1.1 Introduction
Kidnapping is adjudged to be unlawful detention of persons through the instrument of force, threat, fraud or enticement for different political and socio-economic reasons. It has become one of the major security threats to Nigeria as a sovereign entity. School Children Abduction appears to be one of the most technical and most lucrative in nature, considering the fact that a lot of people are involved unannounced. Kidnappers have a powerful mode of operation which creates fear in individuals because they are uncertain of the next person to be abducted. The operators of armed robbery can kidnap immediate family members and divulge all round information about whoever is their target. Kidnapping is not new in Nigeria and is one of the challenges facing the country at present.
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.
1.2 Background of Study
Terrorism has a very long history several religious and political ideologies and the wars conducted to advance them show the deep historical origin of terrorism. In modern times, terrorism was associated with the Jacobin “Reign of Terror” in France in the 1790s, which involved several thousand executions and disappearances. Globally, the criminal phenomenon and behaviour such as kidnapping, is not new. It's a worldwide phenomenon with differences in criteria and scenarios.
In the Nigerian context, prior to 1990s, the issue of abduction was rare, and it was not reported in the Eighth United Nations Survey on Crime Trends and Operation of Criminal Justice System conducted in 2002 by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (Obarisiagbon & Aderinto, 2018).
The recent kidnapping wave in Nigeria started on 25th February 2006 by the abduction of expatriate oil company employees in the Niger Delta region, which was displayed as an open message to the world for many years of marginalization, injustice, exploitation, and underdevelopment of the region (Akpan, 2010). Since then, the menace became boldly commercialized in several parts of the country. In contemporary Nigeria, the implications of kidnapping are not only on the foreigners; sadly, it now includes locals, such as; the poor and the rich, the aged, and children.
During the second half of the 20th century states sponsored terrorism was deployed against strivings for self determination by many oppressed people. This terrorism of colonialism often produced a backlash of counter terrorism. The colonizers used terror to assert their hold overseas territories, whereas national liberation movements resorted to terrorism to pursue emancipation and independence. A new brand of terrorism arose after the completion of decolonization and the end the end of the cold war.
Kidnapping laws in the United States derive from the common law of kidnapping that was developed by courts in England. Originally, the crime of kidnapping was defined as the unlawful and non-consensual transportation of a person from one country to another. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, states began to redefine kidnapping, most notably eliminating the requirement of interstate transport.
The crime of unlawfully seizing and carrying away a person by force or fraud, or seizing and detaining a person against his or her will with an intent to carry that person away at a later time. The law of kidnapping is difficult to define with precision because it varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Most state and federal kidnapping statutes define the term kidnapping vaguely, and courts fill in the details. Generally, kidnapping occurs when a person, without lawful authority, physically as ports (i.e., moves) another person without that other person’s consent, with the intent to use the abduction in connection with some other nefarious objective. Under the model penal code, kidnapping occurs when any person is unlawfully and non-consensually as ported and held for certain purposes.
A person who is convicted of kidnapping is usually sentenced to prison for a certain number of years. In some states, and at the federal level, the term of imprisonment may be the remainder of the offender’s natural life. In jurisdictions that authorize the death penalty, a kidnapper is charged with a capital offense if the kidnapping results in death. Kidnapping is so severely punished because it is a dreaded offense. It usually occurs in connection with another criminal offense, or underlying crime. It involves violent deprivation of liberty, and it requires a special criminal boldness. Furthermore, the act of moving a crime victim exposes the victim to risks above and beyond those that are inherent in the underlying crime.
There is no general agreement among scholars or lawyers on a definition of terrorism. However, it is the use of violence for purpose of political extortion, coercion and publicity for a political causes” whether aimed at persons or property, whether consisting of threatened or actual violence and whether the victims are civil or government officials, terrorism is designed to win political concessions by instilling fear.
The first and most immediate problem is one of defining and conceptualizing terrorism as an international crime. The core in the definition of terrorism relates to the actual usage of violence, threats of violence or forms of intimidation to achieve a political objective; definitions from legal and illegal sources tend to affirm these underlying features. Terrorists use violence in an attempt to achieve political goals. Their intents are to bring about political change by creating a climate of fear within the society they oppose. The targeting of innocent victims and symbolic locations for a high profile attack has long been the preferred method of terrorist organizations. For centuries, terrorism has been an instrument of repression by government as well as tool of revolutionaries trying to overthrow government. Beginning in the late 1960s, the occurrence of terrorism increased dramatically throughout the world.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to assess Kidnapping as an Element of Terrorism.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation revealed that technological advances such as automatic weapons and compact, electrically donated explosives gave terrorist a new mobility and lethality. Terrorism was adopted as virtually a state policy though an unacknowledged one by such totalitarian regime as those of Nazi Germany under Adolph Hitler the Soviet Union leader Joseph Stalin and Nigeria under Sani Abacha and Uganda under Idi Amin. Kidnapping is a serious crime and has potential for transforming into other felonious offenses, such as physical violence, financial victimization, and murder.
In those states arrest, imprisonment, torture and execution were applied without legal guidance or restraints to create a climate of fear and to encourage adherence to the national ideology and the declare economics, social and political goals of the state.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to critically examine Kidnapping as an Element of Terrorism in Nigeria. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To present the historical background of globalization and global security in Nigeria;
- To study the strategies employed towards fighting against terrorism in Nigeria;
- To critically examine the causes of terrorist attacks on terrorism in Nigeria; and
- To highlight the impacts/effects of global terrorism in Nigeria.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- Can you give an historical background of globalization and global security in Nigeria?
- What are the causes of terrorist attacks on terrorism in Nigeria?
- How can you highlight the impacts/effects of global terrorism in Nigeria?
- What are the strategies employed towards fighting against terrorism in Nigeria?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
Hypothesis One
- H0: There are no significant factors instigating terrorist attacks on terrorism in Nigeria
- H1: There are significant factors instigating terrorist attacks on terrorism in Nigeria
1.7 Significance of Study
The findings on this study will be of immense help to administrators and managers in correcting and animalizing inherent of insecurity in our country.
- It will aid the government and organization to avoid insecurity redtapism, and non-chalant attitude portrayed by workers.
- It will also help organization in boosting productivity.
- Corporate bodies and entrepreneurs that wish to start their own business organization would find this valuable in the endeavors.
This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.8 Scope of Study
The scope of the research is focused on the Kidnapping as an Element of Terrorism in Nigeria. This research work as its title suggests covers the period when there was a terrorist attack of kidnapping attack in Nigeria.
This period was however chosen as the scope because it marked a historical landmark in the United States of America when the world trade center (WTC) was bombed by the Arabian terrorist.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Establishment Policies: Establishment policies posed a serious limitation as most staffs are not ready to release information needed for this project work. There were lots of information needed from the staffs of this establishment to enhance the study which took them time to release or they did not release at all for security purposes, hence the scope was reduced.
- Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
1.10 Definition of Terms
Terrorism: This is a weapon of the weak against the strong. It is a special form of political violence. As a political activity, it is undertaken not to inflict violence or destruction but to communicate political message.
Conflict: This describes a situation in which two or more parties perceive difference between or among themselves and seek to resolve those differences to their own satisfaction.
