Nicole Einbinder

Professor Cabeiri Robinson

JSIS 202
10 June 2012
Hidden Voices of Nigerias Silent War
On May 14, 2013, President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria declared a state of emergency
in the northern states of Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa. This was the governments latest attempt to
fight the Islamist extremist group Boko Haram, with Jonathan increasing troop presence to
stifle the insurgency (The Associated Press). In the weeks leading up to this declaration, northern
Nigeria experienced violence and hundreds of deaths, with the overall conflict between the
military and insurgency costing nearly 4,000 lives since 2009 (Nossiter, Nigerias President
Gives Military More Power). Due to these events, domestic and international media often refer
to Boko Haram as a terrorist organization, especially since their name derives from a Hausa
phrase that rejects Western education (Murray & Nossiter).
Boko Haram was created in 2002 by the Islamist cleric Mohammad Yusuf in Bornos
capital city of Maiduguri, in response to distaste with Western models of education and systems
of government promoted by a predominantly Christian south. In the Muslim north, a region
plagued by poverty, the group has supported the establishment of a separate Islamist state and
imposition of strict Islamic law. Before the 2009 escalation of violence, they did not aim to
violently hinder the government, and instead its radicalization was largely influenced by harsh
government treatment and police brutality (Understanding Nigerias Boko Haram radicals). In
particular, a 2009 police assault on the sect resulted in 17 members being shot, after they
disobeyed a law requiring helmets for riders of motorcycle taxis (Murray & Nossiter). In
response, militants from the sect began a series of armed uprisings, in turn leading to a retaliatory
military assault on Boko Harams compound in Maiduguri that left over 800 dead, mostly sect

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members, with Yusuf killed while in police custody (Understanding Nigerias Boko Haram
radicals).
I argue media accounts of the recent escalating conflict between the Nigerian military
and Boko Haram fails to acknowledge the historical instances that legitimize, from their
perspective, reasons for engaging in violence, like the attacks that caused Yusufs death. By
categorizing Boko Haram solely as terrorists, it is impossible to fully understand the conflict,
especially as both the militants and army can be classified as perpetrators of violence. This is
obvious by the armys brutal campaigns against the militants that have resulted in hundreds of
civilian casualties, a claim vehemently denied by the military and ignored in regional
publications. By excluding these perspectives, media perceptions of Nigerian political violence
fail to address the relationship between culture and power that routinizes this silent war in
everyday life, deterring possible resolutions of the conflict and ignoring civilian grievances.
News coverage of Nigerian violence greatly differs between the Western-oriented New
York Times and Nigerian publication The Guardian. While the New York Times does
acknowledge military abuses, The Guardian largely excludes any anti-military news exposure,
even reprimanding Al-Jazeera for a published video report that shined a negative light on a
military offensive. Reuben Abati, Jonathans special advisor, further noted if anything, the
victims shown in the video were those the Boko Haram attacked, hence laying sole blame on
Boko Haram for instances of violence and supporting a notion of victimized state terrorized by a
ruthless insurgency movement (Onikeku). Such discourse validates the use of force and the army
as the states primary tool while glorifying values of war against the tabooed enemy the
terrorist (Lutz 2002; Zulaika & Douglas 1996). The militarization of the state is also a focal point

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in Western media, with attention on specific instances of political violence caused by both army
and insurgency. However, this coverage excludes backstories of reasons for their engagement.
By excluding historical context, media publications fail to provide a detailed analysis of
the conflict while ignoring cultural implications for violent acts. While the New York Times has
detailed coverage on military crackdowns, they leave out critical background information like
the 2009 attack that instigated Boko Haram and served as a catalyst for future conflict, greatly
impacting the militants experiences with violence. Instead, through an orientalist lens, Nigeria is
depicted as a backwards country plagued by civilian suffering, with the army largely ignoring
international human rights law in its pursuit to annihilate Boko Haram (Mitchell 1989).
However, According to Temitope Adekanbi, who is from southern Nigeria and has dual
citizenship there and in America, these one-sided portrayals depict terrorism issues as part of
Nigerian identity and it is not. These people do not represent our national identity or story.
Instead, the media widely ignores the various ethic groups and populations of the country,
focusing explicitly on political agendas and Western standards of human rights violations.
By universalizing what constitutes a human rights abuse, the media reports via a lens that
inherently distinguishes between victim and perpetrator, with language like terrorist only
heightening such thought (Mahmood 1996; Robinson 2013; Wilson 1997; Zulaika & Douglas
1996). While Boko Haram has obviously committed serious abuses, it is interesting how the
army has also engaged in human rights violations, yet their government-backed status seemingly
justifies their actions. Military engagement in violence was further validated by Jonathans state
of emergency and support of increased troops, overall linking state authority with violence to
keep governmental power intact. This is obvious through secretary of state John Kerry urging
Nigeria to uphold human rights law while legitimizing Jonathans right to defend itself and to

