Speech on Terrorism

Respected Judges and my friends…

Thank you very much for giving me this opportunity to debate on terrorism.

Before going in-depth I would like to elaborate what is Terrorism?

Terrorism is not new, and even though it has been used since the beginning of recorded history it can be relatively hard to define. 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. Obviously, a lot depends on whose point of view is being represented. Terrorism has often been an effective tactic for the weaker side in a conflict. As an asymmetric form of conflict, it confers coercive power with many of the advantages of military force at a fraction of the cost. Due to the secretive nature and small size of terrorist organizations, they often offer opponents no clear organization to defend against or to deter.

That is why preemption is being considered to be so important. In some cases, terrorism has been a means to carry on a conflict without the adversary realizing the nature of the threat, mistaking terrorism for criminal activity. Because of these characteristics, terrorism has become increasingly common among those pursuing extreme goals throughout the world. But despite its popularity, terrorism can be a nebulous concept.

The United States Department of Defense defines terrorism as “the calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to inculcate fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological.” Within this definition, there are three key elements—violence, fear, and intimidation —and each element produces terror in its victims. The FBI uses this: "Terrorism is the unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives." The U.S. Department of State defines "terrorism" to be "premeditated politically-motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience.

Terrorism is a criminal act that influences an audience beyond the immediate victim. The strategy of terrorists is to commit acts of violence that .draws the attention of the local populace, the government, and the world to their cause. The terrorists plan their attack to obtain the greatest publicity, choosing targets that symbolize what they oppose. The effectiveness of the terrorist act lies not in the act itself, but in the public’s or government’s reaction to the act. For example, in 1972 at the Munich Olympics, the Black September Organization killed 11 Israelis, the 9/11 Twin Tower destruction killed 2000 innocent American, and the recent 26/11 Mumbai attack sponsored by Pakistan killed 193 innocent civilians and so on.

There are three perspectives of terrorism: the terrorist’s, the victim’s, and the general public’s. The phrase “one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter” is a view terrorists themselves would accept. Terrorists do not see themselves as evil. They believe they are legitimate combatants, fighting for what they believe in, by whatever means possible. A victim of a terrorist act sees the terrorist as a criminal with no regard for human life. The general public’s view is the most unstable. The terrorists take great pains to foster a “Robin Hood” image in hope of swaying the general public’s point of view toward their cause. This sympathetic view of terrorism has become an integral part of their psychological warfare and needs to be countered vigorously.

Having said that I would like to draw few lines on The Effects of Terrorism

Terrorism has occurred throughout history, but today the world is experiencing a global rebirth of attacks. Today it no longer affects only small societies, such as isolated third world countries who fell victim to regular terrorist attacks, but the whole world is becoming more familiar with Arab and Muslim names. The terrorist violence that is on the rise today has informed citizen all over the world about different types of terrorism. Also with the resurgence the world is experiencing of terrorism, the Nation's have been to do what they can to eliminate terrorism.

Terrorism can be defined as "the deliberate creation of fear to bring out political change." (dictionary.com) All terrorist acts involve violence or the threat of violence. These violent acts are usually committed by nongovernmental groups or individuals who are either part of or officially serving in the military, law enforcement agencies, intelligence agencies, or other governmental agencies of an established nation. Terrorists attempt not only to create panic but also to weaken confidence in the government and the political leadership of the target country. Terrorism therefore is designed to have psychological effects that reach farther beyond the impact on the immediate victims of an attack. Terrorists mean to frighten and therefore scare a wider crowd, such as a rival ethnic or religious group, an entire country and its political control, or the entire international community. Terrorist groups are generally small and have few members, limited firepower, and other resources. For this reason they rely on intense bloody and destructive acts of hit-and-run violence to attract attention to their group and their cause. Through the media they are able to create a larger voice for themselves and create hostilities among people.

"A terrorist is a criminal who seeks publicity. This sets him far apart from what British officials in Northern Ireland have taken to calling the ODC, or Ordinary Decent Criminal, who understandably shuns the limelight. They require publicity. It is their lifeblood. If the media were not there to report terrorist acts and to explain their political and social significance (the motives inspiring them and so fourth) terrorism as such would cease to exist"

What has caused terrorism can be a mystery for many reactionary groups, but for other groups the main causes can be historical, cultural, religious, economic, social, and psychological. Generally democratic countries have been proven to be grounds for terrorism because of the open nature of their societies. In such societies people have fundamental rights, civil liberties are protected, and government control and constant surveillance of the people and their activities are absent. Also by through the same reasons repressive societies, where the government closely monitors citizens and restricts their speech and movement, have often provided more difficult environments for terrorists. But even countries with strict police-enforced laws have not been immune to terrorism, even though they limit civil liberties and are against free speech and rights of assembly.

