Deciphering Terrorism… A Study in Globalized Violence- Terms and Symbols

Deciphering Terrorism… A Study in Globalized Violence- Terms and Symbols

Terrorism can be defined as;
“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.”
See http://dict.yqie.com/english/t/terrorism.htm
But this definition is limited and takes into its political context as prime motivator and reason. This is true in the prevalent circumstances of War against Terrorism, but overall its limitations are limitations of our visions and approach to deal with complexities of global world.
Suicide bombings , hijackings, bombing innocent citizens, kidnapping and hostage taking are a few examples of violence in modern decades after Great War of 1940’s.
When in Western schools and other places teens spray bullets on school students or kill innocent peers with sheer brutality or suicide bombers ripping apart hotels and shopping plazas; the reasons may be different but result is same indiscriminate deaths of innocent civilians and non combatants. This shows the diversity and similarity of killings in modern times of human beings. Majority of violence is conceived by seniors and perpetuated and inflicted upon innocent masses through young and immature people. Youth is always choice for frantic ideas. It is also another world view which has never been accepted by elite whether in power or from civil society. Terrorists haven’t taken up arms in a day. It has long past history behind it. Mere economy and brainwashing are not its bases. It has deep roots within in structure and make up of society and not all Madrassahs are indulging in violence. We need to see the people and human beings from a perspective which is free from any biases. The use of stereotypes is good for popular media but not a truth.
If we keep the same thought process going , then how can we think that those guys in their 20’s from slums of NY , who fight in Afghanistan are not brainwashed? It is not war Mullah vs. State; West vs. Islam , East vs. West or Us against Them; it is basic exploitation of human beings on the name of religion, democracy, peace, war against terrorism by vested interest. Killing innocent human beings is bad whether by suicide bombings or drone attacks. Maulvi is a facade, facts and reality is different, we have never tried to look into truth. I worked as a Magistrate, I also thought economy is the prime reason but when I asked one activist of these outfits he replied no I left my job of per month 10000 Rs. in Sui Gas and joined Kashmir Jihad and they paid me 10000 Rs. after three months. Yes it has one factor of economy, but also a factor , perhaps more stronger than economy of betterment in life after death.

The mind of those persons who come for suicide bombings is inspired by ideas and , it is a fact , they are desperate . for justice, and these semi-literate Mullahs allure them that Islamic system will establish justice. And due to lack of knowledge they think that these power hunger Mullahs will establish peace, they have a choice and they do it in majority cases by their own consent. It is a fact that these brainwashed youth are ready to sacrifice even their lives for a cause. How many are so committed? Their commitment is wrong and is result of ignorance and injustice of society, but it is the only option available to them so they get it and perform it. In this process the state of our sleuths is most horrible and permanent and we are not still able to bring those hidden powers under ambit of law to work as people want not as some dark , narrow minded sleuths think. The real struggle is spanned over generations, mere searching causes in poverty, and free education is not its crux.

Poverty makes them vulnerable; it is one factor and is OBL poor? Was Baitullah Mehsud poor? Are the foreign guys living in FATA poor... they take multivitamins imported from USA in their breakfast... and have three to four wives local and may be foreigners also.
Remember Yvonne Ridley? The UK journalist, who embraced Islam, was captured by Taliban and is placed 25th on the list of influential women in UK now. In Pakistan we repeat the mantra that terrorism is result of Afghan War( See articles of ex .Emir Jamat -e -Islami Qazi Hussein Ahmed in Jang on 4th September 2009) and in recent time poverty factor has been brought in. But West understands this far better than its opponents, that it is an ideological war and they need to win this at every cost, as it is developing into alternative mode of thinking (despite all its limitations and drawbacks) .Pause for a moment and take violence out of this debate and think if they resort human beings or their fellow religious brethren to resist peaceful onslaught of West and modernity ... I am sure many more followers will be there.

