Evaluating The Role of Civil Society Organizations in Kenya’s Counter-Terrorism Strategy: A Case of Mombasa County.

Abstract

The trajectory of Kenya’s counter terrorism policy reflects the impact of attacks at Westgate (2013) and Dusit (2019). While the measures are aimed at enhancing security, they have often resulted in systemic human rights violations and further alienated marginalized communities. The study is guided by the following objectives; assessing the contributions of civil society organisations in Likoni, Mombasa County to Kenya’s counter terrorism responses, evaluating the impact of the work of these organizations, identifying challenges and proposing solutions to enhancing their effectiveness on the war on terror. The study is guided by Securitization and the Human Rights-Based Framework. The research adopts a case study research design and the research philosophy is an interpretivist paradigm. The study population includes civil society organizations, community leaders, security officials, and affected residents in Mombasa. Primary data was collected through semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions, while secondary data was gathered from legislative frameworks, policy reports, and scholarly literature. Thematic analysis is used to interpret qualitative data, presented in a narrative format, while content analysis is synthesized secondary data. The findings provide insights for policymakers, civil society organizations, and international actors to enhance collaboration and rights-based counter-terrorism approaches. Research carried out in Mombasa indicated that the Civil Society Organizations not only were a main preventive and mediating force but also provided the community with awareness, rehabilitation, legal aid, and psychosocial support that not only raised its resilience but also facilitated flows of early-warning information to security actors. The study also noted that the Civil Society Organizations impact was measurable, but not to the same extent everywhere, as the above-mentioned factors among them donor dependency, lack of unified programming, limited participation in formal decision-making, and long-standing mistrust and lack of communication with security agencies were all having a restricting effect. Furthermore, the study indicated that the rights-based Civil Society Organizations actions had the courts as allies and that they were able to lessen the impact of the abuses that had occurred as a consequence of the counter-terrorism practices. At the same time, these gains were vulnerable without continuous funding and safeguards being built into the institutions. One of the main recommendations was to set up a County Counter Violent Extremism Partnership Platform that would not only coordinate and share information among the government, security agencies, and Civil Society Organizations but would also provide the civic actors with a legally protected environment, secure sustainable funding, and engage in joint capacity building activities for the long-term, rights-compliant prevention and rehabilitation programming.