Social reintegration of former al-Shabaab militants: How formal channels help mitigate threat perceptions

Abstract

What drives host community preferences towards the reintegration of former Islamist militants? While recognizing the importance of host communities in the reintegration process, empirical evidence on the factors influencing community support for reintegrating former Islamist militants remains limited. We hypothesized that community preferences are shaped along the perceived threat level influenced by three factors: organizational profile, identity traits, and reintegration channels. We empirically examined these using a conjoint survey involving Somali civilians from three cities with disarmament, demobilization and reintegration centers and a separate survey of former al-Shabaab disarmament, demobilization and reintegration graduates. Our results showed that security-related attributes, such as involvement in killings, recruitment history and unit association wielded a substantial influence on threat perceptions. Heightened threat perceptions played a key role in shaping wartime preferences, explaining how host communities categorize security threats. Notably, our results underscored a community preference for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration program graduates and for those granted government amnesty over ex-fighters reintegrated through traditional channels, highlighting the efficacy of formal reintegration channels in managing community threat perceptions compared to informal pathways.