To defeat terrorists, you must think like them

It was a morning like any other. The Students at Garissa University in the windswept area were going about their business as usual.

A number of Christian Union members had risen early for their morning devotion in a room, some were studying, while others were still fast asleep.  Suddenly, the early morning peace was shattered by the sound of gunfire.

Four terrorists had entered the compound after shooting a guard manning the gate. Thanks to the slow response by Kenya’s security forces, the terrorists went on an orgy of killing, taunting their victims before shooting them dead. At the end of the massacre, 147 lay dead, 142 of them students.

Al Shabaab of Somalia immediately claimed responsibility.

But even as the country was reeling from shock following the attack, a little fact  seems to have escaped the mainstream media’s attention: that Kenya ranks third among the  places where similar atrocities and injustices have been committed against children,  students. Interestingly, the top two positions are occupied by countries that one would hardly consider failed or war-torn.

According to a list of the five worst terrorist attacks involving young by the British newspaper, The Telegraph, the Garissa massacre comes third. Topping the list is the Beslan School Siege in Russia, which began on September 1, 2004, and lasted three days. 

More than 300 people were killed, most of them children.

Second comes the bombing of Al-Qataniyah and Al-Adnaniyah Yazidi towns in north-west Iraq on August 14, 2007, in which 796 people lost their lives, agin, most of them children.

And after the Garissa attack comes the December 16, 2014 attack on the Peshawar Army School in  Pakistan by the Taliban, in which at least 100 children died.

COMMON FEATURE

Though separated by distance, these cases have one thing in common: they were all attacks perpetrated by terrorists.

And while cases of terrorist groups targeting young people have been taking place in different parts of the world, the rising number of attacks on educational institutions and children lately has led to questions regarding this change of tack and target, and what can be done to protect students.

Is it that other public places like supermarkets, hotels and offices have acquired sophisticated security apparatus, leaving schools as the only vulnerable places?

Could it be that terrorists find it easy to recruit spies among students, thereby making schools easy targets? What can be done to protect these institutions? And what are universities and other educational institutions doing?

In an effort to find a solution to the security lacuna that has bedevilled our centres of learning, DN2 sought answers from security experts. We also we sort to establish what our universities are doing to improve security within their premises.

“Terror is steadily creeping into the minds and hearts of young people as intended by the perpetrators,” says Dr Kiplagat Chepkong’a, a criminology lecturer at the University of Nairobi (UON).

By creating an atmosphere of fear in institutions of higher learning (the country’s hope for tomorrow), Dr Chepkong’a believes, Al Shabaab’s propaganda and intimidation agenda is well on course, and things will get even more desperate unless something is done very soon.

His view seems to be supported by events at various campuses after the Garissa attack on April 2. For instance, on April 12, there was a stampede at the UON’s Kikuyu campus after the students heard a blast, which they mistook for a terrorist attack. One student was killed and more than 100 injured. The blast was later traced to an overloaded electric cable.

A few days later, students at Kenyatta University’s main campus deserted their halls of residence and  sought alternative accommodation following rumours that they would be attacked by terrorists.

The previous day, students at the university had fled from the library, some through the windows and fire exits, after rumours that Al Shabaab terrorists were within. 

But despite this fear in institutions of higher learning, Dr Chepkong’a says, measures can be taken to restore confidence.  The first thing, he says, is for the security organs and Kenyans in general to find out how the mind of a terrorist operates.

To do this, he refers us to the Global Terrorism Index Report of 2014, which enumerated the styles and tactics Al Shabaab use in their  attacks. “Alshabaab generally uses guerrilla warfare,” reads the report.

SECURITY OVERHAUL

It is structured as an insurgency with three parts: intelligence gathering, law enforcement and a military arm. 

Their attacks average around two-and-a-half deaths per attack and one in 10 attacks is a suicide bombing. 

Of late, suicide bombings have become a pet killing style for the terrorists.”

This should worry the government and the various security organs.

“The first thing the government and the various universities should do is invest in studies that help them understand the mind and moves of a terrorist,” says Dr Chepkong’a, wondering what would make a law graduate (the leader of the attack on Garissa University) could turn into a terrorist.

“Universities should invest in the right personnel and state-of-the-art technology, including adequate numbers of CCTV cameras,” he says, adding that the frequency of analysing the recordings is crucial, and should be done by qualified personnel.

“There is a need to overhaul and strengthen security departments in the institutions of higher learning to ensure that the personnel are qualified personnel,” he says.

While most universities require students to have their university IDs as a security measure, Daystar University has gone a step further and instituted regular mandatory meetings. “It is a weekly security sensitisation forum for equipping students with skills on terror response and communicating the latest intelligence,” says Mr Charles Kilonzo, the institution’s corporate affairs manager.

He says others universities should adopt similar forums, wondering how a university can claim to be securing its premises while not mentally preparing the students for possible attacks. 

At the Technical University of Kenya, the Director of Student support Services, Dr Ndikaru wa Teresia, said they have come up with a plan to teach students how to respond in case of a terror attack, but added that they hadn’t actually tried it out it since the students were on vacation.

