Who’s At Fault for Terrorism? We are!

Well, not every one of us is guilty of terrorism, of course since we don’t carry Kalashnikovs wherever we go. But, by only blaming the militants and religious extremists will not ever help us in combating ruthless atrocities. In fact, we are also at fault for the acts of these perpetrators of militancy.

Whenever the word “terrorists” are mentioned, we are quick to pinpoint at the Muslims. For us, they relish blood and they know no mercy. These are the people, whom we think, goes around assassinating anyone who goes against their will.

But, before moving on, what is actually terrorism? In laymen’s words, terrorism can be associated with any act that seeks to cause terror and fear amongst the population. The terrorists prioritize their agenda and for them, the lives of the people are worth nothing. So, are the Muslims alone, militants and terrorists? Of course not!

Remember Anders Behring Breivik? The man who massacred many innocent youths and civilians in the peaceful city of Oslo, Norway. He was a Christian, not a Muslim. How about Bodu Bala Sena? A Buddhist movement of Sri Lanka comprising of Buddhist monks and devotees that called for attacks on Muslim-owned businesses and pursued militancy activities. This group preaches about Buddhism, not Islam. Remember the “Saffron terror” in India? This series of violence was associated with the some Hindus, especially the nationalist-minded ones. They are not Muslims as well.

 It is wrong to equate a religion with acts of terrorism. Islam should never be linked to atrocities and so do other religions. As this article has clearly stated that terrorist alone are not to be blamed, let us now see how we or the governments contribute to terrorism.

IRAQ

Recently, the ruthless Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) group comprising of Sunni Muslims has launched military offensives against the majority Shiite population of Iraq in order to establish a Sunni Islamic caliphate, in hope for the continuation of Pan-Islamism which halted after the downfall of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of the Great War. ISIL has proclaimed the establishment of an Islamic caliphate with Caliph Ibrahim as its leader.

Sunni and Shia Islam are two major denominations of Islam. Although both belief in Allah and the revered Quran, they differ in many other aspects especially in accepting a Prophet. Sunnis believe that Muhammad is the last prophet whilst the Shiites believe in Ali bin Abd Talib being the last messenger. Members of both denominations have long engaged in offensives against each other especially in the Middle East region.

After the downfall of Dictator Saddam, the US government left a democratic governance system in place for the “new Iraq”. While this sounds noble, one should note that it was the US that destroyed the state under its more than USD 1 trillion War on Terror in Iraq alone.

The new government has been predominantly Shiite in composition and with the Sunnis being sidelined. The lack of an inclusive law has caused feelings of discriminations. Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has called for an end to “sectarian policies” and to include everyone regardless of faith and belief. If such idea is adhered to in Iraq, possibilities for the backlash of the Sunni Muslim community might drop significantly. Although the Shiites are the majority, it should never mean that the minorities should be left in the lurch. Apart from this, it is commonly believed that ISIL is funded by the Saudi’s monarchy to retain its control as the de facto regional leader of Middle East. Such support, if it is true, should be subject to condemnations and international sanctions.

 While funding a militant group for political expediency may be seen viable now, it will definitely backfire in future.

XINJIANG, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

Xinjiang has been in the limelight recently for bad reasons. Recently in May, an act of suicide bombing has killed 39 civilians in Urumqi, Xinjiang’s capital. Barely two months before the mishap, 29 people were killed and 140 injured when eight knife-wielding assailants attacked the main train station in the south western city of Kunming. The perpetrators were recognised as the members of the Uighur Muslims ethnic group.

Uighur Muslims, an indigenous population of Xinjiang that used to be predominant one time ago. Of course, they still form the largest single ethnic group there but have seen their population share threatened as the influx of Han Chinese has become more inevitable in the past few years. The discriminatory action of the Communist Chinese government that gives economic preference to the Han Chinese has further caused unease amongst the Uighur Muslims. Restrictions have been imposed upon the Muslims and this includes prohibitions on fulfilling religious obligations such as visiting the mosque for Friday prayers and recently, the ban on fasting during the month of Ramadan as per the Islamic calendar.

Xinjiang has seen many brutal uprisings for decades against the authorities and efforts to establish an independent East Turkestan has been on-going. But this did not stop the atheist communist party from pursuing its control over Xinjiang. This is because Xinjiang is a vast area, rich in hydrocarbon wealth and it is also the largest province of mainland China. People’s Republic of China which is engaging in expansion of its influence overseas will surely would not let Xinjiang to be separated and lose a huge area with full of economic promises.

