ABC OF TERRORISM

ABC OF TERRORISM


1. WHAT IS TERRORISM?

There is no internationally agreed definition of terrorism. The more accepted definitions are as follows:

a-- "The systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion." -- Wikipedia

b--Terrorism includes only those acts which are intended to create fear (terror); are perpetrated for an ideological goal (as opposed to a lone attack); and, deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants.

c--Some definitions also include acts of unlawful violence and war.

d-- Amy Zalman, Ph.D., has given a brief definition of terrorism as: “Terrorism is the threat or use of violence against civilians to draw attention to an issue”.
http://terrorism.about.com/od/causes/tp/Causes_of_Terrorism.htm

A person who practices terrorism is a terrorist. Zalman defines terrorists as “people who threaten or use violence against civilians with the hope of changing the status quo”.
http://terrorism.about.com/od/causes/a/terrorismcauses.htm



2--WHEN DID TERRORISM START AND PROLIFERATE?

Adapted from:
http://terrorism.about.com/od/whatisterroris1/p/Terrorism.htm

Terrorism may historically be divided into the following phases:

A--1st Century BCE to13th Century: Terrorism in the Pre-Modern World:

--The history of terrorism is as old as humans' willingness to use violence to affect politics. The Sicarii were a first century Jewish group who murdered enemies and collaborators in their campaign to oust their Roman rulers from Judea.

--The Hashhashin, whose name gave us the English word "assassins," were a secretive Islamic sect active in Iran and Syria from the 11th to the 13th century.
Their dramatically executed assassinations of Abbasid and Seljuk political figures terrified their contemporaries.

Zealots and assassins were not, however, really terrorists in the modern sense. Terrorism is best thought of as a modern phenomenon. Its characteristics flow from the international system of nation-states, and its success depends on the existence of a mass media to create an aura of terror among many people.

B—1793 to mid-twentieth century: The Origins of Modern Terrorism (state terrorism):

The word terrorism comes from the Reign of Terror instigated by Maxmilien Robespierre in 1793, following the French revolution. Robespierre, one of twelve heads of the new state, had enemies of the revolution killed, and installed a dictatorship to stabilize the country. He justified his methods as necessary in the transformation of the monarchy to a liberal democracy: Subdue by terror the enemies of liberty, and you will be right, as founders of the Republic.

Robespierre's sentiment laid the foundations for modern terrorists, who believe violence will usher in a better system. For example, the 19th century Narodnaya Volya hoped to end Tsarist rule in Russia.

C--1950s: The Rise of Non-State Terrorism:
This arose as terrorism as a state action faded and an attack against an existing political order became more prominent.

The rise of guerrilla tactics by non-state actors in the last half of the twentieth century was due to several factors. These included the flowering of ethnic nationalism (e.g. Irish, Basque, Zionist), anti-colonial sentiments in the vast British, French and other empires, and new ideologies such as communism.

Terrorist groups with a nationalist agenda have formed in every part of the world. For example, the Irish Republican Army grew from the quest by Irish Catholics to form an independent republic, rather than being part of Great Britain.

Similarly, the Kurds, a distinct ethnic and linguistic group in Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq, have sought national autonomy since the beginning of the 20th Century. The Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK), formed in the 1970s, uses terrorist tactics to announce its goal of a Kurdish state. The Sri Lankan Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam are members of the ethnic Tamil minority. They use suicide bombing and other lethal tactics to wage a battle for independence against the Sinhalese majority government.

D--1970s: International terrorism: This era also gave us our contemporary sense of terrorism as highly theatrical, symbolic acts of violence by organized groups with specific political grievances. International terrorism became a prominent issue in the late 1960s, when hijacking became a favored tactic.

--In 1968, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine hijacked an an El Al Flight.

--1972: Black September, a Palestinian group, kidnapped and killed Israeli athletes preparing to compete for the Munich Olympics. Black September's political goal was negotiating the release of Palestinian prisoners. They used spectacular tactics to bring international attention to their national cause. Munich radically changed the United States' handling of terrorism: "The terms counterterrorism and international terrorism formally entered the Washington political lexicon," according to counterterrorism expert Timothy Naftali.

