roots of terrorism

EKKENTROS FORUM


The Matter: Report of the proceedings of the discussion held on 20-1-09 (Tuesday)

Venue: Hotel Malabar Fort (Gokulam Fort) hosted by Dr. K.P.Thomas.

Coram: All nine members attended and participated in the discussions. Dr.R.Ramesh, attended as invitee and guest participant.

Subject: The Roots of Terrorism
Dr. K.P.Thomas: The height of perceived nationalism is down. It is now much less than before. The threat of a third world war is minimal as opposed to the threat in the fifties and sixties. The strength of the superpowers are also now in doldrums, the communist block led by Russia failing in late ’89, and the leader of capitalist, America, failing in 2009 economically. The days of an imminent confrontation is over, a nuclear holocaust in the 80s was predicted, but has not happened. By the advent of the twenty-first century, Sept 11 occurred as a novel way of terrorizing USA by Taliban/Al-Queida outfit lead by Osama bin Laden, a rich construction engineer with imagined revenge against America. The core of hatred is directed against the Jews of America who control the world economy. The brainwashing technique is attained by promise of immediate ascent to heaven for those who are willing to indulge in suicidal attacks in the name of Jihad. The act of destruction and killing is justified by Jihad, a term originating from the teachings of Prophet Mohammed. Lashkar-e-Tioba, another terror outfit is having an intelligent pediatrician as its leader. To a certain extent a large chunk of Islamic population supports action against USA by boycotting their products through sms and internet.
Weaker nations like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, and Lebanon are being used by the terrorists as hiding places. Israel, the half-brother of Muslims, is master of terrorism claiming also that they are the selected people of God. Now, off and on, the war has been developing vigorously in the Palestinian region. The Terror in India is Pakistan sponsored, and the irritant causes are Kashmir, river water sharing, and Religion.
Christian evangelism does not have any physical aggression component or any use of weapon other than a little conversion mania which is now being made illegal. They suffer aggression from outfits like Bajrang Dal, ABVP, and RSS. They advocate clean living, education and the betterment of the ignorant people.
Religious fundamentalism is on the increase more than feelings of nationhood, and the way of life is different from religion to religion. Even in the same religion there are sub-groups who disagree with each other. The borders of nations have thinned out, and in the global village people are divided into Jews, Muslims, Christians, RSS, Backward class, Scheduled castes, etc. etc. Many of these groups have so-called charitable outfits into which large amounts of money flow in and these funds are managed by criminally minded people. Dominance of these criminals is on the increase, and the moment they are identified and tackled, terrorism can be contained. The outfits of the mischievous elements have always been coated with so much culture, way of life, lofty interests, religion, and political clout, that it has been virtually impossible to identify their real purpose. That is why there was a Jenkiskhan, Timoor, Lodi, Khilgee, and then westerners marching on to India, Ceylon, Burma, Malayesia and Indonesia. The superior cultures always asserted themselves in the olden times. But now, in the globalized situation, conditions have changed.
Terrorism in the world as recorded were in France, Italy, and South Africa at different times with different groups, like Communists, Nazis, Zionists, Ku Klux Klan, Irish rebels, and the like. In India, Nagas, Mizos, and Nexals are the examples.
As of today many terrorist outfits are whipping up imaginary fears among themselves that make them indulge in or abet terrorists. A weak government like Pakistan has no control over many of the outfits who get finance by drug trafficking, smuggling, and mafia activities. Davood Ibrahim is an example where no government can touch a criminal. Benazir Bhutto was eliminated and then Marriot Hotel in Pakistan attacked and destroyed. These points to a weak president and a weak Prime Minister ruling a country with the military calling the shots.
