Targeting
Symptom: Ignoring Disease
By Ram Puniyani
24 July, 2007
Countercurrents.org
The
terror attack in Glasgow (July 06, 07) has once again, brought to the
fore the debate about the nature, the problem of terrorism and how to
deal with it. There are multiple responses starting from the Indian
Prime minister, Dr.Manmohan Singh saying that we should not label terrorists.
Further adding that as a Sikh, he knows the pain of being labeled. The
section of liberal, progressive thinkers felt they can no longer counter
the immense pressure of associating terrorism with religion, a particular
religion, i.e. Islam. Right wingers reasserted that it is OK that individual
Muslims are put under scanner, and also that noose has to be further
tightened around the probable suspects from that community to prevent
acts of terror.
While there are multiple
dimensions of the debate, some of points arising from the debate need
to be understood in depth. First, let?s note that in the whole of this
debate the historical context is missing. Why is it that this phenomenon
has become more painful in last two decades? As to how do we see the
difference in the nature of expression, of these insane acts, the acts
of terror, coming from the likes of ULFA, LTTE currently and Khalistanis
and Irish Republican Army in yesteryears? Some observers point that
it is only with Muslim terrorists that they can draw something from
their religion to legitimize violence, while this is not the case with
others. Is it true? Let?s recall that the Khalistanis also resorted
to religious identity in a very strong manner.
Since the debate is not put
in the historical context we don?t realize that when certain Muslims
as part of Palestinian resistance in the aftermath of their being thrown
out from their own land, resorted to terror, they did not invoke Islam
Also the Kashmiri terrorists never invoked Islamic identity till the
decade of 1980, before the Al Qaeda infiltrated into their ranks and
used Islamic identity for their political actions.
As such not much attention
is being to the fact that the phenomenon of terrorism is just a symptom
of a disease lying deep in the belly of the contemporary global politics,
the politics aiming to control the oil wells at global level. This global
political agenda has the local associates in the form of politics, resorting
to use of Hindu religious identity, Hindutva, whose ascendance has transformed
the communal violence in to more systematic anti Muslim pogroms as witnessed
in Mumbai and Gujarat. The global actions of attacking the Iraq, Afghanistan
and then again Iraq, have resulted in the feeling of insecurity, persecution
and intimidation by large section of Muslims. The local pogroms have
added up to the process of some of Muslims falling victim to the traps
of well laid out terrorist outfits.
To trace bit of this trajectory,
with coming of Ayatollah Khomeini in Iran, US encouraged Saudi Arabia
and its version of Wahabi Islam, which in a superficial way uses the
concepts of Jihad, Kafir and violence to achieve its political goals.
It is a version of Islam, followed by miniscule Muslim minority in the
World, and this formed the base of Madrassas set up to train Al Qaeda
in Pakistan, duly sponsored and than supported by US with its puppet
Pakistani military regime in toe.
The Mujahidin trained in
these Madrassas are being projected as the Muslims, the representatives
of Islam. The fact is not only are they small minority amongst the whole
Muslim community, they were deliberately promoted, and propped up to
fight Russian army which had invaded Afghanistan at that point of time.
It is the same Lal Masjid which Mian Musharaff lately realized is a
den of terror, which was the darling of military rulers of Pakistan
till a while ago. It is this Al Qaeda which after throwing out Russian
armies from Afghanistan turned its guns against its mentor in the White
House, World Trade Center attack, now against the military rulers of
Pakistan. It also infiltrated Kashmir and communalized the militancy,
and the Kashmiriyat which was the base of the alienated Kashmiri militancy,
was replaced by Islam. As a matter of fact, even Khalistani terrorism
had a subtle encouragement from the powers that be and it also invoked
religion as the base of their actions.
The points are also raised
that the nature of Islam is such that it can be used for terrorism.
Most of the religious tomes have been interpreted in multiple ways.
The same books have been used for promoting peace and the same ones?
have been misused for spreading violence. It pertains not just to one
particular Holy book. Whole Mahabharata, the massive war between two
set of cousins derives its legitimacy from Gita, the holy book of Hindus.
The same religion is used for peace the way Gandhi did, and the same
religion is invoked while undertaking the pogroms, one?s which we have
witnessed in Mumbai and Gujarat not very long ago.
There is also an argument
that while dalits have been oppressed they never retaliated by violence,
while Muslim in the face of violence resort to violence. Here the nature
of two types of attacks/oppressions is very different. The oppression
of dalits was/is a case where social norm was given the religious sanction
by Brahminical texts and dalits were made to internalize it themselves
over a period of centuries. This is more of a case of religious indoctrination
associated with the concept of reincarnation, paap-punyaa (sin-reward
for noble act), a long process, by no way comparable to the present
attacks on section of Muslim countries and communities which has got
mixed up. Also the demise of bipolar World has given rise to the identity
politics and in current times politics is wearing the garb of religion.
There is an intense discussion
about methods of preventing terrorism. By its very nature terror acts
are unpredictable. Preventing them is marginally possible at a very
heavy price, but due to the scattered nature of this phenomenon it is
not realistic to prevent it. You tighten one hole, the other will come
up, and that?s what has been the case so far. Can you keep over 1500
million people under scanner? On one hand the Clash of Civilizations
is made to be the ruling ideology in the world politics, on the other
insane variety of religious traditions are consciously promoted for
the goal of political agenda. In such a scenario how does one address
the issue? Surly no symptom of a disease can be controlled unless the
underlying disease is also addressed.
Globally what is being done
to undo the aggressions on Afghanistan, Iraq? What has happened to United
Nations? What has happened to the report of International Jury?s repots
on US war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq? What justice has been meted
out to the victims of Mumbai riots, or Gujarat riots? Have we been able
to create a situation where Muslims in India can feel equal? Everywhere
there is an active propaganda that they are terrorists? The victims
of Afghanistan and Iraq, what ever their religion, will they not incite
reaction amongst a section of people, who will think of these insane
methods of retaliation as the path to avenge the wrongs done to ?them?.
There cannot be anything more foolish than this but what does one do
to the psychological processes unleashed in the aftermath of aggressions
and genocides?
It should be in the fitness
of things that global human community starts thinking of reversing the
processes unleashed during last two decades in particular. The attacks
on weak countries by mighty empires, the bypassing of United Nations,
the organized pogroms against minorities and all such massive violations
of human rights, that?s where the real disease is and that?s what needs
to be addressed. The dream of peaceful society, global and local, democratic
rights and values, projecting the humane aspects of religion and strengthening
the peace movement should mitigate the problem of terror in the times
to come. Else, demonization of a particular religion, further alienating
a religious community will only worsen their plight. A good physician
does not just think of symptoms, but focuses more on the underlying
disease in a holistic manner and treats the symptom accordingly!
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