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RETHINKING REINTEGRATION PROGRAM FOR EX-BOKO HARAM FIGHTERS: A UTILITARIAN APPROACH

Year 2024, Volume: 9 Issue: 17, 1 - 9, 21.02.2024

Isidore Agbanero

Abstract

Is it ethical to reintegrate ex-Boko Haram fighters into society? Using utilitarian moral principles as a theoretical framework, the study showed that the decision to reintegrate ex-Boko Haram members into the society is in line with the utilitarian perspective because decision-makers did so after considering the negative effects that rejecting them would cause. However, it argued that the outcome of the reintegration program did not lead to the ultimate purpose of utilitarian theory because policymakers failed to consider happiness of both direct and indirect victims of Boko Haram attack. In order to reach a moral decision that will ensure a successful reintegration program and meet the utilitarian aim, the study recommend considering the concerns of people whose happiness has been negatively impacted by Boko Haram terrorism and how to address their issues.

Keywords

Nigeria Normative Ethics Reintegration Program Utilitarianism Victims of Boko Haram Attack

References

  • ADEYERI, J. O., & ALUEDE, J. A. (2021). IDPs of Boko Haram War, Emergency Rehabilitation and Human Rights Practice in Nigeria. In The Challenges of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (pp. 141-160). Springer, Cham.
  • ADIGBUO, E.R. (2014). Boko Haram: A Race between Amnesty and Criminal Tribunal. Historical Research Letter, 13, 29-40.
  • AGBAKWURU, J. (2021). “ Why repentant insurgents shouldn’t be rejected-zulum” Vanguard, August 25.
  • AGBOGA, V. (2022). Selective forgiveness and the politics of amnesties in Nigeria. The Round Table, 111(5), 567-581.
  • AGWU, P. C., NWANGWU, C., & OKOYE, U. O. (2022). Post-amnesty peacebuilding and restiveness in the Niger Delta: what do grassroots narratives suggest?. Security Journal, 1-23.
  • AJAH, B. O., DINNE, C. E., & SALAMI, K. K. (2020). Terrorism in contemporary Nigerian society: Conquest of Boko-Haram, myth or reality. International Journal of Criminal Justice Sciences, 15(2), 312-324.
  • ASKARI, H., MIRAKHOR, A. (2020). The Utilitarian Conception of Justice and Its Critics (Bentham to Hayek). In: Conceptions of Justice from Islam to the Present. Political Economy of Islam. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-16084-5_4.
  • BENTHAM, J. (1830). The rationale of punishment. Robert Heward.
  • BENTHAM, J., & Mill, J. S. (2004). Utilitarianism and other essays. Penguin UK
  • BENTHAM, J. (1994). Of the principle of utility. Ethics, 20(4), 306-312..
  • BRINK, D, (2022) "Mill’s Moral and Political Philosophy", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2022 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2022/entries/mill-moral-political/>.
  • COX, D. J. (2021). Descriptive and normative ethical behavior appear to be functionally distinct. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 54(1), 168-191.
  • DAS, D. (2020). Utilitarianism and longing for happiness. PalArch's Journal of Archaeology of Egypt/Egyptology, 17(6), 13246-13251.
  • DRAPER, A. (2002). An Introduction to Jeremy Bentham's theory of punishment. Journal of Bentham studies, 5, 1-17.
  • DRIVER, J. (2005). Normative ethics. The Oxford handbook of contemporary philosophy, 31-62.
  • GRUNDSTEIN, N. D. (1953). Bentham's Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. J. Pub. L., 2, 344.
  • HABIBU, Y.B. (2016) Nigeria's military failure against the Boko Haram insurgency, African Security Review, 25:2, 146-158, DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2016.1151799
  • MACINTYRE, A. (1990). Moral Dilemmas. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 50, 367–382. https://doi.org/10.2307/2108048
  • MILL, J.S. (1998). On liberty and other essays. Oxford University Press, USA.
  • MILL, J. S. (2003). On the connexion between justice and utility. Utilitarianism and On liberty: Including Mill’s “Essay on Bentham” and selections from the writings of Jeremy Bentham and John Austin, 216-235.
  • MITCHELL, W. C. (1918). Bentham’s Felicific Calculus. Political Science Quarterly, 33(2), 161–183. https://doi.org/10.2307/2141580
  • NAHRA, C. (2014). The harm principle and the greatest happiness principle: the missing link. Kriterion: Revista de Filosofia, 55, 99-110.
  • NGWOKE, R. A., & ABAYOMİ, S. B. (2022). An Appraisal of the Power of Pardon under Nigerian Law: Lessons from Other Jurisdictions. Beijing L. Rev., 13, 217.
  • NWANKPA, M.(2014). The politics of amnesty in Nigeria: A comparative analysis of the Boko Haram and Niger Delta insurgencies. Journal of Terrorism Research.
  • OFOZOBA, C. A., EZEAMAMA, I. G., & OKEKE, C. C. (2023). AMNESTY PROGRAMME AND POLITICS OF REINTEGRATION IN NIGER DELTA REGION OF NIGERIA. African Journal of Environment and Sustainable Development, 1(2), 1-31.
  • ONIKEPO, B. (2021). Amnesty, criminality and rule of law. This day News, https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2021/07/06/amnesty-criminality-and-rule-of-law/ Assessed 2023 March 7
  • OWONIKOKO, S. B. (2022). “Take them to Government House or Aso Rock”: Community receptivity to reintegration of Operation Safe Corridor’s deradicalised Ex-Boko Haram members in Northeastern Nigeria. Cogent Social Sciences, 8(1), 2015884.
  • PLAMENATZ, J. P. and DUİGNAN, . BRİAN (2023, May 5). Jeremy Bentham. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jeremy-Bentham
  • QUI-INTON, A. (1973). Utilitarian ethics. Springer.
  • SHAW, W. H. (1998). Contemporary Ethics. Blackwell Publishers.
  • SVERDLIK, S. (2022). Bentham and Criminal Law. In R.Y. Chappell, D. Meissner, anMacAskill (eds.), An Introduction to Utilitarianism. https://www.utilitarianism.net/guest-essays/bentham-and-criminal-law, accessed 9/30/2022.
  • VANDA, F.B.(2018). “In Nigeria we don’t want them back”, https://www.brookings.edu/articles/in-nigeria-we-dont-want-them-back/,(09.02.2024).
  • WEST, H. (Ed.). (2008). The Blackwell guide to Mill's utilitarianism. John Wiley & Sons.
  • WOODWARD, V. (2017). Hedonistic Calculus. The Encyclopedia of Corrections, 1-4.