--Around 1988, the bombing of a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie, Scotland, shocked the world.

Most terrorist groups justify violence with a deep belief in the necessity and justice of their cause. In USA, groups such as the Weathermen grew out of the non-violent group Students for a Democratic Society. They turned to violent tactics, from rioting to setting off bombs, to protest the Vietnam War.

E--1990s onward: Religious Terrorism

Religiously motivated terrorism is considered the most alarming terrorist threat today. Groups that justify their violence on Islamic grounds- Al Qaeda, Hamas, Hezbollah—come to mind first. But Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism and other religions have given rise to their own forms of militant extremism.

In the view of religion scholar Karen Armstrong this turn represents terrorists' departure from any real religious precepts. Muhammad Atta, the architect of the 9/11 attacks, and "the Egyptian hijacker who was driving the first plane, was a near alcoholic and was drinking vodka before he boarded the aircraft." Alcohol would be strictly off limits for a highly observant Muslim.

Atta, and perhaps many others, are not simply orthodox believers turned violent, but rather violent extremists who manipulate religious concepts for their own purposes.


3—WHERE IS TERRORISM FOUND AT PRESENT?

According to a compilation made by Dakota Smith, the twenty countries afflicted by terrorism are as follows:
http://www.travelersdigest.com/terrorism_hot_spots.htm


20. Italy
While not having had the extravagant cases of terrorism as some of the other countries mentioned, Italy is still very much at the forefront of a growing problem. A large discontented population & controversial immigration policies have led to the country's inclusion in this ranking.

19. Spain
The Madrid bombings highlighted what has been a growing problem for years, unchecked immigration from Northern Africa into what's becoming a polarized society. However overlooking the threat from Islamic extremism, Spain still has problems a plenty with the ever present Basque separatist movement known as ETA.

18. United States
The United States is home to what are a good portion of the world's high profile terrorist targets, & it's every extremist's dream to strike at the heart of America. However doing so has been less easy than to some of the nation's counterparts on this list.

17. Sri Lanka
The island has been the home of a civil war for the last 25 years or so. The LTTE movement was known for its terroristic attacks. It has recently been decimated.

16. Indonesia
Home to the world's largest Muslim population & a government that facilitates the American "War on Terrorism" is a melting pot of disaster as highlighted by the increasing violence.

15. Saudi Arabia
The centre of the Islamic world, Saudi Arabia is also at the height of the global terrorism threat. An unpopular monarchy & an alienated population make oil derricks seem like much more appealing targets than they otherwise would have been.

14. United Kingdom
In what one could say is the first world country most afflicted by terrorism, the United Kingdom comes in at number 14 on the list. The difference between the UK and other first world countries such as the United States is that its terrorism threat is largely home grown.

13. Colombia
The drug cartels, rampant criminal gangs, & leftist rebels are the reason Colombia is featured here. Kidnappings, assaults, shootings, & bombings are all common features on their domestic landscape.

12. Philippines
The long going Islamic separatist war in the south shows no sign of slowing, & tourists remain a prime target in their war for political freedom.

11. Algeria
This country has been plagued by civil war since the early 90's when the military backed government scrapped a parliamentary election that an Islamist political party was set to dominate. Since then it's been all bombs & bullets with the two sides waging a bloody campaign against the other leaving over 200,000 people dead. Things have recently taken a turn for the worse when the long thought declining insurgency re-invented itself which among other things included changing its name to Al Qaeda in Africa and enlarging focus to waging the global jihad against Western culture and its believed encroachment on puritanical Islamic society.

10. Turkey
Turkey is suffering from a growing anti-Western sentiment that is beginning to affect tourism and trade.

9. Bangladesh
There are two ways to look at Bangladesh's placement on this list: either as the 9th most highly terrorized country, or as a relatively safer place on the Indian sub-continent.

