CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2012
| Author | Brandler, Jessica Lily Bianca |
|---|---|
| Title | Feeding The Hand That Bites: Lessons From Counter-Terrorism Dynamics in Nigeria |
| Summary | The preference for the use of state violence and force over negotiation and dialogue as a form of counterterrorism was pioneered by Israel, and has reached significant heights since the Global War on Terror began. This is in spite of a range of disadvantages resulting from such a preference. This thesis stems from first the empirics that show that Islamic terror is often, if not always met with force, and from the argument by Harmonie Toros that negotiation shouldn’t be a last resort option. Legitimacy is the focal point of debate in regards to negotiation; does it undermine the legitimacy of the state, and give legitimacy to violence used by sub and non state actors? This thesis looked at the example of Nigeria’s efforts to combat the Islamic sect Boko Haram through the use of violence and argues that the violence used is counterproductive, but is used for the protection of state legitimacy, in order to discredit the Islamists, and to fit with the global counterterrorism paradigm. Against Toros’ argument, I conclude that negotiation would undermine the legitimacy of the state, but this would be the start of a radical emancipation project, moving away from counterterrorism’s currently statist focus and towards a critical acceptance of different forms of violence. The empirical evidence I use to draw my conclusions comes from discourse analysis of media sources, government laws, and academic publications, and positivist evaluations. |
| Supervisor | Paul Roe |
| Department | International Relations MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2012/brandler_jessica.pdf |
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