Boko Haram: beyond religious fanaticism

Abstract

This paper highlights some of the probable risk factors to the Boko Haram insurgence and strategies to address religious violence and insurgent related activities in Nigeria. The paper argues that the Boko Haram insurgence cannot be blamed solely on religious fanaticism, but is a consequence of the combination of dynamic risk factors in the absence of protective factors, which make vulnerable young people turn into religious radicals or fanatics when seeking answers to the inadequacies in the polity and society at large. It is further argued that the containment of the Boko Haram insurgence by the Nigerian government should not be guided by the metaphor of a ‘war on terrorism’, but a long-term response to address the highlighted risk factors in all its complexity. In particular, social and political reforms to address the problems of excruciating poverty, endemic corruption, mass illiteracy, socio-political marginalisation and mass unemployment, that could motivate vulnerable youths and young persons into insurgent activities. The conclusion advocates different mechanisms in the form of protective factors against insurgence and religious violence in Nigeria, including social/political reform, capacity building/logistic capabilities, security enhancement, as well as conciliatory and peace education. Suppression and the use of force are suggested as a last resort.