Sunday, September 07, 2014
It is so refreshing to hear President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy speak with sobriety over terrorism in Kenya. One of those moments was during the intelligence chiefs' meeting in Mombasa that came to a close last Saturday.
Thirteen heads of intelligence agencies met in Mombasa to discuss the relationship between radicalisation, extremism and terrorism. The choice of Kenya and Mombasa, in particular, was significant because of the high number of alleged al Shabaab radicalisation of Muslim youths in the town.
Gradually, these two gentlemen can now appreciate the truth in the public domain – that the problem in the Kenyan Coast, though political, is not limited to Cord-Jubilee wrangles. They are now seeing the clear link between continuous radicalisation, extremism and al Shabaab terror activities in Kenya.
Kenya is not isolated in this war on extremism. On Monday, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom addressed the British House of Commons on the need to introduce new laws to stop British citizens from travelling to Syria or Iraq to be radicalised. Additionally, a preview on the data presented on CNN website tabulates a long list of citizens from Europe, US, Middle East and Asia radicalised and involved in terrorism in Syria and Iraq.
What makes Muslims travel from all these countries to participate in terrorism? Is it related to the political-social and economic conditions that a section of the society faces? Let’s bring the discussion home. I hypothesise that Kenya’s growing Islamic radicalism can be traced to the marginalisation during the colonial era and the subsequent three regimes, all of which were characterised by consistent discrimination against the Muslim community.
The colonial period created the Northern Frontier District, which had different sets of law from other parts of Kenya. In the end, the area was closed to development, poverty increased and the Somalis lost faith in the Nairobi-based government. Feeling like lesser Kenyans and with the rise of irredentism, Kenyans of Somali origin felt more Somalis than Kenyans.
President Kenyatta’s administration can easily be remembered by the Shifta campaigns (1963-67). Justice and Reconciliation Commission documented abuse of human rights by the police and the military, incidences that are still remembered with nostalgia. At the Coast province, another region dominated by Muslims, unequal distribution of land sowed the seeds of discord between the government and the population.
Then came President Moi’s administration, which largely continued with President Kenyatta’s policies. What was more significant was the Wagalla Massacre. President Kibaki regime was at first friendlier to the Muslim community that he even created the Ministry of Arid and Semi-arid areas to address their problems.
The situation changed in October 2011, just after KDF crossed into Somalia – the number of terror attacks in Garissa, Mombasa and Nairobi counties started skyrocketing. Of importance, was that almost all suspects proclaimed Muslim faith and were linked to al Shabaab.
The response of President Kibaki was swift – he enhanced the powers of the Anti Terror Police Unit alleged to have committed atrocities against so many innocent Muslims. The anti-terror campaign continued into President Uhuru's government.
So far, the most significant abuse of human rights by the current government was the Operation Usalama watch. Though the government claimed it was a success, most Muslims saw this as a profiling exercise against the Somalis, in which Safaricom Kasarani Stadium was turned into a concentration camp.
On August 18, 14 human rights watch groups released an extraordinary report detailing the activities of ATPU, which is alleged to be responsible for extrajudicial killings, mysterious disappearances, arbitrary arrests and torture. The reports outline 10 cases of reported extrajudicial killings and disappearances since 2011.
This set of behaviour by the government security agencies coupled with low level of economic development creates a sense of apathy among the people. The Somalis and Muslims feel as though the government no longer recognises them.
No wonder National Assembly majority leader Hon Aden Duale moved swiftly to remind Muslims that President Uhuru’s government is fair to them going by the many cabinet appointments they got, including the Foreign Affairs one, which for the first time in Kenyan history is being headed by a Muslim, Hon Amina Abdalla.
The monologue above points to the facts that extremism is informed by a confluence of al Shabaab activities, political and social-economic conditions at home. Fighting terrorism must therefore take a multi-throne approach consisting of the military, economic, social and political solutions.
We already have our military in Somalia while the ATPU and police are struggling to handle the runaway domestic terrorism. What should be included now are measured political, social and economic skills that would augment the security efforts.
Economic measures to address levels of poverty, social policies to maintain social fabric and political measures that would ensure inclusivity are necessary. These are the efforts that would address the root causes of the radicalisation and Islamic extremism in Kenya.
Meanwhile, as there is a distinction between Islam and extremism, the state is wrong in profiling all Muslims as terrorists. Disregard to the rule of law only serves to reinforce the marginalisation narrative. Although the products of such highhandedness may not be immediate, with time it will come to manifest itself.