8. Thailand
A military coup, a new government, a deposed prime minister, an Islamic insurgency, & an increase in military spending are all things that do not bode well for Thailand.

7. Afghanistan
While the country hasn't truly been terrorism free for the majority of its modern history, recent times have been even more unkind. Following a short grace period after the American occupation, Afghans are now facing a resurgent Taliban uprising that threatens to envelop their struggling government in an ever more vicious cycle of violence.

6. Pakistan
Pakistan seems to be the epicentre of Al Qaeda, with the majority of its known & captured hierarchy having been caught inside the nation. That & a very unpopular government regime make Pakistan's interior targets quite appealing to the terrorist set.

5. Russia
The ongoing conflict in Chechnya has made Russia a prime target for terrorism since the resurgent outbreak of violence began in 1999. With no solution to the conflict in sight, Russia looks to remain on this list for the foreseeable future.

4. Nepal
Here unlike the majority of the other nations mentioned on this list, the terrorism stems from a completely domestic conflict wholly uninvolved from the global Muslim extremist movement. In Nepal it's the government's conflict with the Marxist rebels that provides fuel to the fire. The future does however look bright with a series of cease fires being agreed to as we start 2007.

3. India
The country's predominantly Hindu population & its 300 million strong Muslim minority continue to openly spar in acts of aggression spurred largely by the country's feud with rival Pakistan over the disputed province of Kashmir.

2. Israel/Palestine
While the "Second Intifada" has mostly died down, Israelis still have to worry about the Northern threat of Hezbollah, & in the territories the burgeoning conflict between Hamas and Fatah continue to provide acts of terrorism which place the combined two localities at near the height of this list.

1. Iraq
No big surprise here, Iraq has & continues to be the world's hotspot for terrorism in the four years since the American invasion & subsequent occupation of the country. And that is just one way to not build a nation.



4.—WHY DOES TERRORISM OCCUR?

Terrorism is usually related to politics. It may have its origins in politics or, having originated in other ways, is nurtured and sustained by political support. Most often,
terrorism thrives on socio-cultural-religious-political-economic tensions in a society. The party that is weak resorts to terrorist acts when it perceives that there is no other channel available for conflict resolution. In addition, there may be a group of terrorists who may be called mercenary terrorists. Examples are the Khalistani terrorists. There is no real reason for Khalistan movement, except that those motivated by personal gains choose to play mercenary terrorists in the hands of others, mainly Pakistan.

The causes and settings of terrorism will be illustrated below in different ways:

A--Political roots of Terrorism

The political cause and its ideology keep on changing with times. This has been emphasized by Zalman on the following lines: http://terrorism.about.com/od/causes/a/terrorismcauses.htm

1920s - 1930s: Socialism

Earlier, was perceived as the cause. Socialism was becoming a dominant way for many people to explain the political and economic injustice they saw developing in capitalist societies, and for defining a solution. Millions of people expressed their commitment to a socialist future without violence. However, a small number of people thought violence was necessary.

1950s - 1980s: Nationalism

In the 1950s through 1980s, terrorist violence tended to have a nationalist component. Terrorist violence in these years reflected the post-World War II trend in which previously suppressed populations committed violence against states that had not given them a voice in the political process. Algerian terrorism against French rule; Basque violence against the Spanish state; Kurdish actions against Turkey; the Black Panthers and Puerto Rican militants in the United States, all sought a version of independence from oppressive rule.

1980s - Today: Religion

In the 1980s and 1990s, terrorism began to appear in the repertoire of right-wing, neo-Nazi or neo-fascist, racist groups. Like the terrorist actors that preceded them, these violent groups reflected the extreme edge of a broader and not-necessarily violent backlash against developments during the civil rights era. White, Western European or American men, in particular, grew fearful of a world beginning to grant recognition, political rights, economic franchise and freedom of movement (in the form of immigration) to ethnic minorities and women, who might seem to be taking their jobs and position.

