Boko Haram Insurgency and the Specter of Female Suicide Bombers in Nigeria

Abstract

The encounters between Boko Haram and the Nigerian state have been largely nightmarish and calamitous, making it one of the most talked about phenomenon in the recent times. The violent activities of Boko Haram constitute major disruption to the Nigerian state, especially in its task of achieving peace and development. Apart from persistent threats to the peace, stability and developmental aspirations of the country, Boko Haram has also wrecked an unimaginably high level of damage on the country’s social fabrics. One of such instance is the sending of young female suicide bombers to unsuspecting members of the public, with tales of death, destruction, displacement, sorrows and tears as consequences. Apparently using indoctrination and exploiting the innocence of underage girls, Boko Haram terrorists have inadvertently introduced a dangerous dimension to their violent operations. Indeed, resort to exploiting the innocence of young girls for nefarious activities constitutes an affront on shared social, cultural and religious values of the Nigerian people. And this raises some pertinent questions: what accounts for the Boko Haram insurgency in the first instance? What led to the use of young girls for suicide bombings? How do they source for the girls? What are the implications of this trend on the Nigerian society? What can be done? This paper seeks to interrogate the foregoing questions and by so doing contributes to the discourse on the various dimensions to the Boko Haram insurgency and the implications on shared societal values, peace, orderliness and development in Nigeria and her immediate neighbors.



Author Information
Azeez Olaniyan, Ekiti State University, Nigeria

Paper Information
Conference: IICSSDubai2017
Stream: Politics P5. International Governance, Conflict and Development

This paper is part of the IICSSDubai2017 Conference Proceedings (View)
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Posted by James Alexander Gordon