Terrorism is a crime as murder is a crime.  Terrorism is even more heinous in that it targets civilians.  The fact that terrorism is perpetrated by poor people from the Third World, and the fact that it is rooted in economic exploitation and oppression does not justify its occurrence.  Terrorism has to be stamped out wherever it exists.¹  

Observation of the Author

 Overview 

National and international conflicts are at the root of terrorism.  According to Joshua S. Goldstein, conflicts can be divided into two classes: conflicts of interest and conflicts of ideas.  Conflicts of interest include territorial disputes, control of government and economic conflicts.  Conflicts of ideas include ethnic conflict, religious conflict, and ideological conflict. This paper analyzes how these conflicts lead to terrorism.² 

Let us first begin by defining terrorism.  Terrorism is an act of violence perpetrated against civilians to discredit their government as incapable of protecting them.  The goal is to arouse the anger of the population against their impotent government so as to force it to capitulate to the terrorists - that is to meet the demands of the terrorists.  Hence, terrorism is the weapon of the weak against the stronger party.³ 

Terrorism has become a household world since September 11, 2001. On that date Arab and Islamic fundamentalist terrorists demolished the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in the United States.  The death toll was about 3,000 civilians.

What caused this terrorist incident and other similar ones? We know all the terrorists involved in the September 11, 2001 catastrophe were Third World nationals.  They came from poor countries.  True, Saudi Arabia is oil-rich but its wealth is unevenly distributed.  Most of its people are poor.  Hence, we can agree that the underlying reason for his terrorist incident is economic exploitation, although its proximate cause may be religious and cultural.⁴  

The West swindles the mineral and agricultural resources of Third World countries.  When a Third World country is rich in mineral or oil resources, its government is placed under bondage to surrender its resources to the Multinational Corporations (MNCs) of Western countries.  Mineral or oil-rich country can also be invaded to put its resources under Western control - by reducing its government into vassalage.

 Young men from these mineral and oil-rich countries seethe with rage at seeing the exploitation of their countries.  Even when their country extracts good price for its wealth from the west, they see that money goes to the coffers of the rulers that are under protection by the West.⁵  

More over, there is also a “clash of civilizations” between the West and the rest as Samuel Huntington explained it. Citizens in the West earn $ 10 an hour while citizens of the rest of the world live on $2 a day.  The West has installed immigration barriers so as not to share the resources of the earth with poor peoples of the world.  The west lives in luxury under the shelter of global apartheid.  Third World nationals seethe with rage at being kept jailed at modern prison holes called states.⁶  

However, talking about global apartheid and economic exploitation is a taboo in the modern world.  But talking about religious freedom is acceptable.  Hence, terrorists wreck havoc in the West in the name of religion and culture.  Yet the real grievance is wealth disparity and economic exploitation. 

Religion is important because it offers extraordinary leaders such as Mohammed, Moses and Jesus in whose name to fight.  Also it offers reward in the hereafter.  But the real struggle is economic.  To understand this matter clearly, let us ask why people want religious freedom or the establishment of an Islamic state? Is it not to realize economic prosperity and equality for the exploited and down trodden masses! Hence at the back of all the talk abut religious freedom and establishment of Islamic state is economic justice! 

This presents the real solution to terrorism to us: end global apartheid!  Make the end of global apartheid a 30-year project.  Then to avoid massive inflow of immigrants 30 years later, the West will wholeheartedly support economic development in the Third World.  Terrorism will come to an end immediately because the West will be seen as a big brother rather than as a big bully. 

Also religious equality should be guaranteed to all faiths - until almighty God himself intervenes in human affairs boldly and marvelously (without ambiguity) to support one faith over all others.⁷  

We will return to the above solution in the conclusion.  Below are presented the conflict roots of terrorism.  

Territorial Disputes 

Territorial disputes take the form of border conflicts, irredentism, demand for a homeland and secession.  Some examples of border disputes - cum irredentism - include the Ethio-Somalia conflict over the Somali inhabited territory of Ethiopia known as the Ogaden region, the Eritrean struggle for secession and the recent Ethio-Eritrean conflict.  Two pitched battles were fought over the control of the Ogaden between Ethiopia and Somalia in the early 1960s and late 1970s.  Now this border dispute has led to terrorism directed at Ethiopia by Al-Ittihad Islamiya, a Somali terrorist organization.

