I intentionally ignore people who go about dropping pedestrian remarks. You have been constituting yourself into a nuisance making comments unrelated to topics.
Many of you talk on issues you know nothing about but I will reply you this once, who knows you might learn a thing or two.
This could also help those who truly want to know reasons behind the releases. I know bulk of you here already have set minds so nothing anyone says will make sense.
I will try as much as possible to explain while being careful not to give out too much info. We profile Prisoners of War (POW) differently; sometimes according to age, captured/willful surrender, random arrests or arrests due to actionable intelligence (intel).
How underage suspects are treated will differ from how full grown adults are treated. How we treat suspects who surrender of their own freewill also differs from how insurgents captured in battle are treated. While the first might qualify for pardon, the later doesn’t.
There is a socio-psychological aspect of terrorism; as terrorism is in layers so is participation. We do not release leaders/Amirs/commanders who plan/strategize activities of these terrorist groups.
The foot soldiers who carry out their orders to perpetrate acts of violence mostly recruited into the organization via coercion (at times have one member of their family shot right in front of them with a threat to shoot others if they don’t join. At times terrorists enter communities, shoot a few and then ask young men to join so as to save their village).
Thus, their motives for joining are most times different. New recruits are often isolated and alienated young people who want to join not only because they identify with the cause and idolize the group’s leader, but also because they want to belong to a group for a sense of self-importance and at times companionship.
We put these and more into consideration when profiling suspects. You do not expect the armed forces to line up 2,000 people below the age of 18, people under the influence of drugs, people who their communities are held hostage and shoot all of them or lock them indefinitely in jails.
You do not expect that after raiding and arresting suspects who we find not a single shred of evidence on, to go on and prosecute them. All these people being released have undergone several tests including checks under their finger nails for gunpowder, checks on the knuckle of the finger after the thumb to confirm if they have ever fired a rifle before.
Anyone who has constantly fired an assault weapon will have telltale signs. We also have another group who not only surrender and give up weapons but also turn into state witnesses.
This group have helped the armed forces in giving actionable intel that has led to successful raids and arrests of high profile members. We know these do not erase their crimes but if we kill or lock up every suspect who surrenders willfully and gives us good intel, how do we then encourage more to embrace peace?
We did not introduce this method neither are we the first to implement it; for example, the United States also has the community correction program, France established the de-radicalization centers in major communities, the UK uses the desistance & disengagement Programme (DDP) which makes it mandatory for all terrorism suspects to receive training.
The Xinjiang Chinese autonomous region fought terrorism as well & also set up de-radicalization programs including economic growth/ethnic solidarity, social harmony etc.
They went as far as setting up vocational education & training centers to improve vocational skills & create employment opportunities for them so that they return to society.
We did not come up with this strategy, it is a borrowed international counter-terrorism strategy.
In Nigeria, we developed the Operation Safe Corridor conducted according to extant international humanitarian laws to encourage terrorists who willfully surrender and assist the military with credible intel in the North East to shun violent extremism.
This program de-radicalizes, rehabilitates & re-integrates repentants who willingly surrender to troops. Why then is our case causing so much uproar? Is it because Buhari is president or do you people want them all lined up and shot?
The program is in line with international counter-insurgency laws. Anyone who does not like it should challenge it in court.
This article was written by an anonymous person