The majority community in India is also acting with immaturity in certain parts of India. In the present times the political parties are losing their grip over the masses. The money and facilities pumped into gullible youth results more in terrorism than in any political process.
The consequences of terrorist actions are explained to the outfits by interpreting religious texts as glorifying God, or by manipulating ideology as leading to the freedom of a community or region. Some promise, through religious edicts, entry straight into heaven to suicide squads.
In the present world order when there is no great identifiable evil threat to the human being affecting in a common way – except perhaps the environmental hazards – even small subtle ethnic differences lead to clashes of interests.
In the absence of the thrill of a pastoral life, unemployment and deprivation leads the youth towards the excitement of terrorism as a hobby, livelihood, and way of life. This is with regard to the youth in a society of pastoral parents. The struggle for Khalistan is an example. It got burnt out by itself during a period of two decades between 1980 and 2000. Khalistan or a Punjab separate from India, died along with their proponents, their gullible youth, and the then PM Indira Gandhi. An altogether different terrorist action, the LTTE’s terrorism snuffed out the life of Rajiv Gandhi in 1991.
After 1978, with the end of Viet Nam war, terrorism has become something of a fashion. It is cheaper for prosecuting a struggle and it is perpetrated by hatred and perceived injustice, utilizing youth power.
In modern times politics and religion are like business. Politicians and priests acquire wealth and that wealth is spent to increase clout. Some exceptions may be found in individuals like Antony, Oommen Chandy and Achuthanandan. But a party like the communist Party is acquiring wealth aligning itself with running business and receiving commission money. The spending money thus acquired by one group is used to increase clout against the leader of the opposite group. Example is the clout developed against Achuthanandan. Some private companies are hand in glove criminally with politicians. With a small change of policy ministers and leaders can make money. Many have accounts in Swiss banks according to Subrahmania Swamy. Widening economic disparity is a cause for youth to pursue easy money by indulging in violence and terror-like activities. One can use religion, caste etc. to whip up violence. But finally drug trafficking and smuggling come in to make quick money. Illegal wealth can in turn generate terrorism in the younger generation under the garb of charitable activities like orphanage schools and hospitals.
Glorification of wealth and glittering life style should not be encouraged. The neat, puritan, pastoral just living, has to become the order of the day and could be encouraged and rewarded if the society is to be rid of violence and terrorism.
Regarding the Thalassery killings, after the Hindu-Muslim showdown in 1973-74, the fights did not recur because people realized that much will be lost on either side if the killings are to happen again. M.V.R had instigated violence in the eighties to show his party’s superiority. After his exit in 1992-3, it was the turn of the RSS and Marxists to sponsor the violence leading to murders. Actually it is the absence of any apparent welfare work by the NSS and SNDP in these areas, combined with a traditional glorification of martyrdom, that resulted in the present day violence and murders between Marxists and RSS in North Kerala.
While people born as Marxist in Marxist families naturally advocate violence as a means to achieve their ends, the RSS who were hitherto separated from the tradition of violence, now indulge in and keep up the culture of violence and murder in order to retaliate in the same coin. The religious stigma against killing of a fellow being as an ultimate sin is no more rooted in the youth in and around Thalassery. To a certain extent, intellectual discussions and verbal showdowns are absent here. And that is terrifying.

