Tackling Terrorism: Present concerns and future plan of action Prashant Khattri 1 and Namrata Tiwari 2 Abstract Key words: proximal response, distal response, integration, coordination, national character and dominant personality. The year 2008 has witnessed a number of terrorists attack and has taken a heavy toll on the life of the people. There have been periodic attacks from the month of May till November. It is only after the Mumbai s disastrous attack that the government is actually taking some measures like forming the Federal Investigating Agencies which should have been done long before. This raises a question that why we are so late in responding to such important issues? There are two ways of responding to such issues- i) proximal response and ii) distal response. Proximal responses are more immediate and include police/military action against the terrorists and integration and coordination of the various intelligence agencies. Distal response needs more introspection and research at the level of our reaction time in responding to such issues. Why we respond so late and why our attitude is so callous about such issues irrespective of the government at the center. The answer to this question can be better addressed through the study of National Character. There are some dominant traits and characters which form the dominant personality of the nation and every nation is largely governed by that personality. Formation of personality is situational and largely depends upon the significant others around the person. This analogy can be further extended to understand the personality of the nation as a whole and how the significant others play a part in its formation. India has been ruled by the Mughals during the medieval times and by the British during the modern times. Both of them largely played the role of significant others and are to an extent responsible for the formation of a dominant personality or the national character of this country. There is a need to understand this dominant personality and try to bring a change in that. India should be more pro-active in dealing with the issue of terrorism rather than being lethargic. People of India have also made it clear this time that they need concrete action. The entire approach towards this issue needs a change. We have been asking Pakistan for taking action against the terrorists on their land, but in vain. It is time now for us to act and act decisively. It has been happening since long that, till the terrorist attacks are fresh, they capture the imagination of the people and the media and after sometimes it dwindles. There is a need to ask, why this happens? National Disaster Management Authority and National Institute of Disaster Management are some organizations along with other research institutes and academic bodies that should pitch in at this crucial moment and try to take up such studies that can understand the route cause of the problem and thus a future course of action can be better planned. 1 Research Fellow, European Union 6 th Framework MICRODIS project, Entitled: Integrated Health, Social and Economic Impacts of Extreme Events: Evidence, Methods and Tools and Research Scholar, Department of Anthropology,University of Delhi, Delhi-110007 emailprashant_khattri2002@yahoo.co.in, MO- +91 9868598636 2 M.Sc. Department of Anthropology, University of Delhi, Delhi-110007 and MBA, IBS, Hyderabad, A.P. email- namratatiwari@yahoo.com MO- +91 9949076456
Broadly speaking, when justice and right are denied to a person over a long period of time, the person is left with two options: bear the situation patiently, or the reaction is anguish, and that reaction, in the process can culminate in terrorism. Besides other things, spreading of communal hatred, religious frenzy, separatist tendency etc. are the tools which terrorists generally use. Guns too are used to achieve the so-called specified mission. Fanaticism, extremism, radicalism, separatism, militancy, activism etc. are its other names or manifestations. This is one side of the picture of terrorism. Violence in the form of terrorism was a significant aspect of Indian resistance to British rule in 1900-47 despite the widespread impression that Mahatma Gandhi's nonviolent strategy dominated the independence movement. Political terrorism developed first in Bengal in the early 20th century and was then disseminated elsewhere in India. Terrorist acts by Bengali societies and other extremist groups helped compel the British to make concessions in negotiations with more moderate factions. Indian terrorists since independence in 1947 have lacked the idealism of their predecessors. Since its independence in 1947, India has been facing the problem of insurgency and terrorism in different parts of the country.. India has faced exclusively terrorist movements in Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir, bordering Pakistan, and part insurgent-part terrorist movements in the northeast, bordering Myanmar and Bangladesh; in Bihar, bordering Nepal; and in certain interior states like Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa that do not have international borders. India has also faced terrorism of an ephemeral nature, which sprang suddenly due religious anger against either the government or the majority Hindu community or both and petered out subsequently. Examples of this would be the simultaneous explosions in Mumbai on March 12, 1993, which killed about 250 civilians, and the simultaneous explosions in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, in February 1998. India had also faced, for some years, Hindu sectarian terrorism in the form of the Anand Marg, which, in its motivation
