Terrorism



Terrorism

This paper compares the 2 articles based on terrorism. The names of the articles are “Fighting Terrorism through the Rule of Law” and “Terrorism in the Worlds of Welfare Capitalism” respectively.

Both articles highlights the an application of the law of war to terrorism does not imply lawfulness of the conflict, nor does it imply that perpetrators are not criminals. Terrorists are not members of armed forces for the purpose of the law of war9 and do not, by definition, conduct themselves as lawful combatants. Under this view, those who participate directly in unlawful acts of war, including those with command influence may be treated as war criminals and if captured, are not entitled to prisoner-of-war (POW) status under the Geneva Conventions. (Hoffman 2006)

Both authors have expressed concern that invoking the law of war against terrorists in this instance could lead to the use of a similar approach to combat other societal ills upon which rhetorical “wars” might be declared.15 This tactic, they argue, could allow the government to establish military tribunals to try drug dealers, for example, without ordinary due process of law. Other opponents of using military commissions argue that secret trials could deny due process and that the resulting verdicts would lack legitimacy in the eyes of the international community. The authors address one of the fundamental assumptions underlying the conduct of the War on Terrorism - the nature of our enemy, whether perpetrators of terrorist activities are criminals or soldiers (combatants). Although the United States recognizes that terrorist acts are certainly illegal, it has chosen to treat perpetrators as combatants; but much of the world, including many of our traditional allies, have opted for a purely legalistic approach. Disagreement about assumptions is not the only basis for divergent policies for confronting terrorism, but certainly explains much of our inability to agree on strategies to overcome what we recognize as a serious common and persistent international problem. Their insights into how our respective cultures and histories influence our definitions, assumptions, and subsequent policy decisions can assist us to respect and learn from competing strategies. They correctly surmise that our current international struggle is too important for us to ignore assumptions underlying our own and competing ideas.

Terrorism remains the calculated use of unlawful violence to cause fear. It is increasingly becoming the predominant strategic tool of our adversaries. The word 'terrorism' has become increasingly used and has been loosely translated to mean 'Islamic fundamentalism.' However, a little indulgence into History will tell us otherwise. (Henderson 2004)

Was the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, an act of 'terrorism?' The word “terrorism,” is not Islamic. It was coined by the French during the 1770s Revolution, when there was a systematic State terror against the population of France. There are big Western terrorists groups that have carried out heinous crimes outside those from the Arab Nations, for instance the Baader- Mienhof Gang of former West- Germany, the Weather Underground in the United States.

The article reflects that A small sample of the overall movements is ...