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Category: Diaspora News

Written by Kim

Kenya’s military incursion into Somali in response to the Al-Shabab militants’ menace in Kenya was but an overdue foregone conclusion. It is an open secret that the Al-Shabab have tested Kenya’s patience and stretched her serenity too thin and it was only a matter of time before the conflict came to the fore. So when the opportunity arose, triggered by the senseless and shameful abduction of a wheelchair bound elderly French tourist woman, Kenya struck, the moment couldn’t have been opportune.

Kenya’s territorial integrity and her standing among nations was at stake, the abuses from her neighbors who returned brutality for kindness was becoming an unbearable national nuisance. Now that we are in it, does Kenya have the intestinal fortitude to see this thing through? Only time will tell but if the history of the conflict in the war ravaged lawless nation in East Africa is anything to go by, Kenya must be ready to hang in for the long haul and pursue this to its logical conclusion, vanquishing Al Shabab and restoring a functional government.

A tall order indeed but one worth the cost otherwise this war will boomerang on Kenya with much worse and severe consequences. For two decades now, Somali has been without a functional government and most outside attempts to restore order, including those of the United States, have failed miserably. Any semblance of governance in Somali has drawn more conflict among the fiercely divided clans whose fault line is between the Islamist militants and the Provisional government whose very existence Kenya helped broker. Now that Nairobi has waded into the fray, taking direct aim at Al-Shabab militias who are known to work with al Qaeda, the conflict clearly assumes new meaning.

No country or government worth its salt can just sit idly by and watch helplessly as its citizens are terrorized in the manner Al-Shabab has. On the other hand the The Transitional Federal Government (TFG) would be more than happy to see Kenyan troops wipe out the insurgents, but are they willing to cede control of some of their territory as Kenya pacifies the upheavals?

The coordination of the military action among the Kenyan troops and Somali soldiers as they join African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) are a testament to the unity of purpose, if only temporarily, between the two governments. The message is loud and clear, “Al Shabab, time is up.”

Kenya’s economy depends largely on tourism and Al Shabab’s attacks and kidnappings of tourists within her territories threaten her very existence. “Kenya is particularly now becoming more robust because the actions of the group are having a massive impact on the tourist industry,” Said Atta Asamoah from the Institute for Security Studies in Nairobi.

Atta added that Kenya depends a lot on tourism and cannot afford to be seen as a weak link that is not in control of its territorial integrity to the extent that tourists do not have the security they need to enjoy their presence in the country.

The question that remains is whether direct military action will help or hurt the general security situation. Whereas Al-Shabab is by no means an easy adversary as their success within Somalia shows, they are certainly believed to be weaker following the devastating blows inflicted on their umbrella terror group, Al-Qaida. The killing of Osama Bin Laden and some of his most trusted lieutenants around the world including Somali itself whether the master mind of the 1998 Kenya and Tanzania bombings was recently killed must certainly have weakened their resolve and capacity to withstand sustained onslaught from a disciplined military such as Kenya’s.

Kenya and her coalition partners now must demonstrate endurance to get the job done, at all costs. Nevertheless, some argue that Kenya might not be willing or able to do so especially after the statement by the Foreign affairs assistant minister Richard Onyonka who in a nutshell told Al Shabab and the world that Kenya will negotiate with them the terms of surrender! That is a message that spells
weakness and lack of commitment and the Kenyan government would be wise to refrain from sideshows and focus on the job at hand.

As noted by a Kenyan blogger, Al-Shabab is not a formal organization that can be traced and tracked down swiftly. They can easily melt within the civilian population rendering it a vexatious exercise to neutralize them, not to mention they have no rules of engagement. “The risk is that the group begins to activate sleepers within Kenya and operate within Kenyan territory,” Asamoah said. “This is going to be a dangerous time.”

On the other hand Kenya Military has to follow the rules of engagement as any other military and their first concern is not to attack civilian population. But how do you tell who is Shabab and who is not. How do you pick the enemy out of the population? A similar problem faced by United States when they invaded Iraq.

Consequently, we are now beginning to pay a high price because of psychological war. Groups like Shabab thrive on instilling fear in the hearts of their opponents. And by proclaiming retaliatory resolve against our Country, they have effectively shaken our core workings, right from our socio-economic lives down to very own personal lives.

But along with that vigilance comes the threat of persecution or reprisals against ethnic Somalis in Kenya , says Patrick Smith, Africa specialist at the London-based newsletter Africa Confidential. “(Kenyan Somalis) will feel rather vulnerable because they will be associated with the Al-Shabab,” he said. “That could cause internal problems within Kenya .”