U.S. Institute Of Peace Reports On Why Nigerian Youths Join Boko Haram
The United States Institute of Peace has published a report entitled "Why Do Youth Join Boko Haram?" where it offers insights into how and why the dreaded Nigerian terrorist network has been able to recruit our youths to fight alongside them.
Between June and November 2013, a group of consultants and experts from the USIP conducted research in six northern Nigerian states (Borno - Maiduguri and Biu, Gombe - Gombe Town and Akko, Kaduna - Zaria and Kaduna, Kano - Nasarawa and Tarauni, Sokoto - Sokoto Town and Shagari Town, and Yobe - Damaturu and Potiskum). The aim of the study was to determine which factors enable armed groups to radicalize and attract youths.
Multiple religious, political, security, youth, civil society, men's and women's groups took part in the survey and named the main causative forces behind radicalization and extremism of young individuals; they are economic, social, political, and religious in nature and are common for all states included in the research.
In northern Nigeria, the number of children without adequate parental guidance is growing alarmingly. Underprivileged background, broken homes, absence of biological parents make them easy prey for extremists who exploit children's alienation from home and society to instill radical views.
Many families in the North fail to send their children to school. Illiterate children lack the knowledge to critically estimate the narratives of extremists which also makes them vulnerable against manipulation.
Adding to the problem is the fact that ignorance of religious teaching also influences the adoption of extreme religious views among the gullible youths, often distorted by terror sects.
The USIP report has revealed three worrisome tendencies in practicing religion in Nigeria:
Closely tied to radicalization are poverty and unemployment which prompt young people to engage in religious violence.
Nigerian security and military forces deployed to the most problematic areas to fight Boko Haram were also named responsible for youth radicalization, albeit to a lesser extent. Nevertheless, harsh tactics, injured civilians and damaged property, unlawful killings, dragnet arrests, extortion, and intimidation are angering Nigerian youths.
Nigeria is notorious for ubiquitous corruption at all levels of government. The interviewed communities condemned the government for neglecting them and creating the enabling environment for recruitment and radicalization by the terrorists who use this opportunity to appeal to impoverished, alienated, and jobless northern Muslim youths.
The report contains a number of recommendations on how to handle the situation, particularly, to address the problems that make it possible for Boko Haram to win over the minds of Nigerian youths.
The author of the report, Freedom C. Onuoha, is head of the Department of Conflict, Peacekeeping, and Humanitarian Studies at the Centre for Strategic Research and Studies of Nigeria’s National Defence College, Abuja.
The USIP is a U.S. national security institution which collects data to prevent and mitigate military conflicts and consults a variety of stakeholders, including governments, civil society, militaries, private businesses and scholars worldwide.
Source: Legit.ng