 Territorial conflict in the form of demand for homeland is exemplified by the conflict between Israel and Palestinian people.  Palestinians want to establish an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza strip. Israel is not amenable to the demand for security reasons.  It fears that once Palestinians establish an independent state with its own armed forces, they will quickly invade the Israeli state to seize more territory.  The result of the stand off has been long standing terrorist activity by Palestinians against Israel.⁸ 

An example of territorial dispute in the form of secession is the Russian conflict with Chechnya. Chechens want an independent state of their own. But Russia can agree only on an autonomous state within the Russian federation.  The result has been terrorist acts by Chechens against Russia. 

The above three examples show how a territorial dispute leads to terrorism.  In all respects, the weaker party carries out terrorist acts either to inflict damage or to make its cause visible to the international community.  

Especially the Israel vs. Palestinian dispute has been the main reason for terrorist acts carried out against U.S. citizens by Arab terrorists in the Middle East.  This is because the United States is perceived as an ally of Israel and its main arms supplier.   

Control of Government 

The best example of conflict related to control of government is the recent war between the United States and Iraq.  

In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait.  The United States destroyed its war machine while driving it out of Kuwait.  Then for more than ten years using intrusive inspections and sanctions it virtually disarmed Iraq of its WMD and even conventional arms.  Then the situation became convenient for an all out invasion of Iraq to topple Saddam Hussein.  The war took place between March 20, 2003 and May1, 2003.  Iraq was occupied and Saddam was captured on December 14, 2003.  

The above is a classic war to control government.  What has been the result? As expected the result has been terrorist’s attacks on United States military men and civilians all over Iraq.  Hundreds have died since the end of the war as a result of terrorist acts.  

Another conflict related to control of government is the India-Pakistan conflict over Kashmir.  Kashmir has been divided between Pakistan and India.  But the Indian part of Kashmir, called Jammu and Kashmir, is unstable.  Its Moslem population wants union with Pakistan.  Its Hindu population wants to stay with India. India and Pakistan both want to control the government of Jammu and Kashmir.  Although the territory is administered by India, the Muslim guerrillas want to take the government out of India’s control to eventually unite it with Pakistan.  Hence, control to the government is at issue.⁹ 

Because India is not willing to lose Kashmir, Muslim separatists have been carrying out terrorist acts against India.  

The above the examples of conflict over control of government show that alien rule has almost always led to terrorism by subjugated nationals.  

Economic Conflicts 

Economic conflicts include conflicts over foreign investment, debt, terms of trade, activities of Multi-National Corporations (MNCs) and drug trafficking. However, economic conflicts are rarely the immediate causes of terrorism.  Yet, they are the main underlying causes of terrorism.  

Wealth sharing is a taboo subject in international relations.  But religious freedom and cultural equality are acceptable subjects for discussion. Hence, terrorists wreck havoc in the name of religious and cultural grievances.  But religion and cultural demands are euphemism for economic demands.  Why do terrorists care about religion and culture? Is it not to usher in economic prosperity an justice in their countries?  

Moreover, conflict in the Persian Gulf is rooted in economic interest, namely free flow of oil.  While those who can manage it can send their armies to assure free flow of oil, those who cannot assure themselves equitable distribution of its income engage in terrorist activities.  

The West has now terrorized all resource rich Third World countries, saying in effect, “What is mine is mine, but what is yours is negotiable!” Resource rich Third World countries are now giving up their nuclear weapons ambitions for fear it can be used as an excuse to rob them of their resources.  

While the West carried out its brand of world terrorism to assure itself of continuous economic exploitation of Third World countries, nationals of these poor countries are resorting to the weapon of the weak - terrorism.  

At one time, there was a call for New International Economic Order (NIEO) to share the world’s resources equitably.  But nothing came of it.  Hence, since the West has made wealth sharing non-negotiable subject, it is now being haunted with terrorism in the name of religion.  

Ethnic Conflicts 

Ethnic conflicts have become prevalence since the end of the Cold War. Here, we will look at two examples.  

One example is the conflict between the Ethiopian government and the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF). The OLF was a participant in the All-Nationalities Conference that took place in Ethiopia in 1991.  But it left mainstream Ethiopian politics to demand secession of the Oromo inhabited territories of Ethiopia.  It claims to be spokesman for the Oromo ethnic group.  It wants to establish an independent Oromo state.  