Rethinking reintegration program for ex-Boko Haram fighters: A Utilitarian Approach

Year 2024, Volume: 9 Issue: 17, 1 - 9, 21.02.2024

Isidore Agbanero

Abstract

Is it ethical to reintegrate ex-Boko Haram fighters into society? Using utilitarian moral principles as a theoretical framework, the study showed that the decision to reintegrate ex-Boko Haram members into the society is in line with the utilitarian perspective because decision-makers did so after considering the negative effects that rejecting them would cause. However, it argued that the outcome of the reintegration program did not lead to the ultimate purpose of utilitarian theory because policymakers failed to consider happiness of both direct and indirect victims of Boko Haram attack. In order to reach a moral decision that will ensure a successful reintegration program and meet the utilitarian aim, the study recommends considering the concerns of people whose happiness has been negatively impacted by Boko Haram terrorism and how to address their issues

Keywords

Nigeria normative ethics reintegration program utilitarianism victims of boko haram attack

References

  • ADEYERI, J. O., & ALUEDE, J. A. (2021). IDPs of Boko Haram War, Emergency Rehabilitation and Human Rights Practice in Nigeria. In The Challenges of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (pp. 141-160). Springer, Cham.
  • ADIGBUO, E.R. (2014). Boko Haram: A Race between Amnesty and Criminal Tribunal. Historical Research Letter, 13, 29-40.
  • AGBAKWURU, J. (2021). “ Why repentant insurgents shouldn’t be rejected-zulum” Vanguard, August 25.
  • AGBOGA, V. (2022). Selective forgiveness and the politics of amnesties in Nigeria. The Round Table, 111(5), 567-581.
  • AGWU, P. C., NWANGWU, C., & OKOYE, U. O. (2022). Post-amnesty peacebuilding and restiveness in the Niger Delta: what do grassroots narratives suggest?. Security Journal, 1-23.
  • AJAH, B. O., DINNE, C. E., & SALAMI, K. K. (2020). Terrorism in contemporary Nigerian society: Conquest of Boko-Haram, myth or reality. International Journal of Criminal Justice Sciences, 15(2), 312-324.
  • ASKARI, H., MIRAKHOR, A. (2020). The Utilitarian Conception of Justice and Its Critics (Bentham to Hayek). In: Conceptions of Justice from Islam to the Present. Political Economy of Islam. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-16084-5_4.
  • BENTHAM, J. (1830). The rationale of punishment. Robert Heward.
  • BENTHAM, J., & Mill, J. S. (2004). Utilitarianism and other essays. Penguin UK
  • BENTHAM, J. (1994). Of the principle of utility. Ethics, 20(4), 306-312..
  • BRINK, D, (2022) "Mill’s Moral and Political Philosophy", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2022 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2022/entries/mill-moral-political/>.
  • COX, D. J. (2021). Descriptive and normative ethical behavior appear to be functionally distinct. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 54(1), 168-191.
  • DAS, D. (2020). Utilitarianism and longing for happiness. PalArch's Journal of Archaeology of Egypt/Egyptology, 17(6), 13246-13251.
  • DRAPER, A. (2002). An Introduction to Jeremy Bentham's theory of punishment. Journal of Bentham studies, 5, 1-17.
  • DRIVER, J. (2005). Normative ethics. The Oxford handbook of contemporary philosophy, 31-62.
