AN INVESTIGATION OF POVERTY AS MAIN CAUSE OF TERRORISM

AN INVESTIGATION OF POVERTY AS MAIN CAUSE OF TERRORISM (A CASE OF GARISSA COUNTY) DCRM/2014/69361 SHARMAKE MOHAMED ALI A RESEARCH PROJECT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE AWARD OF DIPLOMA IN CRIMINOLOGY AND SECURITY STUDIES OF MOUNT KENYA UNIVERSITY MAY 2016 DECLARATION Declaration by the student This research project is my original work and has not been presented for examination in any other university. It is an original work done by me under the guidance of Mrs. Jane kahara my supervisor , Mount Kenya University and the project work has not performed the basis for the award of any Diploma or Degree/Association/Fellowship and similar project if any. SHARMAKE MOHAMED ALI DCRM/2014/69361 Signature ………………………….. Date……………………………………… Declaration by the supervisor This research project has been presented for examination with my approval as the University supervisor. Signature ……………………………. Date………………………………………… Mrs. JANE KAHARA Lecturer Institute of security studies justice and ethics Mount Kenya University DEDICATION I dedicate this project to my Mother Kamila Nuh Gedi and Father Mohamed Ali for their tireless efforts both morally and financially to see me make a breakthrough in academic welfares ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost this project would not have been complete without the grace of the Almighty God and I want to thank him for all he has made me accomplish. I would also like to appreciate my supervisor Mrs. Jane Kahara for her support and encouragement as well as, her constant criticism. My heartfelt gratitude goes to my family for their support throughout the period. Mount Kenya University has offered me a great opportunity and I appreciate their assistance. Finally i recognize all those who provided insights and their encouraging words to me. CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Background of the study Statement of problem Many countries all over the world have been faced the menace of terrorism in ones or many instances. Terrorism is any act designed to cause harm and it involves violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, especially for political and religious purposes. Terrorist attacks usually have devastating effects on the target the country as a whole. Kenyan government has suffered various terrorist attacks and in all there have been serious and devastating effects due to the lack of capacity and response mechanism to these attacks. Terrorism bring the county to its knee economically as it destroys various infrastructure that had been put in place by the government, transport networks etc. in addition terrorist attack causes injuries, deaths and psychological trauma of the immediate victims. In Kenya we have had various major terrorist attacks which include 1998 united states embassy bombings where 224 people died and over 4000 non-fatal injuries recorded(9/11) 1998. On 21 September 2013, unidentified gunmen attached the upmarket Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi Kenya. The attack, which lasted until 24th September, resulted in atleast 67 deaths, including four attackers. More than 175 people were reported wounded in the mass shooting, with all the gunmen reported killed. There has been other attacks all over Nairobi and some parts of Northern Kenya and at the coast amidst efforts the government have made to try reduce and stop any further attacks. Recent attack occurred in Garissa County where Garissa University college woke up with explosion and gunshots around 5:30 a.m Thursday April 2015 at the schools front gates. The attackers continued to fire as they stalked through campus, and finally stopped at girl’s hostels. At one point, they got into the room where Christian union students were gathered for their morning prayers and all were killed. It’s from that we got to know that it was a terrorist attack and students belonging one religion was the target. This continued for several hours and because of delayed response 147 people were reported to have died. All in all, despite these attacks our government still lacks the mechanism to deter, respond and contain to such attacks so as to reduce fatalities, casualties and level of property loss. In many cases there has been poor and late response by both the security agencies and emergency care givers and this has led to huge number of deaths and casualties. Terrorism have led to profiling and discrimination of some communities who have been labeled and associated with terrorism. For instance after several terror attacks within Nairobi the Somalis were linked to these attacks. And for this reason the government rolled out “usalama watch” which led to Somali migrants and refugees arrested in the police sweep for deportation at a holding station which was Kasarani stadium within Nairobi City according to Human rights Watch report. There are little studies to establish the main cause, reasons and motives behind these many terrorist attacks. Very little on the same have been done to suggest and recommend various ways of curtailing and reducing the effects of terrorism should an attack happens. Every citizen of this country to entitled to safety and security and done should be discriminated on the basis of their cultural, economic, political or religious background hence this study was done to establish