In Europe and the United States, as well as elsewhere, the 1980s represented a time when the welfare state had expanded in the United States and Europe, the agitation of the civil rights movement had produced results, and globalization, in the form of multi-national corporations, had gotten underway, producing economic dislocation among many who depended on manufacturing for a living. Timothy McVeigh's bombing of the Oklahoma City Federal Building, the most lethal terrorist attack in the U.S. until the 9/11 attacks, exemplified this trend.
In the Middle East, a similar swing toward conservatism was taking hold in the 1980s and 1990s, although it had a different face than it did in Western democracies. The secular, socialist framework that had been dominant the world over—-from Cuba to Chicago to Cairo-—faded after the failure of the Arabs in the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. This was a big blow for the Arabs. It disillusioned them about the entire era of Arab socialism. The death in 1970 of Egyptian president Gamal Abd Al Nasser was a further blow. The Gulf War in the 1990s caused much economic dislocation when many Palestinian, Egyptian and other men working in the Persian Gulf lost their jobs. When they returned home, they found women had assumed their roles in households and jobs. Religious conservatism, including the idea that women should be modest and not work, took hold in this atmosphere. In this way, both West and East saw a rise in fundamentalism in the 1990s, whereby religion was sought to justify violence. Examples are: Aum Shinrikyo in Japan; Jihad in Egypt and other Islamic countries; , and groups such as the Army of God in the United States. Religion is at present the primary fountain of terrorism.


B—Socio-cultural-religious tensions leading to terrorism

i-- Madrid bombings which had their origin in unchecked immigration from Northern Africa and development of a polarized society.

ii—Twin tower attack due to cultural clash between the Arab and Western cultures.

iii—LTTE terrorism due to Tami-Sinhalese cultural clash;

iv--Philippines terrorism—Related to the long going Islamic separatist war in the South. Tourists remain a prime target of the terrorists in their war for political freedom.

v—Algeria terrorism—The roots go back to the early 90's when the military backed government scrapped a parliamentary election that an Islamist political party was set to dominate. Since then it's been all bombs & bullets with the two sides waging a bloody campaign against the other leaving over 200,000 people dead. The terrorist movement escalated with the change of name to Al Qaeda and enlargement of focus to waging the global jihad against Western culture and its believed encroachment on puritanical Islamic society.

vi—The Taliban terrorism, mainly in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is closely related ideologically to the Wahabi Islam of Saudi Arabian origin and is driven by active support from that country.

vii—Chechen terrorism—The Republic of Chechnya was established as a part of Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. It proclaimed the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria and established independence in November 1991. Following the First Chechen War with Russia, Chechnya gained de facto independence as the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria. Russian federal control was restored during the Second Chechen War. Since then there has been a systematic reconstruction and rebuilding process, though sporadic fighting continues in the mountains and southern regions of the republic.

Russia launched the First Chechen War (1994 to 1996) to regain control over Chechnya, but failed. It again launched the second Chechen war in October 1999 and gained control over it within 5 months. However, Chechen rebels continue to commit terrorist acts against Russia. As a matter of fact, Chechnya has been in almost constant battle against foreign rule since the 15th century. Eventually the Chechens converted to Islam and tensions began to die down with the Turks but increased with their Christian neighbours (the Georgians and the Cossacks) and their Buddhist neighbours, the Kalmyks. The Chechen guerillas have the support of Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade (IIPB), in part through links to al-Qaida. It needs to be remembered that Chechen has plenty of oil.

viii—Terrorism in India—The routes lie in the Hindu-Muslim divide that would have been manageable to a fair extent had it not been perpetuated by the active instigation of Kashmir Muslims by Pakistan with the support of other Muslim countries.

ix—Israel-Palestine terrorism—The roots are again religious, Jew versus Muslim. International politics has seen to it that it remains a festering sore. The Arabs side with Palestine while the West sides with Israel.