  • GRUNDSTEIN, N. D. (1953). Bentham's Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. J. Pub. L., 2, 344.
  • HABIBU, Y.B. (2016) Nigeria's military failure against the Boko Haram insurgency, African Security Review, 25:2, 146-158, DOI: 10.1080/10246029.2016.1151799
  • MACINTYRE, A. (1990). Moral Dilemmas. Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, 50, 367–382. https://doi.org/10.2307/2108048
  • MILL, J.S. (1998). On liberty and other essays. Oxford University Press, USA.
  • MILL, J. S. (2003). On the connexion between justice and utility. Utilitarianism and On liberty: Including Mill’s “Essay on Bentham” and selections from the writings of Jeremy Bentham and John Austin, 216-235.
  • MITCHELL, W. C. (1918). Bentham’s Felicific Calculus. Political Science Quarterly, 33(2), 161–183. https://doi.org/10.2307/2141580
  • NAHRA, C. (2014). The harm principle and the greatest happiness principle: the missing link. Kriterion: Revista de Filosofia, 55, 99-110.
  • NGWOKE, R. A., & ABAYOMİ, S. B. (2022). An Appraisal of the Power of Pardon under Nigerian Law: Lessons from Other Jurisdictions. Beijing L. Rev., 13, 217.
  • NWANKPA, M.(2014). The politics of amnesty in Nigeria: A comparative analysis of the Boko Haram and Niger Delta insurgencies. Journal of Terrorism Research.
  • OFOZOBA, C. A., EZEAMAMA, I. G., & OKEKE, C. C. (2023). AMNESTY PROGRAMME AND POLITICS OF REINTEGRATION IN NIGER DELTA REGION OF NIGERIA. African Journal of Environment and Sustainable Development, 1(2), 1-31.
  • ONIKEPO, B. (2021). Amnesty, criminality and rule of law. This day News, https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2021/07/06/amnesty-criminality-and-rule-of-law/ Assessed 2023 March 7
  • OWONIKOKO, S. B. (2022). “Take them to Government House or Aso Rock”: Community receptivity to reintegration of Operation Safe Corridor’s deradicalised Ex-Boko Haram members in Northeastern Nigeria. Cogent Social Sciences, 8(1), 2015884.
  • PLAMENATZ, J. P. and DUİGNAN, . BRİAN (2023, May 5). Jeremy Bentham. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jeremy-Bentham
  • QUI-INTON, A. (1973). Utilitarian ethics. Springer.
  • SHAW, W. H. (1998). Contemporary Ethics. Blackwell Publishers.
  • SVERDLIK, S. (2022). Bentham and Criminal Law. In R.Y. Chappell, D. Meissner, anMacAskill (eds.), An Introduction to Utilitarianism. https://www.utilitarianism.net/guest-essays/bentham-and-criminal-law, accessed 9/30/2022.
  • VANDA, F.B.(2018). “In Nigeria we don’t want them back”, https://www.brookings.edu/articles/in-nigeria-we-dont-want-them-back/,(09.02.2024).
  • WEST, H. (Ed.). (2008). The Blackwell guide to Mill's utilitarianism. John Wiley & Sons.
  • WOODWARD, V. (2017). Hedonistic Calculus. The Encyclopedia of Corrections, 1-4.
There are 34 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language English
Subjects African Studies, Regional Studies
Journal Section Makaleler
Authors

Isidore Agbanero 0000-0003-3085-2119

Early Pub Date February 26, 2024
Publication Date February 21, 2024
Submission Date January 4, 2024
Acceptance Date February 10, 2024
Published in Issue Year 2024 Volume: 9 Issue: 17

Cite

APA Agbanero, I. (2024). RETHINKING REINTEGRATION PROGRAM FOR EX-BOKO HARAM FIGHTERS: A UTILITARIAN APPROACH. Uluslararası Afro-Avrasya Araştırmaları Dergisi, 9(17), 1-9.
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