THE IMPLICATION OF HATE CRIME ON NATIONAL INTEGRATION USING KADUNA STATE AS A CASE STUDY

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE SSTUDY

A hate crime is a “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity(FBI, 2017).Hate crimes are an extreme form of prejudice, made more likely in the context of social and political change. Public and political discourse may devalue members of unfamiliar groups and contrary religion(opposed to theirs) and perpetrators may feel that their livelihood or way-of-life is threatened by demographic changes.“Hate” is not a necessary motivator; those who carry out this crime  may be motivated by other emotions such as fear, anger, or disgust for a particular ethnic group, religion or race.

In recent time, the issue of insecurity in Nigeria has drawn international attention.According to World Security Index,Nigeria ranked the fourth(4th) security challenged country( WDSI 2021).  Most researchers in trying to find out the underlying factor and motivation  of the never ending incessant killings and kidnapping by terrorist groups and bandit groups has been prompted to look at hate crime.This is notable when the renowned Boko Haram terrorist group made a statement in (2016) through their leader Sheakau that “anybody that does not belief in Allah is an infidel, therefore deserved to be eliminated. This look equivalent like Reported hate crimes in 2016 by FBI which  were motivated by hostility based on race/ethnicity especially the Hate crimes targeted Jewish, African-American, and sexual and gender minority communities at high rates. On the extreme the modalities of hate crime in Nigeria is likely to affect National Integration.

National Integration is the bond and togetherness between people regardless of their caste, creed, religion or gender. It is the feeling of oneness, brotherhood and social unity under communities and society in a country.The importance of national integration in any state is indisputably obvious because it helps stabilize the democracy, increase the economic growth, develop the nation and give people all vital rights and duties.  However in situation where hate crime is prevalent, the purpose of national integration may not be achieved. This is because violence and crime is committed against one particular religion or ethnicity in Nigeria. Hence it is upon this premise that this study is set to examine the implication of hate crime on national integration using Kaduna South as a case study.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Nigeria is currently confronting severe acts of fundamentalism and bombing making it unsafe for its citizens and foreign investors. The country at this critical time is debating enacting discriminatory laws which will further fuel hate crimes in the society. The nature of defence political actors concerning terrorism and insecurity makes difficult to believe in one Nigeria. All  these  invalidated speeches coming from media houses, newspapers and those found on social media have created a lot of problems not  only for individuals indicted and their families but it has led to disunity and conflicts of various types in Nigerian communities.

Hate  crime  in  its  entity  connotes  ‘hatred’  in  all  ramifications.  It  may  be  crime directed towards a nation, ethnic groups, religious group or marginal groups. It  is a  fact that  freedom  of  religion and association  is   among the  important  basics and foundations of  any  society, especially in a democratic society because it  is a tool by which progress and development could be achieved (European Court of Human Rights 2017). However in the case of Nigeria hate crime have been seen as catalyst through which political actors stay in power, retain political offices while paying deaf ears to the outcry of the victimized group. Therefore it is against this backdrop that this study is set to examine the the implication of hate crime on national integration using Kaduna South as a case study.

1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The focus of this duty is set to examine the the implication of hate crime on national integration using Kaduna South as a case study. Specifically it will examine factors that motivates hate crime. It will examine the rate of hate crime directed towards a particular religion in Nigeria. It will examine if hate crime can result to national disintegration.

1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study will be relevant to the general public. Specifically to policy makers, it will redirect their focus on establishing laws to curb hate crime. To law enforcement agencies, it will enable enlighten them on the need to bring to book political actors who instigate hate crime no matter their position in government.More so it will drive the  Judiciary and Human Right Activists, International Bodies to probe voilence against a particular religion or ethnic group instigated by hate with the aim of protecting the Human Rights of the common citizen. Finally the study will contribute to the body of literature on this field and serve as reference material for further academic research

1.5 SCOPE  OF THE STUDY

The scope of this duty is to examine the the implication of hate crime on national integration in Nigeria Specifically it will examine factors that motivates hate crime. It will examine the rate of hate crime directed towards a particular religion in Nigeria. It will examine if hate crime can result to national disintegration. This study is delimited to Kaduna South Local Government in Kaduna State.

1.6 RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

H0: There is no significant implication of hate crime on national integration

H0: There is no significant effect of hate crime on Human right

1.7 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The following factors poses to be a limitation during the course of this research

Financial constraint– Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
Time constraint– The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Implication: Implication is something that is suggested, or happens, indirectly.it is the possible effect of a variable on another

Hate : Hate is an angry or resentful emotional response to certain people or ideas. Hatred is often associated with feelings of anger, disgust and a disposition towards the source of hostility

Hate Crime: A hate crime is a “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity

National Integration: National Integration is the bond and togetherness between people regardless of their caste, creed, religion or gender. It is the feeling of oneness, brotherhood and social unity under communities and society in a country.

Human Right: Human rights are moral principles or norms for certain standards of human behaviour and are regularly protected in municipal and international law.  Human rights are norms that aspire to protect all people everywhere from severe political, legal, and social abuses

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