Repentant Bandits And Boko Haram Fighters: Between Emotional Leanings And The Mercy Of Islam By Abdulganiyy Adeola Animashaun

The importance of history can never be overemphasized as it helps to put the present circumstances in their proper perspectives. Here, we are to contrast the sublime nature of Islam to the emotional leanings of the Nigerian public.

The Boko Haram War which has raged on for more than a decade is a cause for serious concern for the stability and sustainability of the nation, in that it has threatened the peace and economic progress of a part of the country which many believe is a launchpad for the complete takeover of our national territorial extent. Thus, when the option of accepting the repentant Fighters came to the fore, the expected choice of many will be to treat them as they do us, sparing none of them after having caused us pain in all ramifications. Adding the menace of banditry to the sordid experience of Boko Haram worsens the case as it increases the risk of being alive each day. Logically, one will not be surprised at the call for death on the repentant terrorists as a recompense for what their hands have wrought.

How do you expect a military officer who has seen his colleagues die or his limbs lost to the war to be happy at the grant of amnesty to the people who caused him a lifetime of pain? What should we expect of a people who lost their families and were sent away from their ancestral land over what they had no hand in? What else should be the reaction of people who have been rendered penniless because of a needless war caused partly by the lack of proper education being exploited by the enemies of progress? These are enough grounds for the normal reactions of the masses to the amnesty debate.

However, from the lens of the Islamic faith, there is another angle to this issue which doesn’t water down the weight of the public opinion on the same issue. From historical records, the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and the vanguards of Islam experienced a similar situation in their call for tawheed. Even after leaving Makkah for her idolatrous chieftains, they were haunted by a serious campaign aimed at exterminating them and their faith. The numerous battles are still fresh in memory. Is it the successful assassination plot being hatched by Hind through Wahsh, her slave, on the prophet’s uncle, Abbaas?, or the plot by Safwan ibn Umayyah who sent Umayr ibn Wahb to kill the prophet, which led to the latter accepting Islam? Abdurrahman ibn Awf, Uthman and others suffered colossal economic losses because of their faith. Each of these onslaughts were carefully targeted at bringing an end to the progressive development of the Muslim nation in all dimensions- faithwise, intellectually, economically, socially,… Indeed, our early predecessors suffered.

Inspite of the harrowing experience of loss, torture and destabilization of the burgeoning Muslim community in Madinah, the sublime nature of the faith came to bear on the lives of the early Muslims. Our predecessors reacted to torture with kindness, making their detractors befuddled. They served their captives with better food and a beaming smile conveying the message of peace to them. When they could have treated them in like manner as mentioned in the Qur’an 16:126, they chose a nobler way, in reference to the same verse. This kind gesture shook their opponents with awe, making them marvel at the beauty of the pristine faith. This isn’t surprising as they have been trained to control their fleshy and impulsive desires, a skill they mastered well enough to bear the pain with patience. Thus, at the conquest of Makkah, the prophet didn’t waste time to declare amnesty to people who persecuted and pursued him and his followers from their ancestral land. Those who were ashamed of their crimes like Safwan were guaranteed safety and security, thus marking the beginning of a new dawn in human history at the harmonization of both camps.

The present Nigerian circumstance is not dissimilar to the one described above, it’d rather be less in comparison. However, there are similarities that showcase the lofty ideals of Islam. This is not to make a case for amnesty but rather to make a reference for the option as having an Islamic antecedent. It also does not mean that amnesty is a must for captives or repentant enemies in Islam. According to the Qur’an 47:4, it is optional and left to the leadership to decide whether or not to free captives.

The fear of the sincerity of the repentant terrorists is a valid one which calls for cautious caution. It therefore demands a thorough scrutiny and assessment of the situation through all legal means available if the amnesty option is being explored. May the nation Nigeria triumph against all odds.