One the most commonly seen forms of terrorism have been Suicide terrorism, other wise known as psychological warfare. "While suicide bombers are often portrayed as lone mad zealots, they are in fact pawns in large terrorist networks that wage calculated psychological warfare. (National Center for Policy Analysis) The suicide bombers often do die while attempting their terrorist acts, hence the name, but the bombers do wish to live to see how the tragedy has affected their victims. The wide range use of suicide terrorism is because it is simple and lowcost, guarantees mass casualties, guarantees the act will succeed, suicide bombers have no fear to surrender information, and the intense impact on the media. "The relatively high number of casualties guaranteed in such attacks, which are usually carried out in crowded areas, ensures full media coverage. Thus, suicide terrorism ranks with other spectacular modus operandi such as blowing up airplanes in mid air or the use of Weapons of Mass Destruction as a sure means to win maximum effect." (National Center for Policy Analysis) Some of the most recent act of suicide terrorism in the U.S. was the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Suicide Bombers hijacked two planes full of fuel and used them as missiles into the Twin Towers, Killing everyone aboard the two planes and collapsing the towers. This suicide attack is the worst act of terrorism ever committed on US soil. This type of terrorism has been around for many years and dates back to the 18th century.

The effects that chemical and biological weapons have had on US troops started after the Persian Gulf. When the end of the war came and tens of thousands of troops returned home they came down with an illness. The symptoms included chronic fatigue, severe joint pain and headaches, intestinal track problems, internal bleeding, and memory loss. These symptoms have been classified as "Gulf War Syndrome." The veterans were told they were suffering from psychological problems as a result of war, and were sent to consult with psychologists. The country that has been involved in most conflicts that pertain to biological and chemical weapons has been Iraq. This terrorist filled country has done everything from forging documents and making fraudulent statements to completely dismantling equipment and destroying documents to cover up their production of Biological weapons. "Just days before the end of 1998, Iraqi surface-to-air missiles *were fired at British and American fighter jets. US jets fired back with laser-guided bombs that knocked out antiaircraft artillery. "(Gay 27) Iraq has shown extreme hostile behavior against other countries leading the US and other nations to believe that Iraq does in fact have been creating and building up their biological and chemical weapons. Military intelligence agencies have no doubt that in the future there will be more confrontations with Iraq as they continue to try and build their weapons arsenal.

"Information warfare is "an electronic conflict in which information is a strategic asset worthy of conquest or destruction. Computers and other communications and information systems become attractive first-strike targets. "(French) Information warfare is becoming a popular form of terrorism these days. With the growth in computer software and other technologies, information warfare is becoming easier. The threat of info war means that computer systems would have to be protected from an "Electric Pearl Harbor" "The surprise attack would not hit just one location, as was the case with the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor in Hawaii during World War II, but instead could disrupt the entire nation." (Gay 78-79) The threat of information warfare is a major disruption that should definitely be paid attention to due to its great affect it could have on a nation's communication and computer systems. With the new technologies today, information warfare groups are much easier to form. The organizational stronghold that the perpetrators have increases the flexibility and reduces the reaction time to fight against an attack. "Information warfare is essentially superior conventional strength. Not only are US weapons better than any other military's but advances in computer and communications have led to a method of integrating conventional forces so well that a new type of fighting emerges. "(French) Since this type of terrorism has grown to such a vast strength, it can become one of the most commonly choice for warfare. The terrorist can hack into a computer system that is so far away that the hacker will be in no danger, making this one of the more popular terrorism tactic.

Terrorism is a major problem that is reoccurring over the globe in many different forms. The US alone spends about $5 billion dollars a year combating terrorists. The treats of bio-chemical, Suicide or psychological warfare, and information warfare are on the rise in today's societies as more political argument and groups emerge. Along with the rise of terrorism is also the increase in Counter-Terrorism acts. Indian too is taking major steps in this regard after 26/11 Mumbai attack. Even though most counter terrorist groups are kept secret, the increase of terrorism has also counter balanced. Throughout the years many radical and reactionary groups have been the cause for terrorist attacks throughout the world, but the ones that will always remain the most important to you are the ones that happen in your home nation.

We together can defeat terrorism if we unit ourselves always.

Thank you.