Department of History and International Studies

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Browsing Department of History and International Studies by Subject "Arms control"

Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    The Bane of Peacebuilding: Appraising Problems of Small Arms Control in Liberia 1989-2016
    (Faculty of humanities, Kaduna State University Kaduna, 2022) Fyanka, Bernard
    The proliferation of small arms and light weapons did not pose a challenge prior to the Liberian Civil War. The events leading to the war and subsequently 14 years of near continues conflict created a demand base for a huge amount of small arms and light weapons to flood the country. Attempts at restricting the flow of weapons during and after the conflict represent the central thesis this research seeks to investigate. A theoretical overview of gun control is first situated within the discourse, followed by an interrogation of the problems encountered in all the phases of disarmament exercises conducted to rid Liberia of illicit weapons. The comparative method of analyzing the processes and results of weapons collection programs and Disarmament Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) exercises affords a clear understanding of the challenges faced by small arms control in Liberia. These problems pose a critical challenge to the process of peacebuilding after the conflict in Liberia. The paper examines all the associated problems of small arms control from conflict resources to a proper legal framework. The paper argues that the cessation of hostilities did not necessarily ensure a peaceful society. One of the culprit for the high levels of insecurity in present day Liberia is the problems faced by small arms control.
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    Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) terrorism: Rethinking Nigeria’s counterterrorism strategy
    (Taylor and Francis, 2020) Fyanka, Bernard
    The post-Cold-War collapse of the Soviet military-industrial complex has enabled the rapid global proliferation of nuclear weapons and fissile material, thereby escalating the possibilities of non-conventional nuclear attacks. Such attacks have become more likely with the emergence of very powerful terrorist groups like Boko Haram and others around the world. Over 1,800 metric tons of nuclear material is still stored in poorly secured facilities in more than 25 countries. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as at December 2015 had recorded in their trafficking database a total of 2,889 incidents involving losses, thefts and attempts to traffic fissile material across international borders. Boko Haram may also engage with radiological or biochemical ‘dirty bombs’, which are easier to make. With no less than 48 reported incidences of biochemical attacks since 1900, it is likely that Boko Haram may switch tactics, especially considering the lack of biochemical detection protocols in Nigeria’s counterterrorism strategy and also the inconsistency in public and private sector collaboration. This new reality calls for a recalibration of Nigeria’s counterterrorism protocols to accommodate the anticipated threat. The paper thus highlights policy considerations and advocates new directions
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    Deficits of Post Conflict Peace: A Historical Inquiry into Problems Faced by Small Arms Control Initiatives in Nigeria
    (Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA) Ikoyi Lagos, 2015) Fyanka, Bernard
    The Peace of the post Civil War era in Nigeria was considered by many and an uneasy one. The presence of large amounts of small arms and light weapons within the fragile polity affords a ready alternative to peace thus representing a huge deficit to long term peacebuilding. This study historically traces challenges to the control process that have emerged over time. It investigates the role of the politics of arms embargos during the Nigerian Civil War; inadequate post-conflict DDR; availability of conflict resources to non-state actors and institutional and financial problems of cooperative security. The paper argues that a key aspect of the control process must involve the mitigation of some of these challenges which often cripple the control process and by extension hamper peacebuilding efforts in the various conflicts that have emerged in different parts of the country since the Civil War
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    Legacies of The Lords of War: A Critical Appraisal of Weapons Proliferation Patterns In War Time Liberia
    (IUP Publications, 2019) Fyanka, Bernard
    The Liberian Conflict is a classical study in the confluence of factors that created a “perfect storm” of weapons proliferation. This paper outlines the gradual aligning of factors and processes both local and international that that made the Liberian War a hot bed of small arms. The same weapons that would be recycled into other conflicts in the region where funneled into Liberia via the same countries that would later suffer the fallout of the Liberian conflict. The historical method is employed to examine the gradual build up and the distinct patterns that were created in the process. This same patterns can be recreated if cooperative security at the region does not engage regional security sector reforms with the intent of stemming the growth of such patterns.