Counter Terrorism With Non-Violence

“Terrorism” comes from the French word ‘terrorisme’. The French word terrorisme in turn derives from the Latin verb ‘terreō’ meaning “I frighten”. A common definition of terrorism is the systematic use or threatened use of violence to intimidate a population or government and thereby effect political, religious, or ideological change. Terrorism has been described variously as both a tactic and strategy; a crime and a holy duty; a justified reaction to oppression and an inexcusable abomination. Every year thousands of people die in the name of religious battle or for the war of land. Hardly any country in the world is left untouched by curse of terrorism. It is threat for every peace loving human being in the world. Everyone in the world wants to live with harmony.

Some Stats

Since the 1970 to the present day, domestic as well as transnational and international terrorist incidents that have occurred during this time period and now includes more than 104,000 cases. After the 9/11 attacks, terrorists have carried out over 20000 deadly terror attacks, killing millions of people. There attacks include more than 47,000 bombings, 14,000 assassinations, and 5,300 kidnappings. There are around 256 International terrorists group, which are carrying out attacks in the world for their demands.
Mostly 60% of the groups are Muslim extremist groups fighting over the demand of either Sharia Rules or Revenge against America for invading Afghanistan, Iraq and other bay countries.

How to Control Terrorism?

So now the question arises, how to tackle terrorism?
Over the period many countries including USA, UK and Israel have launched armed mission on terrorism.
In 1998, when Islamic terrorists exploded bombs in US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. President of United States, Bill Clinton was outraged. He soon declared a war on terrorism, and sent American planes to bomb terrorist camps in Afghanistan and a factory in Sudan.
What did happen? Was that enough to stop the terrorists? No, it didn’t. It didn’t even slow them. Moreover in the next 2 years they planned a terror strike in USA and successfully executed it. The terrorists hijacked planes and crashed them into the World Trade Center and Pentagon. This attack came in the response to the bombing of terrorist camps in Afghanistan in 1998. Today we know that attack as 9/11 attack.
When last year bin Laden was shot and killed inside a private residential compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, by members of the United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group and Central Intelligence Agency operatives in a covert operation ordered by United States President Barack Obama, people thought that this is it, no more Al Qaida now.
This was not an end of the war against terrorism; it was just now someone else was in command of the operations.

So what is needed to take down terrorism?

The answers lie within the very basic roots of terrorism. Most of the terrorists are either unemployed or uneducated. The terrorist organizations either greed them with money or they brainwash them completely. Killing the terrorist won’t end terrorism; it will only help ignite it even more.

“You can kill a person, but it will take ages to kill an Ideology.”

Armies of the world can keep striking the valleys of Afghanistan and Pakistan in search of the terrorists. I am not saying that we should give up on the mission on terrorism, but what I am advocating is that we should see the other face of the coin also. We cannot deny the fact that this monster is created by us only.
Major reasons for people becoming terrorists are the lack of education, unemployment, social injustice and social inequality. Those innocent minds that are facing such problems are brainwashed and forced to indulge in these kinds of threatening activities. People who are denied from their fundamental rights and are discriminated because of their caste, religion or sex, develop a grudge against the society and therefore they commit such crimes in order to take revenge. The purpose of these people itself becomes to take revenge for all that he has suffered. For that he is ready to go the any limit. This is the reason that they don’t even care for their lives and become suicide bombers.
Steps should be taken to provide adequate education and gainful employment to all without discriminating against them in any field.

Over trillions of dollars are spent against the fight of terrorism. The large amount of money the government is spending to provide security to the terrorists can be used to provide basic security to common people like by recruiting more and more forces on the roads, public places, stations and even homes.

The other important factor is ‘Education’. If proper education is given to the backward people than no one can make fool them & they will be able to take their decision regarding their life advantage. A very interesting case happened in Jammu & Kashmir, in India, where a NGO decided to provide education to children in a terror hit district. Surprisingly many terrorists surrendered after they saw that their children were getting good education and their families were now getting support from the Government.

The second factor is ‘Employment’. I think unemployment causes many of our youths to turn to terrorism. As a matter of fact, even most of the people in India choose Maoist ways to get what has been taken away from them.

Also In spite of questioning our national security and blaming the government for its existence each individual can guard his country against terrorism by just being vigilant and informative about any conspicuous malicious activity.

I am not saying that these things will root out terrorism next day, but it will certainly help to reduce the two common factors which lead a person to choose the path of terror.

Terrorism is like a tree. You keep cutting its branches, but it will continue to grow, but if you want to eradicate it completely, you have to see the roots of the tree.

By enlightening people with good beliefs, thoughts and education we can change their mind set. Power of word is much greater than using weapons.

Dustin V.