Do I get full marks?

Maswali: 1. What is Media's role in propagating terrorist statements? 2. Is it extremism to get lawyers for extremists? Discuss 10mks ~ @bettywaitherero

Two separate questions with profound implications on how we may prevail against terrorists, terrorism and terrorists threats to Kenya. By "media", let us assume that the author of the question means those correspondents and journalists who report the news, and the editors who determine whether or not an item will be published or broadcast. We will further assume that rumour-mongers are not part of the equation, or those who write for the gossip or propaganda columns, or those who host "talk" shows that are an unconvincing veil for salacious innuendo and pop culture.

Let us also assume that by "extremists" we mean persons who have taken up arms against Kenya, Kenyans and institutions of government. These shall also include those suspected to have done the same. I am loath to include those who would preach hate against Kenya, Kenyans or institutions of government, but let us assume that they are also included in the meaning of "extremists."

The job of the media is to report the news. The ethics of the media will determine how that news is reported. The ideology of a particular media organisation will determine what slant to put on the news. We may prefer the media to be "patriotic" but there is absolutely no obligation on the media to be patriotic. Patriotism, a value identified in Article 10, is not an obligation that a person can be compelled to exercise. It is something that must be felt before it can be expressed. But it is not unpatriotic to report unflattering truths about ones country, its people or its government.

When one hundred and forty seven Kenyans were murdered in Garissa, the declarations of responsibility by the Shabaab were legitimate news stories. The news media were justified in reporting them; they formed part of the context of why the murders took place. To report or not to report was a decision that the editors of the news media had to make and all of them chose, rightfully so, to report them. Kenyans have a right to know what their enemies think of them and what their enemies intend to do to them, their country and their government. I do not believe that this is "propagating terrorist statements" as the author of the question would seem to suggest.

It is a canon of criminal law that a person is presumed innocent until he is tried and convicted by a court of law. Even when a murderer is found standing over his victim with the murder weapon in his hands, he is innocent unless convicted by a court of law. Kenya has abided, by and large, by this doctrine since even before the declaration of the Kenya Colony in 1920. Few Kenyan communities, indeed I would argue none, had a system of summary judgment where an accused person was not permitted a defence.

The United States has pursued a policy of denying "enemy combatants" the protection of the law. One of their reasonable arguments is that enemy combatants are not citizens of the United States nor soldiers of a state actor and, therefore, do not deserve the benefit of the US Bill of Rights. That policy has had mixed results, to say the least. Its iniquitous character has contributed significantly to the swelling ranks of the Islamic State. The US's global war on terror has been an unmitigated disaster.

Kenya cannot afford to pursue the US policy. Kenya is not an island fortress; its "porous" borders would not benefit from an abrogation of the due-process rights of extremists. Kenya's history of such abrogation is not pretty. Jomo Kenyatta and Daniel Moi relied on such policies to unlawfully detain their political enemies. Massacres also took place under their watches because the forces of law and order and the armed forces were used as blunt instruments of oppression. These policies did not engender a respect for the rule of law; indeed, it is not too farfetched to posit that they contributed significantly to the impunity that led to Goldenberg and Anglo-Leasing, grand swindles that affected the economy and led to great misery.

Finally, very few Kenyans want other Kenyans to be murdered in their dormitories or hostels. Most Kenyans want prosperity in a sea of peace. However, few Kenyans trust their own government. Unless that trust is built, it is almost certain that terrorist attacks and extremism will not be eradicated. That is why the media must report the news as they see fit and extremists permitted due process. If we do not build up our institutions of governance into entities we can trust, then we will never prevail.