He added that the management had even introduced a new common unit on security studies,  prepared by the Disaster Management Department, which will be mandatory for all first year students.

“I expect sessions on drilling, response and how to safely exit the university with minimum casualties,”  he said.

 Similar efforts have been instituted at Laikipia University, which also introduced peace studies recently.

A KDF member who was part of response team in Garissa, and who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not allowed to speak to the media, also said training in response to terrorist attacks is crucial.

FIRE DRILL

“Why should more than 815 people wait for four gunmen to rain bullets on them?” he wondered. “The rifles these terrorists were using are long range.

That means that if you make the distance between you and the terrorists shorter, the rifles become less effective. I bet if three or four men had confronted the terrorists tactically from close range, the casualties would have been below 10, or none at all,” he explains.

And this, he adds, would have been from the explosives they were wearing, and not the guns. “Kenyans, and especially young people, need to think like these terrorists — remember they are well trained — if we are to defeat these menace once and for all,” he asserted.

With regard to preparedness, Dr Chepkong’a recalled: “I studied at Lenana School during the colonial days, when we used to hold fire drills at night. The instructions were that you go to a fire assembly point in the shortest time possible wrapped in a blanket.

Those who went to  the assembly points without blankets and shoes would be punished. It was very effective.”

Today, he notes, there aren’t even  safe exits, as was the case at Garissa University, which had one entry/exit.

“One of the basics of security is a safe exit. Universities should have properly manned exits and security guards on standby to guide students to safety in case of an emergency,” says Dr Chepkong’a, noting that at the University of Nairobi’s Mahatma Gandhi Wing, only one entrance is opened while all the others are closed.

He adds that a professor at the university wrote to the management seeking to have the exits opened but his request fell on deaf ears.

At Kenyatta University. which DN2 visited the morning after the terror scare, expecting stringent security measures, there were several security lapses.

At Gate C, which was being used that day, there was no frisking after one produced their ID. And while one had to go through a metal detector, the guards were some distance away from the detectors.

A student who didn’t want to be identified for fear of being victimised expressed concern about the manner the security checks were being conducted.

“As long as you have an ID bearing the University logo and name, you are granted access to the premises. Nobody bothers to establish whether the photo on the ID card matches your face.

You can sneak into the university with a friend’s identity card; I have done it, and not once,”  the bachelor of education student said. 

He went on to say that while the gates at some hostels were under constant surveillance and adequately manned, others, such as the one at Nyayo Hostels, is always open and unmanned. 

BROTHER'S KEEPER

To find out why that was happening, we visited the director of students, Dr Edwin Gimonde, but he referred us to public relations office.

However, a PR officer we found there declined to answer our questions, and instead offered us a publicity memo.

“Manning and frisking students and staff at the gate is pointless if there are no trained people in criminal investigation to identify suspicious characters,” says Dr Chepkong’a, adding that a qualified person at the gate will help stop security breaches and corruption.

He recalled how a student in his department, who is in the  military,  went through the UoN’s main entrance with explosives strapped to his body. “His aim was to test how well the guards conduct the checks, and to everyone’s amusement, the guy passed without any incident.”  he says.

Another issue of concern is lack of attention to the amount of time students or visitors spend within university premises. Wilson Manyuira, a writer and alumnus of KU, said it is extremely easy for outsiders to access even lecture halls. 

“Once a friend came to see me but I was in class so I told him to wait outside the lecture hall.  To my amusement later, he told me he had entered the lecture hall and even ‘taken notes’ on his tablet,” recalls Manyuira. “To find out whether he was telling the truth, I asked him what the lecture was about and he not not only told me  the topic, but the lecturer’s name as well !”

At Daystar University, which has more stringent security measures, Mr Kilonzo says: “We take class attendance very seriously. If a student has paid their fees in full but does not attend classes yet is always within the campus, this is a concern to our security team.”

Recent reports indicated that Daystar University had enlisted the services of military personnel to man its campuses but Mr Kilonzo would not confirm or deny it, only saying: “That is classified information, and all I can say is that our security personnel are always ready to respond, should the  need arise.”

Asked what the ultimate solution to the terrorism threat  is, Dr Chepkong’a says it is an intricate but achievable process. Because of the high population density in campuses, he says, there is a need for in-house intelligence gathering systems.  “The best security measure is prevention, and that’s where intelligence comes in.”

“You just have to look at the way former president Daniel arap Moi managed to curtail dissidence at the universities by having spies there. While this was for political reasons, I do not see why it can’t be for a positive cause,” he explains.

Asked whether students should be given paramilitary training, Dr Chepkong’a replies: “Some desperate situations do not call for desperate measures.” 

However, he is quick to add: “Just ask yourself why the Moi regime failed in its attempt to do this. Why create mercenaries in youths who will graduate and fail to get jobs? With such sophisticated skills, what do you think their desperation will drive them to do? Wouldn’t that be another ticking time bomb?”