Part 1: Exploitation of Network-Centric Warfare Domains in Kenyan Politics 2008: The Emergence of Digital Influence Operations
Abstract
The study of Network Centric Warfare and Network Centric Operations enables the understanding of how warfare missions are accomplished, organised, and interrelated. This study has revealed the outcomes of the exploitation of Network Centric Warfare and Network Centric Operations attributes. These attributes are Information, Physical, Cognitive and Social domains. In Africa, politicians have directly and indirectly exploited these attributes to advance their political endeavours. This paper has reviewed the exploitation of Warfare domains in Kenyan politics.
Introduction
This paper has given different perspectives as to how Network Centric Warfare domains, such as Information, Physical, Cognitive and Social domains, have been manipulated to achieve political goals in Kenya’s leadership.
Political crisis in Africa will always escalate if the empowerment of people is not given priority and a solution. This paper gives an example of what needs to be considered as the root of the problem, for example:
“The way a conflict is viewed will determine the outcomes or effects produced, rather than a conflict being intrinsically of a particular type. The perspective taken on the conflict will determine the methods to combat it and thus the subsequent effects. In the contemporary world, this is especially of concern with the practice of counter terrorist activities.” — Hutchinson et al (2007)
This paper starts by discussing the background of Kenyan politics since independence; the reason why one of the majority tribes seems to be advantaged, for example, the proximity between the Kikuyu tribe and the British colonialists resulted in infrastructure inheritance.
Background
According to the CIA World Factbook (2008), Kenya is divided into 7 administrative provinces. These provinces are Central, Western, Nyanza, Eastern, North Eastern, Coast, Rift Valley and Nairobi. Kenya’s history stipulates that each province is inhabited by different tribes with different cultures, beliefs, ideologies, and languages.
According to Marcus (2008), “A tribe in Africa is a particular identity construction created by colonial powers in an effort to more easily dominate the population.” Marcus (2008) stipulates that an ethnicity is a group of people who share a common identity, rituals and, most commonly, language. The number of indigenous tribes in Kenya is said to be around 40 to 47; however, in most instances, 42 is used as the official number of tribes in Kenya.
The country’s population is estimated to be 37,953,838 people, which comprises the indigenous tribes. The majority ethnic tribes are Kikuyu 22%, Luhya 14%, Luo 13%, Kalenjin 12%, Kamba 11%, Kisii 6%, Meru 6%, other Africans 15%, and non African 1% (CIA World Factbook, 2008).
Start of Warfare
During the 19th century, British explorers camped and stocked their caravans in the Central Province of Kenya before making long trips to the west. (Wrong, 2008). British settlers realised that the land was fertile and they started farming. However, the British could not practice farming peacefully because the land was inhabited by the Kikuyus and nomadic Maasai tribes. The British started driving these tribes out of their land while subjecting them to slavery. At the time, the Kikuyu tribe was expanding, and they needed room to grow crops and graze their domestic animals.
The Kikuyu tribe regrouped and formed a militia army known as Mau Mau that started fighting the British army using primitive weapons. (Wrong, 2008). According to Wrong (2008), “150,000 Kikuyus passed through British detention camps and 20,000 Mau Mau fighters died in combat.” After the independence of Kenya was attained in 1963, a Mau Mau fighter, Jomo Kenyatta, became the first president of Kenya.
This meant that Kenyatta and his Kikuyu community would take the “pole position” of the governance and administration of Kenya. The British settlement in Central Province benefited the Kikuyu community as they inherited British schools, farms, infrastructure and governance from the British. Since then, the Kikuyu tribe has expanded and migrated to other provinces of Kenya, where they have established themselves socially and economically.
This ideology has not been received well by the other 40-plus indigenous tribes, as the gap of economic equality has widened between Kikuyus and other communities. Therefore, they have resented the Kikuyu community and plan to evict or kill immigrant Kikuyus from their indigenous land. This is always evident in every presidential election, which is normally held every 5 years.
The intent behind this ideology is politically motivated, as in most cases, politicians have uttered words and information that incite their fellow tribes to resent the Kikuyus. This is achieved by manipulating the social domain, cognition domain, information domain and physical domain.
Political Motivation and Warfare Domains
The main reason for information warfare is to seize supremacy, resources, control and power over the adversary. In Africa, warfare domains have been manipulated and used to control countries and states of their resources and governance. (Ngugi, 2007) Politicians have a good understanding of the social domain, physical domain and cognition domain of the Kenyan communities.
For example, in Kenya, the gap between the poor and rich is very wide; according to the CIA World Factbook (2007), the unemployment rate in Kenya is 40%, while 50% of the population lives below the poverty line. Thus, therefore, half of the Kenyan population will have difficulty in obtaining proper education, health, nutrition and shelter. In general, it is difficult for the majority of Kenyan communities to achieve the basic or primary needs of life. This fact has provided a playing ground for politicians to exploit people for their own political endeavours.
