain. This
essay aims to discuss the far-reaching implications of aforesaid events.
Aborted Prisoner Swop Deal With Boko Haram?
On Friday, September 16, 2016, Nigeria’s Minister of Information –
Mr. Lai Mohammed said the Nigerian government is launching a fresh
bid to rescue Chibok Girls abducted by Boko Haram
after talks with the Sect failed. New York Times, NYT reports that this is the third failed negotiation between the Nigerian
government and Boko Haram. NYT quotes the Nigerian government as saying, ‘’Boko
Haram demanded the release of prisoners involved in “major terrorist actions”
and others who were explosives experts. Mr. Buhari agreed to those difficult
demands, “believing that the overall release of these girls remains paramount
and sacrosanct.” It is believed that Boko Haram upped the ante, increased their
demands which the government is not amenable to. Notwithstanding the botched
swop deal, SaharaReporters reports that, ‘’the Nigerian Army
released 566 Boko Haram family members to the Borno State government’’. While
receiving families of Boko Haram members released to the Borno State government
by the Nigerian Army, the State governor – Kashim Shettima reportedly
said, "What is of importance we should all know, is that an average male
member of the Boko Haram has one great wish and that wish is for his son or
daughter to inherit his doctrine of violence. The insurgents seriously take to
child bearing as a strategy of not only multiplying their numbers but also
producing children they hope, will continue from where their fathers stop in
violent killings as their own form of worship.’’ Continuing, the
governor said, “The goal of Boko Haram fathers is
that even if they are killed by our armed forces, they want to bequeath to us,
a future of violence in Borno State, a future of violence in the northeast and
a violent future for our country.’’
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| Abducted Chibok School girls |
The Defence Headquarters tried but obviously failed to obfuscate
goings-on. Let’s get something straightened out. You arrest a terrorist(s), no
legal action was taken to try, let alone convict him or her. You tell the world
such a person is a ‘’repentant terrorist’’ and unleash him/her to the society after
a supposed rehabilitation programme and you don’t see that as an amnesty? If
anything, the difference between an ‘’amnesty’’ and the aforesaid ‘’Operation
Safe Corridor’’ is simply semantics, tantamount to the difference between six
and half a dozen.
Chibok Girls-Boko Haram
Prisoner Swap, Amnesty Debate
Food for thought: ‘’you cannot negotiate with people who say
what's mine is mine and what's yours is negotiable’’ - John F. Kennedy, former
United States President
There’s a raging debate as to whether or not the government should
‘negotiate’ with Boko Haram on the release of the abducted Chibok school girls.
Recall that during the President Jonathan administration, the Nigerian
government was reportedly scammed $40 million on the guise of releasing the Chibok girls. After spirited denials of not granting ‘amnesty’
to Boko Haram insurgents, Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters admitted having an
initiative called “Operation
Safe Corridor”, which is aimed at, ’’rehabilitating
and reintegrating repentant
terrorists back into normal life in the society.’’ While some recommend a deal
with Boko Haram, others are opposed to it.
For instance, the Bring Back Our Girls Group, BBOG, championing a robust
cause for the abducted Chibok girls, eggs President Buhari to negotiate with Boko Haram. On the other hand, Mr. Richard Barrett, a former
head of counter-terrorism for MI6 and ex-Director of Global Counter Terrorism
Operations for the British Secret Intelligence Service, is one of those that
are wary of this purported deal. Mr. Barrett said, ‘‘The [Nigerian] government will also need to be certain that it
is not releasing prisoners that will revive Boko Haram fortunes just at a time
when the movement is split and the leader may be severely wounded’’. Similarly,
the Coalition
Against Terrorism and Extremism (CATE) warns
the Nigerian government against negotiating with Boko Haram. CATE argues that,
“any attempt to negotiate with terror groups in the country will rather serve
as open invitation from other miscreants to hold the nation’s peace to ransom
in anticipation of financial and other selfish aggrandizement.’’ Also,
an activist, Mr. Philip Agbese is averse to swapping the abducted Chibok school
girls with Boko Haram detainees. Mr. Agbese likened
the offer for prisoners swap as ‘’a poisoned
chalice’’ and went further to say, “these groups and individuals that have been
canvassing a swop of Boko Haram prisoners for the abducted Chibok Girls do so
without regards for the penchant for recidivism among terrorists like any other
type of criminals.” In my opinion, surviving Chibok girls still under captivity
are more like Boko Haram’s most prized asset as well as their Achilles heel. The
girls must have been indoctrinated, subjugated to all sorts of abuse and
impregnated. By reason of what they know, the abducted Chibok girls hold the
key to unraveling and decapitating Boko Haram. My prognosis is that the Sect
will not let go easily without a fight.