whether poverty is the main of terrorism and recommending various ways of preventing it. Objectives of the study 1.2.0 Main objective An investigation of poverty as the main cause of terrorism a case of Garissa County Specific objectives: To establish whether marginalization and discrimination enhances youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism. To find out whether radicalization promotes terrorism To examine consequences of terrorism To find out ways of preventing terrorism Research Questions Do marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism? Does radicalization promotes terrorism? What are the consequences of terrorism? What are the ways of preventing terrorism? Significance of the study The national government stands to benefit as being an institution obliged to ensure safety and well-being of its citizen .The information will also assist the county government of Garissa to plan for various projects i.e. job creation, youth empowerment and DE radicalization of its radicalized youths if any. It will also assist law enforcement agencies and other policy makers to plan, monitor and evaluate how ready they are to deal with terror attacks. Conclusions reached in this study may institute a basis for further research in the area of state security and terrorism. Justification of the study Terrorism is a problem to any country. It undermines peace and security of citizen. Its brings a country to its knee economically. Despite the huge sums of money set aside to deal with terrorism and it effects, little have been achieved and this have impacted on the countries development agenda negatively hence this study endeavors to explain roles of poverty in the rising terror attacks in Garissa County. 1.6 Limitation of the study The study was faced by the challenge of the use of a poorly equipped library with inadequate materials to carry out research. Additionally, although this study has been done carefully and effectively, and taking into consideration that time is of essence to the researcher, there was limited time to carry out the research. 1.7 Research methodology The primary sources for the study are library books and journals, various reports from international human rights organizations, the constitution of Kenya 2010, Acts of parliament and international instruments. The secondary sources of this study include a desktop study with a lot of information being obtained from electronic journals and online books and articles. CHAPTER TWO Literature review Introduction The literature review will focus on the study done by looking into dependent and independent variables here literature related to the problem in question is reviewed. There has been a lot of research done on terrorism but little has been done to establish whether poverty is the main cause of rising terror attacks witnessed in Northern Kenya our focus is Garissa County. This will enable the construction of a conceptual framework to show the relationship among the variables. An Overview of Terrorist activities Terrorism is an international phenomenon that has varying perceptions. For instance a Palestinian who takes up arms against Israeli occupation of Palestine territory is deemed as a freedom fighter in Palestinian circle but from the frame of reference of an Israeli, such an individual is a terrorist. The challenges that has been created in the global arena by international terrorism and specifically to democracy; weak national institutions, insurgency, incompetence, corruption, and last but not the least, death and wanton destruction of property. According to Bruce Hoffman, terrorism is the systematic use of violence to create a general atmosphere of fear in a population with the objective of achieving a particular political objective. Historically, terrorism activities have been carried out by non-state actors against states in order to compel the later to yield to the demands of the terrorist. This coercion mechanism has been used by terrorist groups such as AL-Qaeda to pursue its ideological objectives in accordance with 1998 fatwa by encouraging attacks directly against American and its allies with the expectation that cumulative graphic casualties would prompt the US and its allies to withdraw their troops from the middle East, in particular Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Afghanistan. The change of the focus of violence from national to international is an expansion of the terrorist networks. According to John Aduila the age of terror is driven by an organizational race to build networks. The argument by a number of authors is that this transition is not automatic, but it is enabled by several factors include popular support, recruitment of foreign fighters, franchised cells and porous borders. Quite a number of terrorist acts succeed because of popular support. Theorist argue that terrorist groups succeed in carrying out its attacks in foreign countries either with active or passive support of indigenous population. Active support from the population includes the raising of finances, hiding of terrorist operatives and volunteering to join terrorist groups. On the other hand, example of passive support support include actions such as unwillingness to collaborate with security institutions. In Kenya for instance, Haroun Fazul, the leader of AL-Qaeda cell group in East Africa was able to hide in