IJPSD

ISSN: 2360-784X

 International Journal of Political Science and Development
 

International Journal of Political Science and Development

Vol. 7(5), pp. 173-188, July, 2019. 

DOI: 10.14662/IJPSD2019.092

ISSN: 2360-784X

Research

Boko Haram and the International Community; the Ramifications of Targeted Sanctions

Frederick Appiah Afriyie¹ and Vincent Ekow Arkorful²

¹Zhongnan University of Economics and Law. Corresponding Author’s E-mail: frederickappiah@qq.com

²University of Science and Technology of China. E-mail: vincentarkorful@mail.ustc.edu.cn

Accepted 16 July 2019

Nigeria has a protracted history of virulent instability one of which is the Boko Haram waged act of terrorism. Since the implosion of the terrorist group, the Boko Haram has been one of the biggest threats to Africa's most populous country in terms of intensity, organization and spread. Gauging from the sophisticated nature of weapons and high-level intelligence that characterized the various strata of violence waged by the terrorist group, it becomes obvious that, such grouping, do not operate in a vacuum but subsist on motivations, material and ideological aids or influence tapped sought from parent groups. The glaring horror escapades of the lethal group as recorded in the displacement and death of innocent civilians, abductions (of the Chibok girls), depth of violence, face to face the degree of quivers and shivers injected into Nigeria and its entire society, and the international community at large made their activities a subject matter of obsessive discussion. Given the how their activities dealt a hefty blow to the socioeconomic stability and tranquility of western and central Africa, one may aptly understand the swift harsh response with which the global comity of nations dealt with the enigma. The consequences of their activities have precipitated starvation, forced migration and a sharp decline in FDI. In the face of the terrorist groups transgressions, inter alia, the subsequent obfuscation and asphyxiation of not only Nigeria and its environs, but also the world at large, the United Nations (UN), in concert with the European Union (EU), the United States of America (USA), resolved to impose harsh targeted sanctions also known as smart sanctions on the groups ranging from travel ban on its associates, assets freezing of its membership etc. Essentially, these were meant to deter the group. It is therefore against this disturbing background that the research is conducted. This paper discourses on violence under the Boko Haram uprising and further interrogates the Nigerian state and the international community’s response in relations to analyzing the impact of the diplomacy of sanctions deployment against belligerent groups- to ascertain its effectiveness or otherwise. It concludes that unless the international community concretely tackle and intensifies its resolve to ensure the strict application of punitive measures, the efficacy of sanctions would likely remain a façade and a cast in the chimera.

Keywords: Targeted or Smart sanction, Terrorism, kidnapping
 

Cite this article as: Afriyie, FA., Arkorful, VE (2019). BOKO HARAM AND THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY; THE RAMIFICATIONSOF TARGETED SANCTIONS. Int. J. Polit. Sci. Develop. 7(5) 173-188