Prisoner Exchange or Swap
Deals, A Brief History
A prisoner exchange or prisoner swap is defined as, ‘’a deal between opposing sides in a conflict to release
prisoners. These may be prisoners of war, spies, hostages, etc. Sometimes dead
bodies are involved in an exchange.’’ Article 109-117 of the Third
Geneva Convention of 1949 extensively addressed Prisoner
swap deal. Proponents of Boko-Haram-Chibok-girls swap deal with the Nigerian
government argue that prisoner exchange is a legitimate global principle. They
inter alia cite the United States, Israel amongst others as proponents. Granted
that, contrary to the mantra of ‘no negotiations with terrorists’, when push
comes to shove, aforesaid countries, in line with the time-honoured philosophy
of ‘leave no one or soldier behind’, go to extraordinary lengths and risks to
rescue or negotiate the release of its citizens, usually through back channels.
One thing is sure, apart from prisoner of war (POW) swap deals during the US
Civil war, plausibly all the prisoner swap deals that the US entered into,
involve American citizens held outside the shores of the United States. It is preposterous
to think that the United States will be so disadvantaged and helpless to succumb
to a prisoner swap deal with terrorists domiciled WITHIN its territory. What
are the FBIs, CIAs, Rangers, and Navy SEALs there for.
Can A Factionalized Boko
Haram With Warped Religious Ideology Be Trusted?
A while ago, Boko Haram dwarfed the bloodletting spree of ISIS and
was named the world’s deadliest
terror group. The sect is inter alia, said
to be responsible for about 20,
000 deaths since 2009; over 2 million
internally displaced people, IDPs, acute starvation
and famine, destruction of properties worth $9
billion in six northern Nigerian states since 2011
and kidnapping of thousands of people. And just recently, Boko Haram became factionalized. On August 3, the Islamic state proclaimed Mamman Nur-aligned Abu
Musab al-Barnawi (son of Boko Haram’s founder, Muhammed Yusuf) as the new
“wali” of ISWAP while the de facto leader – Abubakar Shekau has now reportedly
reverted to his earlier position as “imam” of Jamaatu ahlis Sunna li’Dawati wal
Jihad (JAS, the original name of the surviving followers of Muhammed Yusuf).
Can a factionalized sect, enmeshed in serious in-fighting, that deploys under-age children as suicide bombers, spares neither
Christians nor Muslims, calls fellow Muslims infidels, attacks soft targets -
churches, mosques, markets, Internally Displaced People camps and hard targets
such as military establishments amongst others be trusted to keep its words? Given
that Boko Haram has trialled the efficacy of kidnapping, holding scores of
people hostage and using them as a bargaining chip, there is no guarantee they
won't do it again.
‘Amnesty’ To Boko Haram
Insurgents: The Kabiru Sokoto Release Brouhaha
Before the failed prisoner swap deal with Boko Haram, there was widespread
hypothesis that the Nigerian government granted amnesty to ‘repentant’ Boko
Haram insurgents. Notwithstanding denials by Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters, it is increasingly apparent
that the claim is not unfounded after all. A SaharaReporters publication of
September 17, 2016, headlined: ‘’IDPs in Maiduguri debate ex-Boko Haram integration
into communities’’ seem to substantiate inference of ‘amnesty’ to Boko Haram
members. SaharaReporters report reads; ‘’Residents in the internally displaced persons (IDPs)
camps in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, have expressed concerns over
plans by the Federal Government to grant amnesty to certain repentant Boko
Haram insurgents. Some issued warnings that such policies may be dangerous to
displaced people returning to the area.’’ These sentiments were issued during a
workshop at the Nigeria Labour Congress secretariat complex in Maiduguri
titled: “Sensitization of Religious and Traditional Leaders, De-radicalization,
and Counter-Terrorism in the Northeast.”
