Despite rigorous attempts by the government to play down the
impact of terrorism, a global think thank, Institute for Economic and Peace,
has ranked Nigeria as the seventh country most affected by terrorism in 2011.
The country received this scary rating in the organisation’s
first Global Terrorism Index (GTI) meant to measure the impact of terrorism and
the associated economic and social dimensions, published last Tuesday.
The index shows that Nigeria ranks marginally better than
Somalia (the only other sub-Saharan African country in the top ten), which
until recently, has no functional government and has suffered decades of terror
under various Islamic extremist groups.
Nigeria has a score of 7.242 while Somalia is ranked sixth
with a score of 7.244.
The other countries in the top ten are Iraq (9.56), Pakistan
(9.05), Afghanistan (8.67), India (8.15), Yemen (7.30), Thailand (7.09), Russia
(7.07), Philippines(6.80).
The index rating is reached by aggregating a series of
indicators such as the number of terrorist incidents, fatalities, injuries and
property damage.
According to the report, the number of fatalities in
terrorism attacks in 2010 increased by almost 300 per cent in 2011.
“The number of fatalities in Nigeria has steadily increased
over the last decade, and has seen a dramatic increase in 2011 with 165 lives
lost as opposed to 57 in 2010,” it stated.
The study defined terrorism as “the threatened or actual use
of illegal force and violence by a non-state actor to attain a political,
economic, religious, or social goal through fear, coercion, or intimidation.”
It identified the Movement for the Emancipation of the
Niger-Delta (MEND) and Boko Haram as the main architects of terrorism in the
country.
“The most active group in that period [2002-2011] was the
Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta. In recent years, Boko Haram,
an Islamic terrorist group has operated in the north/north east of the country
where it has carried out a wave of attacks against local Christians, churches
and schools,” the report stated.
“Boko Haram’s main enemy is the government, as they hope to
implement Sharia law, as opposed to ‘man-made laws’. This can be observed in
its choice of targets which include religious institutions, government
buildings, the police and businesses in an attempt to precipitate a war,” it
added.
The report also ranked the July 27, 2009 attack that lead to
the death of Mohammed Yusuf, the founder of Boko Haram, and at least 305 other
fatalities as the sixth most deadly terrorist attack between 2002 and 2011.
In a blatant lack of trust in the government efforts at
resolving the issues leading to terrorism, the report places Nigeria third from
bottom (105 out of 108 countries) in its Positive Peace Index.
The report says Nigeria’s “poor performance is especially
noticeable in the areas of Equitable Distribution of Resources, Acceptance of
the Rights of Others and the fight on Corruption.”
Culled from Premium Times
Nonsense bokoharam and mend
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