Lamu and Malindi while planning to execute terrorist attacks. The people were unwilling to provide information to security agencies on Fazul’s whereabouts because they believed that Fazul was fighting for their cause. In a terrorist group, foreign fighters are vital for an attack beyond its normal boundaries. There are a number of factors that have bred terrorism. The most common factors cited in most writings are repressive governments, religious extremist ideologists, external support, and deplorable socioeconomic conditions among some Muslim and non-Muslim populations. Terrorist organizations require a place in, training and recruitment bases, logistical support and, other infrastructure. These conditions can only be realized by obtaining external support, and other to carry on their acts of terror. 2.3 Kenya’s security situation in Relation to Terrorism Activities Although not technically part of the HOA, Kenya is deeply affected by events there. Kenya, moreover, remains a potentially prime target for terrorists in its own right. It receives a substantial number of tourists from the West. Additionally, it hosts the headquarters of United Nations Environmental Programs and United Nations Habitat Program, a larger number of Western embassies, and several international businesses and multinational corporations. 2.3.1 The Underlying Causes of Terrorism Activities Kenya boasts of the most stable effective and democratic government compared to all the countries in the HOA. However, despite all these, the country in most recent years has experienced the most terrorist attacks against western targets; in addition to being the most useful important operational base for AL-Qaeda and lately, the Somali based AL-shabaab (an off-shoot of Somalia’s Islamic courts union( ICU)) The situation that Kenya finds itself in as terrorism is concerned is concerned is driven by the convergence of four factors. First, Kenya provides a target-rich environment for terrorist because of its relatively advanced economy and long-standing ties with the UK, US and Israel. Second, Kenya maintains a functioning sovereign government, one increasingly subject to public opinion. The former limits the operational freedom of western intelligence and counter terrorism units, and latter heightens the cost of being seen to be doing others’ bidding in the “war on terror’. Third Kenya suffers from weak governance in a number of critical areas, including security and the criminal justice system. This discourage those Kenyans who might have relevant information from providing it to the authorities. Fourth, the presence of disaffected minority Muslim population, especially along the Kenyan coast, provides both AL-Qaeda and AL-shabaab, operatives an environment in which they can operate with less security pressure than elsewhere in the region and therefore making Kenya an attractive place for both AL-Qaeda and AL-shabaab to operate. Theoretical Framework This study was guided by the economics theory of rational choice. The Economics Theory of Rational Choice In the discipline of economics, there are many concepts that are relevant to the understanding of terrorism supply and demand costs and benefits. Fully-developed economics and econometrics models of terrorism are quite rare, however, and often involved such things as psychic, cost and benefits. In particular, rational choice theory, has found a place in criminology. This theory advances the argument that people will engage in crime after weighing the costs and benefits of their actions to arrive at a rational choice about motivation after perceiving that the chances of gain outweigh any possible punishment or loss. Criminals must come and believe their actions will be beneficial to themselves, their community, or society and they must come to see that crime pays, or is atleast a risk-free way to better their situation. In analysis of the causes of international terrorism acts, there is a general observation that terrorist view themselves as the rightful defenders of the faith and legitimate restorer of dignity to the homeland. They justify their actions in their accountability only to God (Allah), for they believe that God who has chosen them for this sacred mission in history. They further believe that God only approved of their action, but that God demands their action. Their cause is sacred, and consists of a combined sense of hope for future and vengeance for the past. The most familiar version of this idea in criminology is routine activities theory, which suggest that three conditions must be present in order for a crime to occur. Suitable target or victims who puts themselves at risk; the absence of capable guardians or police presence; and motivated offenders or a pool of the unemployed and alienated. The participants in revolutionary violence usually predicate their behavior on a rational cost-benefit calculation to pursue the best course of action given the social circumstance. Rational choice theory, in political science holds that people can be collectively rational, even when making what appears to be irrational decision for them as individuals, after perceiving that their participation is important and their personal contribution to the public good outweighs any concerns they may have for the “free rider” problem. The “free rider” problems is a classic paradox in social science and