Similarly, Nigeria’s public space was awash with allusions that the current administration may have surreptitiously released
- one Kabiru Dikko, a.k.a Kabiru Sokoto, the fellow convicted for masterminding
the 2011 Christmas
Day bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic
Church, Madalla, near Abuja. Recall that 40 people were killed in the aforesaid
attack which Boko haram claimed responsibility for. The hoopla generated by the
purported release of Kabiru Sokoto is not unwarranted given the way things pan
out in Nigeria. Thankfully the spokesman of the Nigerian Prison Service, NPS,
Mr. Biyi Jeje belatedly refuted the suggestion that Kabiru Sokoto was freed. Mr. Jeje said,
“Please disregard the rumour. He’s still in prisons custody.”
Prerogative of Mercy As
Alibi For Pardoning Terrorists, Criminals?
While it is established that Sections 175(1) & (2) and 212(1)
of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution for the President and the Governor, respectively
vests prerogative of mercy on the President and State governors but this
privilege must not be an excuse for indiscriminately freeing terrorists,
criminals et al. Mr. Inibehe Effiong, a Legal Practitioner and Convener of the
Coalition of Human Rights Defenders (COHRD), says, ‘’…it is unthinkable for a convicted terrorist who facilitated
the murder of innocent Nigerians to be granted state pardon. What will be the
motivation for such offensive pardon? ‘’If members of the violent sect were to
be swapped for the Chibok girls, I do not believe Kabiru Sokoto will be
considered. That will amount to legitimizing the insane and beastly ideology of
Boko Haram.
Terrorist Deradicalization,
Disengagement And Recidivism: The Numbers
While the efficacy of efficiently de-radicalizing, disengaging
violent extremists or terrorists is debatable, what is certain is that it is
probable for criminals, terrorists to recidivate or fall back to crime, violent
extremism. We are not talking of pick-pockets here. How do you effectively wean
a terrorist of his bloodletting streak, and his warped ideology? This means
Abubakar Shekau too can be de-radicalized? How inviolable is this
deradicalization concept? Do we have statistics of recidivism in Nigeria? Due
to paucity of records, there is no credible statistics of recidivism in Nigeria
hence I will cite outcomes outside Nigeria. According to a study on Radicalization
Research, terrorist incidents such as the Charlie
Hebdo attack in Paris, the Sydney
siege, and the murder of Lee Rigby in London, appears to substantiate terrorist recidivism. Two prominent researchers involved in the above study posit:
“it has been practically impossible to ascertain what is implied by or expected
from programs that claim to be able to de-radicalize terrorists”. A former Guantanamo detainee, Ibrahim
Qosi, also known as Sheikh Khubayb al Sudani said to be Osama bin Laden’s
former cook and driver, released to Sudan in July 2012 by the President Obama
administration reportedly rejoined al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, AQAP. Out of the
653 Guantanamo detainees released by the US government, about 196 (18%) are either confirmed or suspected recidivists (30%). Ibrahim Qosi popped up in an AQAP propaganda video promoting jihad in West
Africa. Reports also surfaced that, ‘’one of 'Taliban Five' members
(Mohammad Fazl, Mullah Norullah Noori, Mohammed Nabi, Khairullah Khairkhwa and
Abdul Haq Wasiq) controversially freed by the US in the Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl swap
deal allegedly relapsed to terrorist activity. A 60-page report in the United States tagged – ‘’Recidivism Among Federal
Offenders: A Comprehensive Overview’’ which analyzed more than 25,400 former
inmates who were either released outright from federal prisons or placed on
probation in 2005, found almost half (49.3%) had, within the next eight years,
been arrested again, whether for a new offense or for violating conditions of
their parole or release. Among the offenders released or paroled in 2005,
during the same period nearly a third (31.7%) had been re-convicted, with 24.7%
of them also re-incarcerated.
Somewhat akin to the pull-factor of recidivism and reminiscent of
the Stockholm
Syndrome; one of the escaped Chibok girls Amina Ali
Nkeki says she misses her Boko Haram fighter husband and still thinks about him
three months after escaping the terrorists’ camp. What this means is that there
is still an affinity between Amina Ali Nkeki and her so-called Boko Haram husband
and if given a choice, she will welcome an opportunity to rejoin him.