Ruthless incidents in Xinjiang are reflections of the discriminatory actions and policies of the Communist government. Indeed, such problems would not have arisen if equal and inclusive policies were introduced in the first place. Diplomacy should be given priority in solving the dispute between the two conflicting sides.  Plans to exert more authoritarian control will only seek to worsen the conflict.

PAKISTAN

Tehreek e-Taliban (TTP) has been making headlines recently for engaging in military offensive against the Nawaz Sharif government especially when the coalition of militants attacked the Karachi airport. This is the same group that shot Malala Yusoufzai in the past, TTP is also infamously known for its efforts to halt the polio vaccination programmes conducted by international medical organisations. To one’s horror, since December 2012 until now, around 30 health officers and policemen involved in the vaccination programme have been assassinated.

Vaccinations should be allowed to prevent any health-debilitating disease. Why on earth does this TTP want to stop it?

Blame it on the international intelligence groups especially the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Such intelligence arms have engaged in covert espionage agendas through the vaccination programmes. In fact, the CIA used a Hepatitis B vaccination programme as disguise to collect the DNA of the population in the neighbourhood to locate Osama bin Laden. Recently, CIA has openly admitted the usage of vaccination programmes to infiltrate into local population and pursue spying activities.

It is by the CIA that has caused the locals, especially the militants to lose faith and trust in foreign peacekeeping and medical teams. Central Intelligence Agency and other intelligence group are to be blamed for the growing atrocities of the TTP.

SRI LANKA

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam gained prominence for its struggle to establish self-rule in north and east regions of Sri Lanka, which predominantly comprise of the Tamils. LTTE as it is commonly called, has engaged in asymmetric warfare against the Buddhist-majority government since 1973. It is only in 2009 when the Sri Lankan civil war ended after a major government offensive killing many members of LTTE, including its much revered leader Vellupillay Prabakaran.

Sri Lanka; a land blessed with myriad ethnicities and religions. It is also the place where Lord Rama fought the monstrous Ravanan in the Ramayana epic. Since its independence in 1948, the minorities such as the Tamils and the Muslims have been targeted under discriminating policies especially after Solomon Bandaranaike came to power. Under the name of affirmative action for the Sinhalese, the Sri Lankan government sought to alienate the minorities despite their struggle in helping the country to gain independence.

As the condition worsens, LTTE has tried establishing self-rule in the areas where the Tamils are majority. The government retaliated through military actions and in the process, massacred many innocent Tamils and raped many Tamil women, leaving them to die bare naked. Prior to the last few months before the end of the civil war, the government established “No Fire Zones” in certain regions, providing fresh promises to the civilians that they would be left unharmed there. However, the government broke their promise when the military force conducted airstrikes in these zones and killed many Tamils. The reactionary force even shelled hospitals in these areas, violating the prohibition under the Geneva Conventions.

LTTE is no better than the reactionary force as testimonies have shown that they have prevented the Tamils from leaving the no-fire zone although it is attacked. LTTE is also accused of using the civilians as human shields.

If the government of Sri Lanka has resorted to a more inclusive social policing and pursued diplomacy to negotiate with the LTTE, such terrorist risings may not have happened.

CHECHNYA, RUSSIAN FEDERATION

The Winter Olympics of 2014 in Sochi, Russia was marred by a series of attacks and violence. Most of the rebels are from Chechnya, a federal subject of Russia. The Chechen rebels are known for their time-to-time armed offensive against Kremlin. Vladimir Putin certainly made a wrong decision when he approved the location for the Winter Olympics at Sochi, a region close to Chechnya.

The Muslim Chechen rebels have been made to look like terrorists that threaten national security. Judging from their actions, they should be categorised as terrorists, no doubt. But, is the rebels are only to be blamed? I beg to differ.

Taking a retrospective view, the ancestors of the Chechen population used to subscribe to paganism. However, most of them chose to convert into Islam as to gain help from the Ottoman Empire from the encroachment of Russia. Later on, Chechnya was forcibly annexed by the Tsarist Kingdom of Russia and has since tried to gain independence until Vladimir Lenin promised religious freedom and independence under the October Revolution of 1917. This has induced the Muslim Chechens to fight together with the Bolsheviks (Red Army) and to dethrone Tsar Nicholas II. Lenin’s force succeeded and within few years, he died only to be succeeded by Joseph Stalin. It was during his reign that Chechen faced severe persecution and major deportation from their homeland due to claims of abetting the Germans.

