Foundation Registers 4,900 Repentant Terrorists For Deradicalisation, Empowerment In Borno

The executive director of Allamin Foundation for Peace and Development, a non-governmental organisation ( NGO ), Hajiya Hamsatu Allamin, yesterday said that it has registered no fewer than 4,900 persons, comprising 3,700 women and 1,200 minors, some of whom are wives and children of repentant terrorists, for its deradicalisation and empowerment programme.

Hajiya Allamin who added that 110 women were empowered with vocational skills, said the gesture was part of the NGO’s way of complementing Borno State government’s effort in de-radicalising the thousands of the insurgents who have surrendered to the authorities.

She stated this yesterday during the presentation of the Foundation’s Peace and Development Community Based Deradicalisation and Reintegration Model to traditional rulers, security agencies, religious leaders, Civil Society Organisations and the general public in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

She said  the community based de-radicalisation and reintegration model was designed to reintegrate ex -insurgents through holistic approach.

Allamin said the model was centred on a community-led approach that prioritises inclusivity, collaboration and empowerment.

The executive director said that through their transitional justice and reconciliation initiative, ALFOPED had identified women who were linked to radicalisation and engaged them in group-based and individual deradicalisation sessions.

According to her, the sessions were led by deradicalisation experts, fostering dialogues grounded in the Qur’an, Hadith and the teachings of prophet Muhammad’s companions, their disciples and their grand-disciples.

The ultimate aim, the executive director said, was to counter and prevent violent extremism, deradicalise the indoctrinated ones, facilitate rehabilitation and reintegration, promote re-socialisation, clarify misconceptions about Islam, strengthen resilience and foster positive relationships between the women and their host community.

She said that the key focus was to engage participants through structured re-socialisation programmes in order to help them reintegrate into society.

She said that a rigorous vetting system involving community leaders had helped them select repentant women, girls, and minors for De-Radicalisation.

The executive director said Islamic scholars were used in facilitating the structured dialogue sessions aimed at deconstructing extremist ideologies and beliefs, and present the true teachings of Islam, incorporating cognitive behavioural therapy.

However, in their testimonies, some of the repentant terrorists who benefitted from the deradicalisation and reintegration programme of the foundation said that they once believed in bloodshed without consideration for who deserved to die and who did not.

“We were driven by a thirst for violence, often killing even over personal grudges.

‘We thank God for this deradicalisation session, which have helped us realise that survival is more important than death, even on the battlefield,” said a repentant insurgent who served as a Judge for seven years in Boko Haram’s community.

Another female repentant insurgent ( name withheld) said, “We have come to understand the misconception we held about the ideology we once followed in the name of Islam, and we now accept that many of these were false.

“What remains for us is to correct the mistakes and we are asking for forgiveness from all those we have offended and their families in one way or another.”