TERROR: THE MONSTER OF OUR TIMES

Blood. Death. Destruction. Fear. An enemy of all humankind. An enemy to stability. A spice for animosity. Those are the words that are terror.

Terrorism is a stubborn thorn in the foot of every nation in the world. Kenya has known terror since 1998 when the American embassy in Nairobi was bombed by terrorists. In 2002, terrorists struck again. This time it was a tourist hotel in Kikambala, Mombasa.

Since then, terror has become a reality among Kenyans.

The Kenya Defence Forces’ 2011 incursion in Somalia to flush out the Alshabaab militants forever changed the landscape of terror. In the past four years, more than one thousand Kenya have lost their lives. Hundreds others have been crippled and many more displaced.

Nerve-racking figures

Statistics are heartrending.

 Some of the deadliest attacks include the Westgate mall attack that left close to seventy dead, and property worth millions destroyed. The Garissa massacre on Garissa University College campus left more than 200 hundred students dead.

Buses carrying passengers have been detonated, revelers have been besieged in clubs and killed, and religious houses have become a soft target for the heartless insurgents. Villages at the coast of Kenya have been converted into arenas for unspeakable bloodshed, and everywhere every time the smell of blood, horror and death reeks.

There have been calls to withdraw KDF troops from Somalia, from internally and externally. Whenever conducting their horrific acts, the insurgents have told Kenyans victims to ask their government to pull its soldiers from Somaliland, and until when will they stop butchering Kenyan citizens.

The government though has stuck to its guns, reasoning that an attempt to recall the army from the besieged county will allow the rebels to regroup and hit with more vim.

A global challenge

Terror is a global challenge. Terrorists may attack anyone anywhere depending on their motive. No one is cushioned against the ruthlessness of this form of barbarism…

Not a religious phenomenon

It has often been argued that Islam is a religion that allows hard-line stances particularly towards Christianity, promotes terrorism and glorifies extremism. Jihadists believe that killing non Muslims sanctifies the killer, and pleases their Supreme Being.

This is wrong, and has equally been demystified. Islam distances itself from any form of violence, and condemns the instigators, calling them deviants who use religion as a shield and an excuse for their atrocious activities.

The journey though has not been easy. A sharp divide has been curved between Christians and Muslims in the world, as the former view the latter as a potential threat to them. Sometimes it has been near impossible to peacefully coexist as there is so much suspicion on both sides.

When arrests are being made after an attack, the police sometimes act on the basis of religion, without carrying out proper investigations, further straining the already wobbly inter-religion relations.

US President Barrack Obama during the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism said:

“All of us have the responsibility to refute the notion that groups like the {ISIS} somehow represent Islam, because that is a falsehood that embarrasses the terrorist narrative.”

Causes of terrorism

Locally, terrorism is viewed in some quarters as a way to vent following annexation of some areas by the authorities. Kenyans in the North Eastern part of the country have for years felt that the government in Nairobi does not treat them equally as other Kenyans in other parts of the country.

Poverty levels in the region are higher, illiteracy is incredible and infrastructure near totally absent. This as a result has evoked strong emotions among the residents of the areas, especially the youth who take up arms in a bid ‘to make a point to the state.’

The child born of this marginalisation is terror.

Graft has also been a major culprit. Corruptible officials at border points receive bribery from aliens, a practice which has made border points more porous, hence entry by terrorists.

The barb that is radicalisation

To radicalise according to the Encarta Thesaurus is “to make to undergo fundamental change, or to introduce sweeping changes to something.” Political radicalisation is where people are made to obtain radical political views.

This is a dangerous dimension in the fight against terrorism.

In the east, massive radicalisation has been ongoing in the past few years. Islamic State or IS is a powerful and destructive movement that has come up to preach violence, persecution and massacre of non-Muslims. 

Closer home, the government’s effort to fight terror has recently been curtailed in the shape of the venomous python that is radicalisation. As the state puts in place measures to prevent terrorism, it is also keeping an even keener eye on the ground to ensure that the youth are not indoctrinated into extremism. This has in consequence strained the resources set aside for securing all.