Recurring Amnesty To
Criminals, Cultists And Kidnappers
Not to be outdone, the Imo State governor – Chief Rochas Okorocha
and his Rivers State counterpart – Chief Nyesom Wike recently granted amnesty
to some notorious militants and cultists in their domain. To this end, two
militant groups – ‘’Red
Scorpion’ and another with over 1,000 militants were reportedly granted amnesty in Imo State in a showy ceremony. The militants
were said to have surrendered their wobbly arms, ‘’comprising Ak-47 riffles,
rocket launchers, pistols, charms, machetes, knives, axes and other dangerous
weapons’’ and were forthwith pardoned by the Imo State Governor - Rochas
Okorocha. A similar scenario played
out in River State where the State Governor – Nyesom Wike, ‘’reiterated his offer
of amnesty to cultists and kidnappers, who would
submit their arms to the state security agencies and commit themselves to
honest living.’’ Consequently ONELGA Militant group led by one Don Wanny heeded
Governor Wike’s overture, signed a peace agreement and relinquished obviously,
some of their arms comprising, ‘’hundreds of AK-47 rifles, Pump action guns,
British pistols, thousands of magazines, locally made guns.’’ Still on
Recidivism, when President Yar Adua 'settled' Niger Delta Militants with amnesty largesse in 2009, there were about 4 or 5 Militant Groups. Fast
forward to 2016, there are about 23
Militant Groups in the Niger Delta and counting
holding the government by the jugular. Who knows, in the next few years, there
could be 100 militant groups in the Niger Delta and variants in parts of Nigeria?
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| Niger Delta Militants |
Whither Nigerian Laws?
In 2013, Nasarawa State-based Ombatse cult reportedly slaughtered about 100 Nigerian security operatives – comprising policemen and
State Security Service (SSS) or DSS personnel and waltz. Till date nobody was
tried let alone convicted for this heinous crime. Rather, the then Director
General of the SSS – Mr. Ita Ekpenyong startled Nigerians by saying that the
DSS has forgiven Ombatse members for killing its personnel. Writing
on Guardian Africa
Network, Salisu Suleiman says, ‘’Only
in Nigeria could 103 people – officers of the police, state security service
and mobile police – be killed in the line of duty, without as much as a formal
investigation to find out what happened: who gave what orders, whether the
officers were prepared for the mission and who was responsible for the brutal
massacre that took place. The conspiracy of silence is indicative of
fundamental malfunctions in the country's security structure. No other country
in the world would tolerate this level of disregard for the lives of security
personnel.’’
In a news report titled, ‘’Why we can’t Execute Boko Haram convicts’’,
Nigeria’s Attorney General, AG, – Abubarka Malami shocked the nation when he asserted through one Mr. Sylvester Imahanobe that, ‘’convicted members of
the Boko Haram sect in Nigeria could not be executed because the laws under
which they were tried did not prescribe death sentence.’’ It is apparent that
the Attorney General’s assertion clearly disputes Nigeria’s Terrorism (Prevention)
Act 2011 as (amended) in 2013, Part 1, sub section 4 which states: ‘’(2)
without prejudice to sub-section (20 of this section, where death results from
any terrorist act, the penalty shall be death
sentence.’’ The statement credited to the current
AG obviously contradicts that of his predecessor – Mr. Mohammed Adoke who said, ‘’considerable achievements had been made in terms of containing
terrorism through the prosecution of members of the sect under the Terrorism
Prevention Act, 2011 as amended in 2013.’’ There is no better time for a
functional judiciary in Nigeria than now otherwise our laws will remain mere
paper-tigers!
By
the way, does NACTEST, Nigeria’s National Counter-terrorism strategy prescribe negotiating
with terrorists, militants, bandits or granting them amnesty?
Conclusion:
Newton’s third law of motion says, ‘’to every action, there is an
equal and opposite reaction. Setting a precedent, especially a bad one, engenders
a vicious cycle. My father - Ochiriozuo reiterates this Igbo proverb - "ekpee
ofu ikpe, ekpela ibe ya". Translated - 'when one case is treated,
precedence is set for future reference'. While it is expedient to absolve,
counsel and reintegrate innocent
family members of Boko Haram insurgents into the society, it is very risky to
release so-called Boko Haram commanders, explosives experts and their ilks. It
behoves relevant Nigerian agencies and the President Buhari administration to critically
weigh the far-reaching consequences of granting amnesty to convicted or
detained Boko Haram terrorists, and other so-called militants under whatever
guise. An Igbo proverb says, ‘’aru gbaa afo, oburu omenala’’ – meaning – when a
crime persists for a while, it becomes a standard culture. Having entrenched
such precedents, Nigeria should brace up to democratize amnesty, its variants
because like a vicious cycle, this won't be the last time terrorists, armed
militias will force Nigeria to the negotiating table.
Written
by:
© Don Okereke
(Security/Analyst/Consultant,
Ex-serviceman, Writer)
Follow
me on Twitter: @donokereke
September,
2016