Further frailties of the social, physical and cognitive domain in the Kenyan communities are further reflected by the literacy level of the adult population. According to a report by Elimu Yetu Coalition (n.d), adopted from the Kenya National Adult Literacy Survey (KNALS): “Adult literacy rate stands at 61.5 per cent and numeracy rate at 64.6 %. An even more critical finding was that on average 38.5 per cent of the Kenyan adult population is illiterate, and this is a major challenge given the central role literacy plays in national development and empowerment of individuals and communities, determining one’s success in life.”
Individual empowerment is an element, or rather a subset of the physical, information and cognition domain. Individual empowerment is basically determined by the ability to comprehend process knowledge and decision-making. This fact is elaborated by Ncoic (n.d): “Cognitive activities, by nature, are individualistic; they occur within the minds of individuals. However, shared sense-making, the process of going from shared awareness to shared understanding to collaborative decision-making, can be considered a socio-cognitive activity because each individual’s cognitive activities are directly impacted by the social nature of the exchange, and vice versa.”
Effects of Warfare Domains
According to Ngugi (2007), warfare domains have significantly escalated the ability to strategise, plan, seize control and execute power. In every presidential and parliamentary election, certain regions such as the Rift Valley are usually characterised by violence. Politicians hire gangs and youths to intimidate, kill and displace tribes that do not support them, for example, Marcus (2008) suggests that “Conflict in Kenya today is tribal. But the roots of conflict aren’t tribal. They aren’t ethnic. They are pseudo-ethnic. There are ethnic differences in Kenya, however constructed, but they are commonly trumped by kinship, class, labour, religion and even geographic identities. Ethnic identity has been manipulated by self-serving political elites.”
Politicians in Kenya today have manipulated the warfare domains to achieve Parliamentary elections. For example, a gang of youths are often used to cause chaos and violence in the country, as was evident in the last general elections. One leader from the Luo tribe (the current prime minister) represents the Kibera slums of Nairobi and not his home of Nyanza Province.
The majority tribe in Kibera slums is the Luo community; the Luo community has formed a gang that calls itself Taliban (adapted from an Islamic group that supports terrorists in Afghanistan). This group is used to cause chaos, murders and riots in the slum and Nairobi city. In Mathare slum, a militia sect group popularly known as Mungiki is usually used to protect the interests of the Kikuyu community. This militia group operates as an organised religious sect that has rejected Christianity and instead practices traditional Kikuyu religious beliefs. However, this group is known to be secretive, organised and brutal.
The motive behind this militia group is unknown, as they have committed crimes such as extorting money from slum dwellers and public transport owners, mass killings against Kikuyu, Luo and other communities. During the post-election period, the Mungiki militia group emerged to protect the Kikuyu community against the Luo and Kalenjin communities. The third militia group is the Sabaot Land Defence Force (SLDF), which is formed by the Pok, also called Sabaot, one of the majority tribes around the Mt. Elgon region. This group is usually armed with AK rifles. Their motive is to protect their land against the Ogiek tribe.
The Sabaot tribe is said to have influential politicians and influential leaders. (Kiptum, 2007). Tribes Co-exist. History reveals that tribes in Kenya intermarried and co-existed without differences, but after independence, ethnicity became a major factor in politics. Thurston (2008) reveals that ethnic related conflicts are instigated by politicians, for example, the author suggests that “there is evidence to suggest that where ethnic conflict has emerged in Africa, there have always been political machinations behind it.”
The majority of political parties in Kenya today are formed along regional and tribe for example, before the 2007 general election, the Party of National Unity (PNU), formed by the current president, Mwai Kibaki, a kikuyu in tribe, was largely supported by the Kikuyu tribe. On the other hand, the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and Orange Democratic Movement of Kenya (ODM Kenya) were supported by the Luo and Kamba tribes, respectively. Other tribes were divided among the three political parties.
Use of Information & Technology
According to Ngugi (2007), information is a powerful tool used as a “weapon and target” depending on the purpose or mission for which the information is used. Thurston (2008) suggests that “Before every election, campaign rhetoric reinforces divisions between ethnic groups, with politicians pledging to protect the interests of their people against the threat of dispossession or impoverishment at the hands of others.” Such rhetoric polarises tribes and entrenched between friends and neighbours.
Hate and slaughter messages are broadcast using vernacular radio stations, which are very prevalent in Kenyan societies. Use of text messages, emails, posters and leaflets has all contributed to post-electoral violence in Kenya. (Thurston, 2008)
Network Centric Operation/Warfare Domain and Kenyan Politics
This paper has discussed real political situations that occurred in Kenya; however, the study of Network Centric Warfare (NCW) and Network Centric Operations (NCO) is used to theoretically express the context and concept that explains how and why these situations happened. Works by Ncoic (n.d) have suggested that Network Centric Warfare involves: – How do we accomplish our missions? – How do we acquire and field the systems that support us? Kenyan politicians have the same way of thinking.
