Description
Kidnapping as a general tool of recruitment is often associated with weakness. Groups that are too weak to attract volunteers to their cause, either through persuading people of their ideology or through the ability to offer payment to potential recruits, must find alternatives ways to recruit, including coercion. And yet, it is unlikely that a group violently promoting the idea that women and girls should not receive a Western-style education is kidnapping girls and young women to fight for them. This paper seeks to answer two, inter-related, questions. First, why does Boko Haram kidnap girls and young women? Second, is this a signal of weakness or strength? I argue that the abduction of girls and women by Boko Haram should be viewed as theater, or a signaling mechanism to the Nigerian government. In these acts, Boko Haram is sending two messages to the Nigerian government. The first message is that the Nigerian government dramatically miscalculated when it implemented the policy of holding the wives and children of the Boko Haram commanders and the second message is a signal of the strength of Boko Haram, which should not be underestimated. An understanding of these messages are crucial if the Nigerian Government is going to successfully defeat Boko Haram and bring peace and stability to Northern Nigeria.