and irrationality, resembled to some extent the Aum Shinrikiyo of Japan. The Marg, with its emphasis on meditation, special religious and spiritual practices and use of violence against its detractors, had as many followers in foreign countries as it had in India. Its over-ground activities have petered out since 1995, but it is believed to retain many of its covert cells in different countries. However, they have not indulged in acts of violence recently. India has experienced terrorist attacks for over four decades. The Global Terrorism Database, START (the US National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism) is maintained at the University of Maryland. It shows that India faced more than 4,100 terrorist attacks between 1970 and 2004, accounting for about 12,540 terrorist-related fatalities or an average of almost 360 fatalities per year from terrorism in India. A long history of terrorism in India precedes the recent coordinated attacks in Mumbai. There have been more than 4,100 terrorist attacks in India since 1970. Fatalities number in the thousands. Here's a statistical summary on terrorism in India from the GTD: 4,108 terrorist incidents occurring in India between the years 1970 and 2004. During this period, India ranked sixth among all countries in terms of terrorist incidents (behind Peru, Colombia, El Salvador, the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland and Spain). 12,539 terrorist-related fatalities in India between 1970 and 2004 - an average of almost 360 fatalities per year from terrorism in India. These fatalities peaked in 1991 and 1992, when 1,184 and 1,132 individuals (respectively) were killed in such incidents. Terrorists in India have employed a variety of attack types over time: 38.7% of terrorist events were facility attacks, 29.7% percent were bombings (in which the intent was to destroy a specific facility), and 25.5% were assassinations. The
recent events in Mumbai would be classified as a series of coordinated facility attacks. Detailed information on terrorist incidents in India between 1970 and 2004 can be accessed via the GTD online interface. The interface includes an Advanced Search function, allowing users to specify which types of incidents they want to explore. START's Terrorist Organization Profiles (TOPs) collection includes information on 56 groups known to have engaged in terrorism in India. Included among these groups is Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), known to have undertaken attacks in Mumbai in recent years. Information on the origins, history, and activities of the 56 groups known to have engaged in terrorism in India in the past can be accessed, as well as groups that have been active in neighboring countries, via the TOPs online interface. A handful of terrorist attacks attracted global attention; for example, the 1993 Mumbai bombing, the attack on India"s Parliament in 2001, a hijacking of a plane from India to Afghanistan in 1999, an attack on Indian consulate in Kabul, Afghanistan in 2008, etc to name a few that were masterminded in Pakistan. Maulana Masood Azhar of Jaish-e- Mohammed (JM) was released from an Indian jail during the terrorists for hostage swap of December 31, 1999, following the hijacking of the Indian Airline Flight IC 814.The most recent being the Mumbai attacks which began on 26 November 2008. India has been fighting with the problem of terrorism since long. The year 2008 has witnessed a number of terrorists attack and has taken a heavy toll on the life of the people. There have been periodic attacks from the month of May till November. It is only after the Mumbai s disastrous attack that the government is actually taking some measures like forming the National Investigating Agencies which should have been done long before. This raises a question that why we are so late in responding to such important issues? There are two ways of responding to such issues- i) proximal response and ii) distal response. Proximal responses are more immediate and include police/military action against the terrorists and integration and coordination of the various
intelligence agencies. Distal response needs more introspection and research at the level of our reaction time in responding to such issues. Why we respond so late and why our attitude is so callous about such issues irrespective of the government at the center. The answer to this question can be better addressed through the study of National Character. A nation can be defined as a human group which inhabits a country determined by geographical limits, is tied by common traditions, common interests and common sentiments, and in which are found common political ambitions and the desire to be tied in the knot of unity (Upadhyay and Pandey, 1997). A national character may be defined as the totality of traditions, interests and ideals (aspirations), which are so widespread and influential in a nation that they mould its image, both in mind of nations concerned and in