The answers to these questions are explained by integrating the context and concepts of Network Centric Warfare. For example, by considering the Ncoic (n.d) definitions, Network Centric Operation (NCO) is an operation facilitated by a technology-based infrastructure and networks, such as people (groups of people), information technology networks, and communication networks. Network Centric Warfare refers to the reality and engagement of military personnel in warfare. Thus, “Network Centric Warfare is essentially a subset of Network Centric Operations.”
Politicians in Kenya have manipulated groups of people (tribes), formed networks and used information technology systems, such as the internet to spread e-mails, mobile phones to send text messages, and vernacular radio stations to spread hate that promotes violence to accomplish their mission (power and leadership).
Description: This diagram illustrates the four domains: Physical (tangible assets, platforms), Information (data creation/sharing), Cognitive (perception, decision-making), and Social (collaboration, shared understanding) with dynamic interdependencies that enable networked power.
Physical, Information, Cognition & Social Domains
Physical and Information domains are the basic infrastructure and base for dispersing and sharing information, for example, the use of media, the internet, and mobile phone technology. The cognition domain is the people’s perception and understanding. This process results in processing information into knowledge; “knowledge that leads to situational awareness”, for example, the literacy level and individual empowerment that helps people make decisions. The social domain is the environment in which the process of information, physical and social domains takes place.
The Value Chain and Kenyan Politics
According to Ncoic (n.d), for a mission to be effective, a certain force must build up from the physical domain to the social domain and vice versa, as shown in the value chain diagram. Ncoic (n.d) further explains: “The value chain traces out these dependencies of the force, moving from the physical and information domains to the cognitive and social domains, and back to the physical domain, where force elements effect change in the world. This process is actually very dynamic, and all of the elements and activities of each domain are dependent upon elements and activities in the other domains.”
A foundational mathematical theory underpinning NCW is Metcalfe’s Law, which quantifies network value: For N nodes (e.g., people/tribes in a political network), potential interactions are N(N-1), approximating N² for large N. Thus, network power/effectiveness scales nonlinearly as N², explaining exponential gains from networking tribes, media, and militias (Alberts et al.). Politicians create situations that enable ethnic collaborations and promote awareness that results in self-synchronisation.
Description: This NCO Value Chain diagram depicts a sequential, interdependent progression: Physical/Information domains → Cognitive (sensemaking) → Social (collaboration) → back to Physical (real-world effects), with feedback loops emphasising political mobilisation and dominance.
Hutchinson et al (2007) conclude that “Network Centric warfare has its priorities in the information technology and its associated (digital) networks and their exploitation. The idea is to generate increased combat power by networking sensors, decision makers, and those who act to achieve shared situational awareness, increased speed of command, greater lethality, increased survivability, and a degree of self-synchronisation. Networked wars are based on borderless information flows and perception of beliefs.”
Conclusion & Outcomes
Tribes in Kenya are made to misunderstand the root of their problems by politicians; the source of their problems is not ethnic, rather it is an exploitation of the social domain, which results in wrong decision-making, such as hate, violence, chaos and long-term conflicts. Exploitation of Network Centric Warfare domains prevailed in the last years of the Kenyan National General Elections. Raila Odinga of the Luo tribe paved the way to become Kenya’s Prime Minister, Kalonzo Musyoka of the Kamba tribe was appointed Vice President, and Mwai Kibaki retained the presidential seat. Exploitation of Network Centric Operations will always determine the direction and success of every political mission.
The context presented in this paper can be very useful to the government and people of Kenya to understand the root of tribal differences that almost resulted in a civil war in 2007/08, rather unfortunate for a country regarded as a haven of Peace globally.
Future Works
This paper has opened ideas/questions that require further study and findings, for example, what qualitative and quantitative measures can be exploited to verify a scientific proof that manipulation of Network Centric Warfare attributes, such as social domain, information domain, physical domain and cognitive domain, are the cause of political endeavours in Kenya.
CIA World Factbook (2008). Kenya.
Elimu Yetu Coalition (n.d). Statement on the Status of Education Access in Kenya.
Hutchinson. W., Huhtinen & Rantapelkonen. J. (2007). The Impact of Perspective on the Effects and Outcomes of Conflicts. Journal of Information Warfare, 6(1), 1-6.
Kiptum, Y. (2007). Ogiek Indigenous People of Mount Elgon.
Marcus. R.R. (2008). Kenya’s Conflict isn’t tribal. LA Times.
Ncoic (n.d). Network Centric Warfare. kinection.com
Thurston, A. (2008). Tribal Conflict in Kenya.
Wrong. M.(2008). Who are the Kikuyu? Slate.
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