Dr.R.Ramesh: It is the big-brother attitude of one Party that does not allow any other Party to function which creates frustration in others to retaliate. No freedom is allowed for others to work in their strong holds. This is especially so in and around Tellicherry. They have also the full support of the police.

Dr.Md. Abdulla: There is no internationally accepted definition of terrorism. But generally it is ‘the unlawful use or threatened use of force or violence by a person or an organized group against people or property with the intention of intimidating or coercing societies or governments often for ideological or political reasons.’
There is also the statement, ‘one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter.’ Thus, in the struggle against terrorism the problem of definition is a crucial element in the attempt to co-ordinate international collaboration, based on the currently accepted rules of traditional warfare.
Terrorism is variously classified:
International Terrorism
National ,,
Racial ,,
Economic ,,
Environmental Terrorism
Social ,,
Political ,,
Psychological Terrorism
Cyber ,,
Religious Terrorism – Islamic Terrorism.
One of the distinctive characteristics of the times we live in is the overwhelming presence of violence in our societies. Whether it is the bomb going on in the market place, or the hijacking of the aircraft where innocent people are held ransom to achieve political ends, we live in an age where the manipulation and loss of innocent lives has become common place. Such is the all-pervasive nature of indiscriminate violence, that terrorism is considered as one of the prime threats to peace and security in our societies.
The word terrorism came into wide usage only a few decades ago. One of the unfortunate results of this new terminology is that it limits the definition of terrorism to that perpetrated by small groups or individuals. Terrorism in fact spans the entire world, and manifests itself in various forms. The perpetrators do not fit any stereotype. Those who hold human life cheap, and have the power to expend human lives, appear at different levels in our societies. The frustrated employee who kills his colleagues in cold blood or the oppressed citizens of an occupied land who vents his anger by blowing up a school bus is a terrorist who provoke our anger and revulsion. Ironically, however, the politician who uses age-old ethnic animosities between peoples to consolidate his position, the head of state who orders ‘carpet bombing’ of cities, the exalted councils that choke millions of civilians to death by wielding the insidious weapon of sanctions, are rarely punished for their crimes against humanity.
It is the narrow definition of terrorism that implicates only individuals and groups, that has caused Muslims to be associated with acts of destruction and terror, and as a result to become victims of hate and violence and terror themselves. Sometimes the religion of Islam is held responsible for the acts of a handful of Muslims, and often for acts of non-muslims.
Could it be possible that Islam, whose light ended the dark ages of Europe, now propound the advent of an age of terror? Could a faith that has over 1.2 billion followers the world over and over seven million in America, actually advocate the killing and maiming of innocent people? Could Islam whose name itself stands for ‘peace’ and ‘submission to God’, encourage its adherents to work for death and destruction?
For long we relied on popular images in the media and press for answers to these pertinent questions. It is now time to look at the sources of Islam, and its history to determine whether Islam does indeed advocate violence.
Now, let us see what Islam say on terrorism. Islam considers all life forms as sacred. However, the sanctity of human life is accorded special place. The first and foremost, basic right of human being, is the right to live. To quote, “….if any one slew a person – unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land – it would be as if he slew the whole people; and if anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people.”
Such is the value of a single human life, that the Quran equates the taking of even one human life unjustly, with the killing of all humanity. Thus, the Quran prohibits homicide in clear terms. The taking of a criminal’s life by the state in order to administer justice is required to uphold the rule of Law, and the peace and security of the society. Only a proper and competent court can decide whether an individual has fortified his right to life by disregarding the right to life and peace of other human beings.
Even in a state of war, Islam has drawn a clear line of distinction between the combatants and the non-combatants of the enemy country. The instructions of the prophet are as follows: Do not kill any old persons, any child or women. Do not kill the monks in monasteries and do not kill people who are sitting in places of worship. Thus non-combatants are guaranteed security of life even if their state is at war with an Islamic state.
JIHAD is a word that is totally misunderstood and abused. While Islam in general is misunderstood in the western world, perhaps no other Islamic term evokes such strong reactions as the word ‘jihad’. The term jihad has been much abused, to conjure up bizarre images of violent Muslims, forcing people to submit at the point of the sword. This myth was perpetrated throughout the centuries of mistrust during and after the crusades. Unfortunately it survives even to this day.
The word ‘Jihad’ comes from the root word Jahada, which means to struggle. So jihad is literally an act of struggling. The prophet said that the greatest jihad is to struggle with insidious suggestions of one’s own soul.
Thus jihad primarily refers to the inner struggle of being a person of virtue and submission to God in all aspects of life.
Secondarily, Jihad refers to struggle against injustice. Islam like many other religion, allows for armed self defense, or retribution against tyranny, exploitation, and oppression. Thus Islam enjoins upon its believers to strive utmost, in purifying themselves, as well as establishing peace and justice in society.
As Martin Luther King said, “We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people.”
This is not surprising to a Muslim, for his faith prohibits him from forcing others to see his point of view. Quran says, “ Let there be no compulsion in religion; Truth stands out clear from error; Whoever rejects evil and believes in God hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold that never breaks; And God heareth and knoweth all things.”
Far from being a militant dogma, Islam is a way of life that transcends race and ethnicity. The glorious Quran repeatedly reminds us of our common origin.
As with the term Islamic Terrorism and the Christian Fundamentalism, the latest addition to the media lexicon is highly emotive. It was in the aftermath of the 29th Sept. 2008 bomb blast in the predominantly Muslim town of Malegaon in Maharashtra that the newly coined term ‘Hindu Terrorism’ or ‘Safron terrorism’ came to be used widely.