A clear-cut example could be the crushing of the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) that was allegedly inciting its members against the state.

Effects of terror

Terrorism has a direct impact on the stability of a country, on all fronts. People live in tension and fear of attacks, deaths orphan children, widow spouses and rob dependants of their bread winners. The threat posed by terrorism has made teachers in Mandera County and some parts of Wajir quit their jobs, hence crippling education in the region.

The economy is usually a direct recipient of the brunt of this menace. More funds have to be allocated to the security docket and intelligence agencies in the country. For a country that relies on foreign grants and aid for sustenance, this has been painfully hurting to Kenya’s balance and checks.

Occasional travel advisories by European counties and America severely impair Kenya’s tourism industry. Most of the visitors come from the west, and whenever such warnings are given, the number of visitors often drastically falls. This has the direct and immediate effect of less foreign exchange for Kenya, mass layoff by hotels and closure of others, which leads to loss of jobs.

Restructuring the security system

There have been major shakeups in the security organs of the country in the recent few years. Under the Jubilee administration only, there have been two ministers in the docket of security, and two holders of the post of the Inspector General of Police.

The former minister for Interior Joseph Lenku was fired after a series of invasions within Kenyan borders that left tens if not hundreds dead. The then IG David Kimaiyo was silently shown the door after he failed to secure Kenyans.

The head of Intelligence Major General Michael Gichangi resigned after a plethora of condemnations that the country’s intelligence organ was sleeping on their job.

Gathering of intelligence in the country has forever changed, with the restructuring of the systems and an overhaul of the leadership. All this is done in a bid to tackle terrorism head on.

There have also been claims that Kenya’s spies do not promptly act upon the intelligence gathered, either by ignoring it, or by dismissing it. This has on several occasions exposed the country to the priests of terrorisms, where the country is caught flat-footed.

Key partner in fight against terrorism

Kenya’s has been a force to reckon with in the fight against terror in the region. Due to its proximity with Somalia, it has helped the international community to crush the Alshabaab by pursuing them deep into Somalia.

Additionally, Kenya has been regarded as a island of peace in the region that is characterised by tension and rebel fighting. Despite few challenges, Kenya enjoys a plausible degree of democracy. On the other hand, there is perpetual war in Uganda, there is a critical leadership crisis in South Sudan, Somali is ungovernable and dictatorship is the order of the day in Burundi and Rwanda.

For that reason, the US considers Kenya as the most reliable, and indeed willing, partner in the fight against terror. That has also, in the eyes of the terrorists, marked Kenya as a sympathiser of the west, and a common enemy.

Global efforts

 There have been infamous attacks of airlines like the Russian Airlines. Businesses too have not been spared either. Two French Muslim brothers, Cherif fans Said Kouachi, invaded and killed scores of staff at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo headquarters in Paris early 2015.

In 1998, a horror bomb went off in Nairobi killing nearly 300 people. Three years later, the twin towers of the World Trade Centre in New York City were bombed killing many people.

Rogue gunmen have invaded and killed innocent school children in America.

Internationally, terrorism is vehemently condemned. It is seen as a cowardly act by perpetrators of these contemptible acts: killing innocent and unsuspecting humans.

Countries suffer huge losses whenever terrorists strike. For this reason, there are calls for concerted effort to deal through and through with this costly, destructive and annoying nuisance.

Possible solutions

To end terror, authorities and other stakeholders ought to address the matter amicably, and in a manner that does not discriminate against anyone or any group on the basis of ethnicity or religion –as it has been witnessed during swoops by the police.

Intelligence, however faint, MUST be acted upon, immediately and appropriately. It may help counter a possible hazard.

All people should be treated equally irrespective of their origin, religion and political stand.

Above all, any enterprise that will help to end the trouble ought to be embraced.

This way, we will be able to once more enjoy a terror-free Kenya, region and world.