economics which ask why anybody should do something for the public good when most likely someone else will get credit for it and most everybody else will benefit merely by sitting idly and doing nothing. Terrorism is not an irrational phenomenon neither is the resort to terrorism an anomaly. The central focus of any inquiry study should be on why some groups find terrorism useful, and in standard control theory fashion, why other groups do not find terrorism useful. Some groups may continue to work with established patterns of rebellious actions. Other groups may choose to engage in terrorism as an early choice because they have learned from the experience of others, usually through the news media, which is commonly known as the contagion effect. There may be circumstances in which a terrorist group want to publicize its cause to the world; a process some scholars refer to as globalization of civil war. From an individualist rational point of view, the best choice would be to keep at least some of the hostages alive in order to bargain with the government for leniency. Yet often a collectively rational mentality sets in, and the group choice is to kill all the hostages. Such killing may be reasonable and calculated response to circumstances. It may involve a collective judgment about the most efficient course of action that has the most lasting impact on observers. And most importantly, the senseless of it all may be just what the group needs to make their ideological point that they are terrorist, not ordinary criminals. Summary of a gap It is evident from our literature review that a lot of study has been done on terrorism. Terrorism in Kenya is thought to be fueled by radicalization, marginalization, discrimination interns of social, economic and religious background etc. This study like others gives information on whether poverty causes terrorism and socio-economic factors as the causes of terrorism. This is the gap which our study sought to fill. We were therefore interested in establishing whether poverty is a factor in as fur as terrorism in Garissa County is concerned. 2.7 Conceptual framework RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY TERRORISM Ways of combating terrorism Causes of terrorism Effects of terrorism Deducing from our theory and literature review this conceptual framework suggest that terrorism has three broad perspective for us to tackle it effective. That is causes, effects its from these that we get various ways and techniques of combating terrorism. CHAPTER THREE 3.1 Introduction This section describes the various concepts that were employed in conducting research. These include, design, population target, sampling strategies, data collection instruments, data collection procedures and data analysis. 3.2 Research Design Research design deals with how the study is to be carried out and how information is to be obtained during the research study. The study will adopt descriptive survey to establish the roles of poverty in the rising terror attacks in Northern Kenya. Descriptive design is relevant because it provides the real picture about the variables in question and the factors responsible without manipulating the variables. Orodho (2009) says descriptive survey is the most frequently used method for collecting information about peoples’ habits, opinions, attitudes or any of the variety of social issues. 3.3 Location of the study This study will be carried out in Garissa County which is a poverty stricken County found in the Northern part of Kenya. The fact that it is recognized for numerous terror attacks, alarming poverty level and economic imbalance compared to other Counties makes it relevant for our study. Also Garissa is more accessible to me as I live in Garissa town hence am well acquitted with all the activities that happen around here. 3.4 Population of the study Garissa County has approximately a population of about 623,060 inhabitants. For the purpose of this study, we will target the youth who are either victims or perpetrators of crime. We will administer interviews to both County government and national government officials in charge of security in Garissa County. 3.5 Sampling procedures and sampling size The study will use network or snowball sampling which involves approaching a known and relevant respondent who will then introduce us to other relevant respondents. This is because there is no adequate list to use as a sampling frame and also because of unique characteristic of our population. We will administer 50 questionnaires to the youth. 3.6 Instrumentation This study will use questionnaire which is a written list of questions, the answers to which are recorded by respondents’ (Kumar, 2005:126). We will also conduct interviews which Johnson and Christensen (2008:203) define as ‘a data collection method in which an interviewer asks an interviewee questions’. 3.6.1 Validity Validity is the degree to which results obtained from the analysis of the data actually represents the phenomenon under study (Mugenda and Mugenda 1999). This will be guaranteed by presenting the instrument to the supervisor assigned by the university to verify contents validity. Construct validity will be enhanced by giving operational definitions key terms used in the study. 