that of others (Upadhyay and Pandey, 1997). The objective elements of nationhood are: geographical unity, unity of language, community, race and religion and political unity and independence. The subjective elements of nationhood are: community of history and traditions, community of political aspirations and community of sentiment. Thus, studying national character means the study of character formation of civilization of national territory or place. Many things come into mind when one thinks to study national character. For instance, if one has to study the national character of India, she will have to go through the history of cultural traditions of India through the ages- Indus valley civilization, Vedic age, Epic age, Puranic age, Muslim period, British period and Independent India. Again he will have to go through ethnic, cultural, social, religious, communal, regional and linguistic composition of Indian population. He will also have to look at number of states, territories, formation of government, etc. On this basis, the characters that India possess, are a big territory, occupied by states and union territories, have democratic constitution and parliamentary system of government, based on election etc. On historical side its character reveals that India is a country of multi-ethnic and multi-cultural groups, having historical traditions, from the period of Indus valley civilization, which its inhabitants have shared and transferred to generations since time immemorial. When one considers language as a variable of national character, she finds that India is a country of multi-
cultural linguistic zones. When one considers religion as an aspect of national character, she finds India is an abode of numerous religious groups having countless number of gods and godesses. Similarly, domination of villages, joint family system, jajmani system, socio-economic stratification, etc. reveal the characteristic feature of India. These are the variables or factors to be taken into consideration, while making a study of national character of a country. These are the characters which reveal unity as well as diversity of our country. In spite of being a nation of multi-ethnic, multi-linguistic, multicultural, multi-religious and multi-regional groups, there are some dominant traits and characters which form the dominant personality of the nation and every nation is largely governed by that personality. Formation of personality is situational and largely depends upon the significant others around the person. This analogy can be further extended to understand the personality of the nation as a whole and how the significant others play a part in its formation. India has been ruled by the Mughals during the medieval times and by the British during the modern times. Both of them largely played the role of significant others and are to an extent responsible for the formation of a dominant personality or the national character of this country. Margaret Mead and Rodha Metraus edited a book entitled, The Study of Culture-at-a- Distance (1953). This book deals with the methodology of studying national character as reflected in the personality of inhabitants of a nation. Ruth Benedict and Mead studied the national character of Japan and America respectively. Their book dealing with the characters of those nations are, Crysanthemum and Sword (1946), and Keep your powder dry: An Anthropologist Looks at America (1942) respectively. They have outlined that culture shapes the personality of the inhabitants which also reflects their national character. Margaret Mead was of the opinion that the study of national character can be had by culture and personality approach. Culture has been developed by human beings and is successively learned by each generation. The learned behaviour is reflected in the character of the group or nation. There is a need to understand this dominant personality, the national character and try to bring a change in that. India should be more pro-active in dealing with the issue of
terrorism rather than being lethargic. People of India have also made it clear this time that they need concrete action. The entire approach towards this issue needs a change. It has been happening since long that, till the terrorist attacks are fresh, they capture the imagination of the people and the media and after sometimes it dwindles. There is a need to ask, why this happens? National Disaster Management Authority and National Institute of Disaster Management are some organizations along with other research institutes and academic bodies that should pitch in at this crucial moment and try to take up such studies that can understand the route cause of the problem and thus a future course of action can be better planned.
References 1. Benedict R. 1946. The Chrysanthemum and The Sword. Boston. Houghton Mifflin. 2. Mead, M. 1942. And Keep Your Powder Dry: An Anthropologist Looks at America. New York. Morrow. 3. Mead, M. and R. Metraux. 1953. The Study of Culture at a Distance. University of Chicago Press. Chicago. 4. Upadhyaya, V.S. and Pandey G. 1997. History of Anthropological Thought. Concept Publishing Company. New Delhi. 5. http://www.rediff.com/news/2003/apr/03spec.htm 6. http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1g1-13191883.html 7. http://kuku.sawf.org/articles/55038.aspx