Although not all the people will follow terrorism and violent means to justify their goals . But they have allure and urge for left out and desperate people and they market it in religious and political terms and every suicide bomber and drone attack is an advertisement for them and nothing sells more than sense of injustice and victimhood and it is a popular reason for violence in South Asia.
As to point of view that we cannot talk to them and cannot relate to them...........it is half truth, we have never tried to reach them , to know their working of mind and how they are able to inflict so much pain on humanity and especially Pakistan. I come again to poverty point, from whom they get their finances? It is major chunk is drugs now... but how did they begin? Foreign funds... right, for certain time but who were the real financiers. The common people not poor but rich people among commoners, I know the anxiety of many well to do fathers who supported Jihad in Kashmir and Afghanistan and regularly paid donations but were worried when their own sons went for Jihad in Afghanistan and Kashmir.

In Gujranwala and Sialkot region Lashker had big rallies, processions and other than continuous cash donations they collected literally hundreds of kilograms of gold in donations by extolling virtues of Jihad and this money had no record and it multiplied every year and how can poor finance them? Poor rarely gave them money, they gave their sons as fodder and rich poured in money.

This money was to save Kashmir, Liberate Kashmir and serve in Afghan Jihad. At psychological level it was aimed at to pure oneself form bad deeds and get salvation in life after death and also to purge one’s money after indulging in unethical business activities. In essence it was religious duty at practical expression and functioning without state patronage and voluntary action. Although tactical support of organized state an non state actors was always there. This is a mass phenomenon and broad based not restricted to a select strata of society and we failed to see it coming as we usually fail to see things and simplify and then enjoy our own lives. This has been going since decades and 9/11, Afghanistan, Kashmir and Palestine has brought it in forefront, it is old simmering struggle and alas this has been taken over by ignorant, and obscurantist Mullahs and power drunk liberal state actors cajoled by civil society organizations guzzling funds from EU and North America on the name of so called human rights. . The reasons are deeper and we need to look for truth. We have to own truth and then face it. Truth is not so simple. Search for truth is always fraught with multi dimensional facets and uneasy and deeply embedded biases and superficial realities.

In last decade the violence on the name of religion, democracy and war against terrorism is couched in terms of political struggle especially after 9/11 phenomenon. This has narrowed the scope and tainted the popular debate with Bush’s mentality …”you are with us or against us”. Dispassionate understanding of this question is impossible simply in the Western World due to its personal vested interest and peculiar understanding of their historical experience.
The debate and ideas on violence in South Asia especially War against Terrorism are emotional, superficial, biased, narrow and limited by its definition and scope of action to two directional tirade of words and couched in intentional war afflicted rhetorical ideas. This has narrowed the search for underlying reasons of violence in the region and this is same throughout the violence ridden areas in whole of world.

In preset raging violence the terms and symbols employed are overtly and covertly political and motivated and laced with religious connotations. This can be seen like over use of words of Jihad to describe splinter and scattered violence in Muslim occupied or free areas by western Press and this was not repeated as Crusades although it was uttered by George W Bush in his speech after 9/11 attacks many times. But this was deliberately avoided again on the pretext of a liberal world war and not a religious war. Despite this damage was already done and Muslim masses had a common belief and they have even now that it was another conspiracy to weaken Muslims and devour the resources of Muslim world.( Muslim landscape is fertile in matter of conspiracies , for any event under the sun there will be rivaling conspiracies!)

The use of overly political and religious terminology and symbols by states and non state actors has made the violence a religious and political issue. The unnecessary, horrendous and unending conflict on name of War against Terrorism has turned it into Clash of civilizations without any real issue at stake except the war of accretion flowing from Cold War mentality.

The use of symbols and terms lacerated with religious, political and cultural jingoism; on both sides of conflict has placed enormous stress and pressure on masses to support most unjust, horrible and open ended conflict in recent modern history. Until and unless we look into true causes, reasons and results of this conflict through use of dispassionate analysis, we cannot gauge the true range and depth of violence in our society and world today. This needs not revision or developing new terms and symbols, it can be done simply to first understand true meaning of the symbols and terms used liberally in this war of no ending. This will help us to have a perspective and gradually it will lead to throwing away of collective fallacies made due to group thinking and learn more about avoiding human conflict. Human life is precious and how far we will keep on shedding blood on name of religion and politics?