3.6.2 Reliability Reliability is a measure of the degree to which a research instrument yields consistent results or data after repeated trials (Mugenda and Mugenda, 1999). This will ensure through a pretest where 5 questionnaires will be administered to check both reliability and validity. 3.7 Data analysis and presentation Data collected will be analyzed using descriptive statistical methods, especially the measures of central tendency (mean). Data will be organized in frequency distribution tables. Graphical representation of data will include pie charts and bar graphs. 3.8 Ethical considerations The research was bound by the following ethical considerations: respect to confidentiality of information and also that of the informants; informed consent was sought from willing respondents and permission will be obtained from area government authorities and finally anonymity of our respondents where needs arises. CHAPTER FOUR RESULTS ANALYSIS AND PRESENTATION Introduction This chapter presents the data analysis from both secondary and primary sources. The study targeted senior officials in the County government of Garissa. Out of 34 targeted respondents, a total of 17 respondents participated in the study. Given the sensitivity of the issue under investigation, not all the respondents targeted were able to respond to questionnaire. Most respondents did not want to reveal their names while a few gave only one name. Nobody was interviewed as was sought through questionnaire. The overall objective was to investigate whether poverty is a factor in the rising terror attacks in Northern Kenya a case of Garissa County. The findings of the research are presented based on the four research questions restated below: 1. Do marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism? 2. Does radicalization promotes terrorism? What are the consequences of terrorism? What are the ways of preventing terrorism? The background data of the respondents is given first, followed by the analysis and discussion of each of the five research questions. 4.2 Demographic profile of the respondents A total of 17 respondents participated in the study with the majority being male as shown in chart 4.1.1 below: Chart 4.1.1 (a) distribution of our respondents according to their gender. Analysis suggest that, a majority of respondents in the study were male made up of 71% and female only 29% Most respondents were of the age between 51-60 years. Chart 4.1.2 (b) represents the ages in years of the respondents who participated in the study. Chart 4.1.2 (b), shows the distribution of our respondents according to their ages. From the above illustration its very clear that most people who participated are of age group 51-60 and respondents of ages between 31-40 and 41-50 were the same. Finally respondents of age between 21-30 were the least. The respondents were also asked to state how long they had served in their respective departments and their responses were as shown in chart 4.1.3 (c) below, Chart 4.1.3(C) shows the distribution of our respondents according to the number of years they had served in their current jobs at the County From the above graph we can deduce that our main respondents are those who had served for 3-years and above 10years respectively. And the least were 7-10years and below 3years respectively. Chart 4.1.4(d) shows respondents distribution according to level of education 4.1.4(d) shows respondents distribution according to level of education Most of our respondents were those who were at the university, followed closely by those in college. For four respondents were few but a relatively high number were secondary dropout and the least number of respondents were class eight. Responses to Research Questions This section deals with the presentation of results for each research questions. Do marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism? 4.1.5 (e) Chart showing Garissa residents take on whether marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism. 4.1.5 (e) Chart showing Garissa residents take on whether marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism according to gender. The pie chart above indicates that majority respondents (68%) believe that marginalization and discrimination has made them to get into terrorism. Only 32% believe so, therefore majority hold the that believe. 4.1.6(f) Bar graph showing Garissa residents take on whether marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism according to age. 4.1.6(f) Bar graph showing Garissa residents take on whether marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism according to age. Analysis of the bar graph above shows that adults of age 41-50 believe more that marginalization and discrimination encourages people to engage into terrorism followed by those of age 31-40 and 21-30, however youths and teenagers of age between 11-20 have a least believe on that. 4.1.6(f) Chart showing the consequences of terrorism? 4.1.6(f) Chart showing showing the consequences of terrorism? The ranks shows destruction of properties the most devastating impact of terror attack at 95% followed by loss of lives from the immediate impact at 80%. Long term effects of terrorism include collapse of economy which usually realized after a while and can be measured in terms of monetary value and assigned dollar value. It come up at 65% followed by trauma and psychological torture which comes back at 60% and is always brought about by the shock of the attack and loss of loved ones during a terror attack. 