C—Monetary or material greed leading to terrorism

i—Khalistani terrorism: There is no real reason for Khalistan movement, except that those motivated by personal gains choose to play mercenary terrorists in the hands of others, mainly Pakistan.

ii—American terrorism (If terrorism is viewed in its extended definition to include state terrorism in the form of illegal war / aggression)—It includes blatant aggression upon and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq. The root cause is the greed for oil on the part of the USA. The greed was so much that in the absence of any excuse to attack Iraq, the self -styled champion of virtue created the ill- famed imaginary WMD and used that false pretext for the biggest terrorist attack in world history.

iii—Colombia terrorism—It is mainly related to drug cartels and rampant criminal gangs, indulging in kidnappings, assaults, shootings, and bombings.

iv—Pakistan terrorism—Pakistan has refined terrorism as a state policy. Pakistan has emerged as the centre and exporter of terrorism for commercial gains, not the least from the USA. It is pathetically admirable how the country has been playing with export of terror and “global war against terror” at the same time. It is a pity that, in the process, it is sacrificing national development and is, on the other hand, sliding into the category of a failed state.


5—HOW CAN TERRORISM BE CONTROLLED?

This is too difficult a question to answer. Theoretically, the logical answer is straightforward. In practice, theory does not work. I have no option but to stick to theory.

We have seen that terrorism today is closely related to politics and religion. Both of these are not amenable to counter-violence. The answer to terrorism cannot come from counter-terrorism. Seen in this conceptual mould, the much publicized USA’s “global war against terrorism” is bound to fail.

Out of the two breeding grounds of terrorism, namely, politics and religion, the former is more amenable to modification compared to the much more fundamental nature of religion. It is prudent to start with the first in the hope that at least part of the problem can be solved. As the atmosphere improves, the religious rigidity may also be softened. I will dwell only upon the political approach.

HOW TO TACKLE TERRORISM: THE POLITICAL APPROACH

The politics of terrorism is basically rooted in the conflict between the haves and the have not’s. The haves and have not’s differ not only as regards economic resources but also the inequities as regards education, security and social justice. The inequities may exist within a country (inequitable distribution of income and opportunities, often more severe in non-democratic regimes such as dictatorships, monarchies and military governments); or, they may exist internationally, such as the North-South divide or the East-West divide. Ways to address these inequities are easy to think but hard to implement because the will to implement them is lacking.

I am not an expert in the subject. Yet, common sense suggests the following measures:

a—The most powerful country in the world, the USA, has a strong aversion to a socio- economic model other than its own. It is wedded to capitalism-consumerism and has a strong dislike for socialism. As long as the USA refuses to consider the possibility that there might be flaws in its system and virtues in other systems, no real progress can be made on the political front. The staunch and unrelenting capitalist-consumerist mindset of the USA acts as a major mind block.

b—While the love of the USA for democracy is adorable, what is not adorable is its suppression of democracy / propping up of military-dictatorships in other countries by the USA. The policy of the USA seems to be—Democracy within the US shores; puppet governments, subservient to the US interests, outside the USA. Duplicity never pays.

c—International relations must be transparent and as per international law. Fraud has no place in relations between two countries. The USA committed fraud in raising the false bogey of the WMD so as to find an excuse for attacking and occupying Iraq for its oil. Fraudulent dealings undermine the moral strength of any country, including the USA.

d—International economic relations need to be broad based and not centred around the American dollar. The USA has been staunchly opposing any move to strengthen other currencies to a level that might challenge the dollar. The root of the Iraq invasion has even been traced to Saddam’s demand that it be paid for its oil in Euros not in dollars.

e—The root cause of the have-have not conflict is the poverty caused by inequitable distribution of resources. The governments of the world should seriously sit down to find solutions to poverty aimed at its elimination. Unless serious effort is made in this direction, I do not fore-see the resolution of the terrorism problem.

Besides the above, there is the obvious need to democratize the functioning of the UN Security Council by expanding it and re-drawing the rules of the veto game.


M C Gupta
15 August 2010