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fight back against terrorists (Gordon). The Guardian strongly plays on Americas support
against terrorist activities while minimizing Kerrys admonishment of potential military
violations, creating a notion that the West justifies the governments usage of power (Addis).
Jonathans fear of the Boko Haram threat and recent militant attacks heightens the
situations reality, with force viewed as a necessity to keep order against the insurgency (Green
1999). Yet, simultaneously, Nigerias military has been accused of widespread abuses like extrajudicial killings, disappearances, and torture, with thousands of civilians fleeing the country from
military terror (Nigerias armys offensive to continue; Nossiter, Nigerian Refugees Accuse
Army of Excess Force). Hence, in order to keep the peace in Nigeria, the military is defying
what they are supposedly attempting to protect, committing abuses like the militants. And while
Western media does acknowledge these abuses, their articles reprimand specific instances of
violence caused by the military while excluding politics, history, or culture from the overall
problem. In turn, it is difficult to have a clear understanding of the various actors and how the
violence that has existed since 2009 is connected to current societal trends.
Stark emphasis on Boko Harams affiliation with Islam is another major factor of news
coverage, with their violent acts attributed to a radical association with the faith, overall creating
a dichotomy between the good and bad Muslim, with the bad linked to terrorist activity
(Mamdani 2003:15). The media has accentuated this religious ideology-based frame when
reporting, with Muslim political identity seen as a trigger for spurring cultural conflict, especially
since Jonathan is a Christian from the south. However, focus on religion hides the concrete
reasons for deep-seated socio-political tensions while naturalizing violence as the governments
pledge to stifle extremism. Interestingly, Nigeria is actually more divided among ethnic, rather
than religious, lines (Adekanbi). While Islam does influence Boko Haram militants, reasons for

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membership are swayed by grievances like impoverishment and unemployment, as opposed to
solely extremist thought or dislike of the Christian south (Herskovits). Militants are influenced
by their understanding of what is happening in the world, not radical obligation towards a
religious text.
In Northern Nigeria, such criticism creates issues between civilians and the state while
normalizing violence in everyday life. According to a February 2012 New York Times piece,
Boko Haram is deeply enmeshed in the fabric of life in this sprawling metropolis, succored by
an uneasy mix of fear and sympathy among the millions of impoverished people here with
many residents in the city of Kano preferring the militants to a shared enemy: the Nigerian
state, seen by the poor here as a purveyor of inequality (Nossiter, Boko Haram Stirs Fear, and
Sympathy). This specific example delves into personal insight, as opposed to more recent
reports that collectively group civilians while ignoring individual thought. It further validates
that while residents fear Boko Haram, for some of Nigerias poor, the insurgency is the lesser of
two evils when compared to state corruption and economic woes. As a result, fear of both Boko
Haram and the army has been normalized in the region (Green 1999). By collectivizing violence,
the media ignores local peoples interactions with everyday violent activities, making it
impossible to truly understand these societal power relations and how the population is
personally affected (Mahmood 1996:16).
Cynthia Mahmoods work on Sikh militants and individual experiences with violence
parallels Boko Harams role in Nigeria. Both Sikhs and Boko Haram are readily affiliated with
terms like terrorist, yet individuals engaged with these groups may have a vastly different
viewpoint on their societal roles (1996). From a medias perspective, it is difficult to capture such
viewpoints, especially as reporters are restricted from going to conflict zones, with thousands in