Dr. Babu Ravindran: The holy religious texts never promote or advocate violence and terrorism. But the terms in the texts are misunderstood or deliberately mis-interpreted for their use by the terrorists.

Prof. Sakarankutty: Quran is subjected to exhaustive and serious scrutiny by scholars of the world, and therefore there is not much room for misinterpretation.

Sri.Kunhikrishnan: Those who utilize terrorists for their agenda use deliberately, the wrong distorted interpretations.

Dr. Babu Ravindran: Injustice, deprivation, denial of legitimate rights, excess use of force, social and economic inequalities, are thought to be the usual causes of terrorism or violence.
May be, after exhausting all means of getting redress, a frustrated individual feels that the only way for getting public attention is by measures of intimidation. Opting violence also appears to be the short cut towards attainment of goals. But the very interesting aspect of it is why some resort to terror and others do not. Mahatma Gandhi for achieving independence for India, Eastern Europeans for bringing down the Berlin Wall, Martin Luther King for equal rights, have not opted violence or terrorism. If deprivation of rights is indeed the root cause of terror then why do we see these people not resorting to violence?
Those practicing terrorism do not think of harmony in life. For them, the cause they espouse is so all-encompassing, so total, that it justifies anything. There is no name for the doctrine that produces the evil – i.e., totalitarianism – simple brainwashing of its subjects to indoctrinate hordes of killers to suspend all normal constraints for the sake of a twisted cause. In history we can see from its beginning totalitarianism has always been wedded to terrorism. From Lenin to Stalin, to Hitler, Ayothullha, Saddam Hussain, and right down to Osama Bin Laden, one can see a total blind commitment to a totalitarian belief.
Measures they choose tell us what their goals are. Bin Laden is not seeking to defend the rights of Muslims, but to murder as many Americans as possible and destroy America. Like that Saddam Hussain was not seeking to defend his people but to subjugate his neighbor.
Those who fight as terrorists rule as terrorists. They cannot protect freedom and human rights.
If poverty is the cause of terrorism the most poverty stricken areas of the world like the indigenous parts of South America, sub-Saharan Africa, East Asian islands, should have been the breeding grounds for terrorism. But they have not produced any terrorists. On the other hand all terror leaders and most of the terror perpetrators are seen to be extremely rich. Poverty may assist in the recruitment of vulnerable individuals to train as terrorists, but it does not seem to be the root cause.
If helplessness, desperation, lack of opportunity and use of force are the causes hundreds of thousands of Burmese in the refugee camps of Thailand who have been poverty stricken, are helpless, and are hopelessly desperate for the past more than twenty years should have turned terrorists. No terrorist has arisen from them.
If religion alone is the cause, why do we see Muslims killing Muslims? Saddam Hussain must have killed far more Muslims than any other leader in the world at any time did even in war.
So, it is the tyrannical mindset of some which initiate terrorism. Prof. Mahmood Mamdani, the author of ‘Good Muslim, Bad Muslim, Islam USA, and the Global War Against Terrorism’ says that the rhetoric of terror is the rhetoric of demonisation, the only way out of which is to destroy the perpetrator.
Praveen Swami, in an article in the Hindu has written as follows: ‘GHASWA’, the weekly newspaper of Jamat-Ud – Dawa hailed the Mumbai Massacre as ‘a historic victory for Muslim warriors who have avenged the atrocities committed by India against its Muslim minority’. Hafiz Mohammed Saeed, the chief of Jamaat – ud – Dawa, said in Feb 5 2001 in his speech delivered during the formation of Indian Mujahiddeen, “Remember friends, that the jihad has been ordained by Allah, it is not an order of a general that can be started one day and stopped the other day. Our Jihad in Kashmir will end when all the Hindus will be destroyed in India”.
What rhetoric! And what to do with the perpetrators?

Sri.Kunhikrishnan: Those who indulge in such rhetoric have to be tackled of course, and the propagator of hatred destroyed. But I think that the root cause of all this is the source that uses such people for their purpose and those who finance them. The roots can be there.