4.1.7(g) chart showing the ways of preventing terrorism? The above graph shows measures suggested by the respondents which can be put in place to prevent terrorism in Garissa County. 4.1.8(h) chart showing whether radicalization causes terrorism? The response we got from our respondents on whether radicalization causes terrorism is illustrated in the above pie chart. We found that most of the respondent 75%% believe that radicalization causes terrorism while only 25% believe so. This clearly shows as that radicalization plays a major role in the recent terror attacks witnessed in Garissa County. CHAPTER FIVE DISCUSSION, SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 5.1 Introduction This chapter presents the discussion, summary of the study, conclusions and recommendation arrived at. It also gives suggestions for further studies. 5.2. Discussion This chapter presents discussion of research questions 5.2.1 Do marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism? The study established that majority of Garissa residents 68% holds that marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism, while only 32% of our respondent thinks contrary. This seems to support the findings of African journal and justice studies, AJCS that the alienation of Muslims in Kenya has continued together with discrimination and hostility and this has led to numerous violent clashes of attacks on police stations and public buildings. This arguably spread the ideology of extremist views among Muslims in Kenya but this saw little attention by the international community. Up until this point terrorism was a domestic issue to the extent that threats by Kenya’s Islamic population did not directly affect American global interests. 5.2.2 Does radicalization promotes terrorism? The study established that significant number of our respondents 75% actually think radicalization promotes terrorism whereas only 25% does. These findings are similar to those of a study carried out by Institute For Security Studies (ISS 2014), which was carried out with a view of finding out if variables radicalization relates to recruitment to al-shabaab and the Mombasa Republican Council. This seemed to be true as many people were taken through extremism and made to believe how they had been dominated and oppressed before they finally volunteered for the job. The results of the findings reveled that radicalization increased the youth’s urge to join the two rebel groups. 5.2.3 What are the consequences of terrorism? The study found out that loss of lives, destruction of properties, trauma and psychological torture and collapse of economy are some of the consequence of terrorism. These finding specifically points out which are the most devastating effects of terrorism. This value to existing reports like the Global Report on Settlements 2007, which states that in an incidence of terror attack the first hand effects is normally deaths and injuries from moving objects, explosives and collapsing building. Hence many people lose their lives as a result. 5.2.4 What are the ways of preventing terrorism? It was discovered that DE radicalization, youth empowerment, provision of education and religious education are the most common ways of preventing our youths from engaging into terrorism. These findings are not different from the findings of related studies such as a case study prepared by IGAD, the analysis that revealed poverty and ignorance lured many youths in Coastal and Northern Kenya hence empowerment and education was seen the best way to reducing this phenomenon. 5.3 Summary Kenya has experienced terrorist attacks since 1998 to date. The purpose of this study was to establish whether poverty is the main cause of terrorism and reviewing various measures and programs put in place to counter the terrorism threat. The study targeted senior officials in the County government of Garissa. Out of 34 targeted respondents, a total of 17 respondents participated in the study. Given below is a summary of the study findings. The study established that marginalization and discrimination enhance youth’s propensity to engage into terrorism due to high number of respondents who agreed with this. The study found out that significant number of our respondents 75% actually think radicalization promotes terrorism whereas only 25% does not think so. The study found out that loss of lives, destruction of properties, trauma and psychological torture and collapse of economy are some of the consequences of terrorism. These finding specifically points out which are the most devastating effects of terrorism. It was discovered that DE radicalization, youth empowerment and provision of education and religious education are the most common ways of preventing our youths from engaging into terrorism. 5.4 Conclusion Based on the findings of the study as summarized above, it can be concluded that marginalization and discrimination facilitates youths to engage into terrorism, radicalization is key as it propels youths to engage into terrorism, loss of lives, destruction of properties, trauma and psychological torture, collapse of economy are some of the consequences of terrorism. And finally de radicalization, youth empowerment and religious education are most common ways of preventing youths from engaging in terrorism. 5.5 Recommendations g