Although the Chechens were allowed to return after the “fall of the Iron Curtain”, their attempt of forming an independent nation was foiled through the Second Chechnya War when Kremlin launched military offensive and annexed the region.

Persecutions that they have faced and an unachieved dream of independence caused by the Soviet Union previously and the current government of Russian Federation have certainly fuelled the urge of the Muslim Chechens to launch offensive against the government and its forces. Blaming only the Chechens will never help.

EGYPT

Sayyid Qutb, a famous Islamic scholar whose authorship has influenced many Islamic movements, scholars and terrorists. Many of us readily know about Muslim Brotherhood, al-Qaeda and its affiliates but I believe very few have even heard of Qutb’s name. Sayyid Qutb has authored many prominent books that will later on influence the fledgling Muslim Brotherhood. His offensive jihad-based opinions would later “help” to create future worldwide-known terrorists such as Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri and Ayman al-Awlaki. Osama was the founder of the infamous al-Qaeda that was linked to the 9/11 attack, Ayman Zawahiri is currently his successor and late Ayman Awlaki is the top head of al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen. Looking at this alone shows the negative influence sparked by a man called Sayyid Qutub.

Sayyid in his younger times was an ordinary young man and believed in secularism. It was the Egypt Revolution of 1952 under the lead of Gamal Abd Nasser that shaped his radical mindset. Gamal Abd Nasser was the first President of Republic of Egypt after dismantling the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan and under his leadership dissidents of his leadership were caught and tortured as well as humiliated in prison. Sayyid Qutb was one of those nabbed and tortured in the prison cell. It is believed that this is where his radical mindset evolved. After released from detention, Sayyid preached and wrote about offensive jihad based on Sharia law to be pursued. It was through his insistence for offensive jihad that future militants like Bin Laden was shaped.

This part of history shows us that when a regime like that of Abd Nasser’s tortures and humiliates its dissident, the affected one can turn into the state’s worst nemesis. Gamal Abd Nasser and his generals are the ones to be blamed for the change in Sayyid Qutb.

TIBET

The case of Tibet is quite different compared to other examples highlighted by this article. While the people’s struggle in other regions and nations are seen as acts of terrorism, in Tibet, the restricted population resorts to immolate one’s own self. However, People’s Republic of China argues that this is akin terrorism and epitomise the oppressed Tibetans to foreign militants.

Ever since the Communist Party of China started to assert its influence over Tibet after the end of the Chinese Civil War, especially in 1951 when it took over Tibet through military means under Chairman Mao Zedong, Tibet has seen a never-ending struggle. The 14^th Dalai Lama has exiled himself to India and countless lives were lost due to self-immolations of the Tibetan who wants to see Tibet as an independent and self-ruling nation.

The Tibetans face almost similar problems in comparison to the Muslim Uighurs; an influx of Han Chinese and discriminatory policies both socially and economically that threaten the livelihood of the indigenous Tibetan communities. Again, the repressive regime of mainland China fails to implement inclusive policies that seek to govern Tibet equally. Also, the intention of the Tibetans for self-governance has been ignored to be suppressed by brutal force. Such actions will only exacerbate the status quo.

CONCLUSION

Governments throughout the globe should change the way they look at these terrorist groups. Always pursue inclusive policies and engage in diplomacy. Even if one is nabbed under the law, he or she should be tried legally and should not be tortured or humiliated to prevent any aggravation of the militancy. Stop using any humanitarian effort as a mechanism to engage with espionage-related activities. Politicians should stop making a hero out of these terrorists group. For example, Malaysia’s Prime Minister recently urged the members of his party to follow the spirit of ISIL fighters. He said that their spirit is never-ending and is full or courage as even the Iraqi government’s 30,000 soldiers ran away when confronted by mere 800 ISIL fighters. Such faux pas should be avoided. Never epitomise good values through dictating acts of terrorism.

Most importantly, we as the people should send out a message that peace is what we seek for. Criticise openly any politicians or governments that condone terrorism. As I’ve said earlier, the blame is not only on the militants. Everything starts from us.