According to the 2009 census data, 10% of the Kenyan population consists of Muslims majority of whom live in the Coastal region and North Eastern Kenya. These regions are also among the most marginalised and neglected regions in the country. This together with the wars waged in North Eastern and the land problem in the Coast have become the foundation of the underlying grievances that are seen to further the radicalization agenda.
The response of the Government to security threats emanating from these regions is sometimes characterised by heavy handed tactics that are often perceived to be discriminatory against these communities. This has resulted in fear, mistrust and hostility towards security agents in these communities. In the past, whenever terrorist attacks have occurred, it usually emerges that some locals may have had some information about radicalization going on in the areas, but they never reported.
The Muslim community is often castigated for “not doing enough” to help in the fight against radicalization. But the history of the Muslim communities with the State precludes them from reporting suspicious activity due to fear and mistrust. However, the relationship between the State and the Muslim community is crucial if the war against radicalization is to be won.
While the State needs to foster the relationship, the underlying grievances are complex and require solutions that are likely to take a long time to be realized. This paper therefore presents a mechanism in which law enforcement agencies can gather intelligence on radicalization from the local communities without using means that further antagonize the already strained relationship between these communities and the State. The solution is in form of An Anonymous Reporting System.
Anonymous Reporting is an effective tool in curbing radicalization
This system not only allows the concerns of the local communities to be aired and brought before policy makers but it further gives the police the much needed targeted intelligence. Local communities can be able to report any suspicious activities with guaranteed anonymity. There is no direct contact between security agents and the person reporting an incident which goes a long way in encouraging locals to report without fear of reprisals.
The proposed system allows users to report using multiple channels as well as a feedback mechanism where they can continuously communicate with the security agency and even submit new information. For every incident reported the user as well as the security agency management can be able to track and see whether the case is being acted upon or not. On the other hand, the security agency can manage investigative workload through the system’s comprehensive workflow analysis feature. Moreover, it has inbuilt intelligence that automatically flags and associates related incident reports.