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the region thereby unable to convey their experiences. Instead, this conflict is largely the states
silent war on the insurgency, with outsiders provided only limited access into what is actually
occurring (Ndege). While neither soldier nor terrorist is inherently bad they are actors of this
ideologically and culturally driven attempt at having dominance while demeaning the threat the
other. From Boko Harams perspective, violence is a means of stifling governmental injustice
with attacks on the army and police justified due to their social and economic struggles largely
ignored by the government (Nossiter, Boko Haram Stirs Fear, and Sympathy).
Ethnography is a preferred method for truly engaging with this conflict as it can provide a
cross-cultural perspective deeply grounded in personal tales and fieldwork (Roger 2002). The
media cannot fully delve into this issue because of lack of understanding of these cultural
implications driving both groups desire for power and the socio-political and historical
relationships that have led to the current violence. Ethnographers can humanize those deemed
inhumane by society while shedding insight into the experiences of those plagued by struggles
caused by both Boko Haram and the state; the entity ironically endowed to protect citizens. From
Adekanbis perspective:
I would like to see positive reinforcement while reporting this and background
information on why it is happening. Nigerians are not like Boko Haram; we were so
perplexed by where it came from. Violence is policy and Boko Haram might be the tip of
the iceberg, but people cant get jobs. What does that mean for the country?
I am not saying the media should sympathize with terrorist acts and am not reprimanding current
reports of Nigerias situation. I instead demonstrate there is more to the story than blind
assumptions of good-versus-bad and victim-versus-perpetrator, with these definitions only
reinforcing stereotypes while avoiding attempts at creating tangible solutions. Culture is deeply

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imbued within this violence, with socio-cultural constructions of terrorism established by both
government and media naturalizing norms of power and fear while ignoring the real issues facing
civilians and militants. Deeper analysis of the conflict, from both sides, is necessary so the
human beings instigating and suffering in this silent war can be heard.

Work Cited
Adekanbi, Temitope. Personal interview. 6 June 2013.

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Analysis: Understanding Nigerias Boko Haram Radicals. IRINnews. Web. 8 June 2013.
The Associated Press. Nigeria: State of Emergency Declared. The New York Times 14 May
2013. Web. 8 June 2013.
Gordon, Michael R. Kerry Presses Nigeria on Human Rights. The New York Times 25 May
2013. Web. 8 June 2013.
Green, Linda B. Living in a State of Fear. Fear As a Way of Life: Mayan Widows in Rural
Guatemala. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999. Print.
Herskovits, Jean. In Nigeria, Boko Haram Is Not the Problem. The New York Times 2 Jan.
2012. Web. 8 June 2013.
Mahmood, Cynthia K. Fighting for Faith and Nation: Dialogues with Sikh Militants.
Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1997. Print.
Mamdani, Mahmood. Introduction: Modernity and Violence. Good Muslim, Bad Muslim:
America, the Cold War, and the Roots of Terror. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004.
Print.
Mitchell, Timothy. "The World As Exhibition." Comparative Studies in Society and History.
31.2 (1989). Print.
Murray, Senan, and Adam Nossiter. In Nigeria, an Insurgency Leaves a Heavy Toll. The New
York Times 4 Aug. 2009. Web. 8 June 2013.
Ndege, Yvonne. Nigerias Silent War on Boko Haram - Al Jazeera Blogs. Al Jazeera Blogs 3
June 2013. Web. 8 June 2013.
Nigeria Army Says Crackdown to Go On. BBC 19 May 2013. Web. 8 June 2013.
Nossiter, Adam. In Northern Nigeria, Boko Haram Stirs Fear, and Sympathy. The New York
Times 25 Feb. 2012. Web. 8 June 2013.
Nossiter, Adam. Nigeria Military Gets More Power to Fight Rebels. The New York Times 15
May 2013. Web. 8 June 2013.
Nossiter, Adam. Nigerian Refugees Accuse Army of Excess Force. The New York Times 5
June 2013. Web. 8 June 2013.
Oghogho, Adis O. Kerry, In Addis Ababa, Cautions Nigerian Leaders, Others on Human
Rights. The Guardian 25 May 2013. Web. 8 June 2013.
Onikeku, Femi A. State of Emergency: FG Berates Al-Jazeera, Others On Biased Media
Report. The Guardian 1 June 2013. Web. 8 June 2013.

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Robinson, Cabeiri. Body of Victim, Body of Warrior: Refugee Families and the Making of
Kashmiri Jihadists. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2013. Print.
Sanjek, Roger. "Ethnography." Encyclopedia of Social and Cultural Anthropology. New York:
Routledge, 2002. Print.
Wilson, Richard. Representing Human Rights Violations: Social Contexts and Subjectivities.
Human Rights, Culture and Context: Anthropological Perspectives. London: Pluto Press,
1997. Print.
Zulaika, Joseba, and William A. Douglas. Terror, Taboo, and the Wild Man. Terror and
Taboo: The Follies, Fables, and Faces of Terrorism. New York: Routledge, 1996. Print.