However, although secession is constitutionally guaranteed to all nations of Ethiopia, the Ethiopian government refused to let Oromo state go.  Why? Because the Oromo people as a whole do not want to secede.  Oromo Peoples Democratic Organization (OPDO) is part of the coalition of parties that form the ruling EPRDF party. But OLF is now engaged in frequent terrorist acts against the Ethiopian government.  

The second example of ethnic conflict is the Chechnya conflict with Russia.  Chechnya is inhabited by Chechens, who form the majority ethnic group, and other ethnic groups including Russians.  Ethnic Chechens want their own state.  But Russia can only grant them autonomy within the Russian federation.¹⁰ As a result of this conflict, Chechens are now engaged in terrorist attacks against Russia.  

The above two examples show that ethnic conflict has led to terrorist activities.  But as the religious question, ethnic conflict is a cloak for economic prosperity.  Why do ethnic groups want a state of their own? It is not to enjoy economic prosperity in their state? So economic conflict is the underlying cause of ethnic terrorism. 

Religious Conflicts 

Many conflicts in the world today are traceable to religious disagreements.  Examples of such conflicts include the conflicts in Northern Ireland between Catholics and Protestants, the conflict in Kashmir between Moslems and Hindus, the conflict in Chechnya between Moslems and Christians, and the conflict between al Qaeda and the United States and the West.  

As has been noted by many authors, religious conflicts are often bitter and turn to be struggles to death.  To elaborate on the above examples a bit, we note that religious conflicts are often accompanied with conflicts over territory, government, and economic matters.  In Northern Ireland, Catholics want union with Ireland while Protestants want union with Britain.¹¹ In Kashmir Moslems want union with Pakistan while Hindus want union with India.  In Chechnya, Moslem Chechens want independent state of their own while the minority ethnic Russians who are Christians want federation with Russia. 

Yet, by far the most talked about religious conflict is the one between al Qaeda and the United States. Al Qaeda which means “the base” or “the camp” is an Islamic terrorist organization which seeks to become the base or the camp from which worldwide Islamic revolution will be fought.  Its origins can be traced to the 1979 invasion of Afghanistan by Soviet Union. Osama Bin Laden joined the struggle (Guerrilla Warfare) against the Soviet Union in support of Muslim Afghanistan fighters.  In the late 1980s, Bin Laden’s followers become known as Al Qaeda members.  

The declaration of war against the United States by al Qaeda is due to the fact that the United States refused to get out from the Middle East, especially from Saudi Arabia after the first Gulf War.  Bin Laden does not want an infidel force to stay in the Holy Land of Islam.¹² 

All the above religious conflicts have led to terrorism regionally and internationally - but they are economic in nature as we will see later.  

Ideological Conflicts 

Ideological conflicts were important during the cold war.  At present, they have been replaced by conflicts among civilizations.  In the heyday of the cold war the communist and capitalist world engaged in overt and covert conflicts. The covert acts were carried out by KGB for communists and CIA for capitalists. Each of these secret services carried out terrorist operations all over the world.  However, they did so through local intermediaries.  Hence, the terrorist acts are hard to trace to the KGB and the CIA. Mostly this terrorist acts took the form of assassinations or attempted assassination of public figures in the Third World.  One infamous assassination attempt was against the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church! 

Be that as it may, nowadays ideological conflicts are replaced by civilization conflicts involving the West against the rest. The current problem is the wealth disparity between OECD nations and Third World nations.  Most of the OELD nations are in North America and Europe.  The Third World encompasses the rest of the world except Japan and Australia-New Zealand.  

The conflict between these camps of nations is profound.  Although we say civilization conflict, actually the conflict is economic.  It is just that the rich nations belong to just one civilization.  

Both ideological and civilizational conflicts are facets of economic conflicts. Ideological conflict was a conflict over the division of the Third world as sphere of influence.  This was economic conflict - conflict over natural resources and markets.  The civilization conflict to is also economic the west trying to gobble every thing in the world, and the rest of the world protecting its own.  This problem has led to terrorism by the poor.  

Observations 

Terrorism is a crime as murder is a crime.  Terrorism is even more heinous in that it targets civilians.  The fact that terrorism is perpetrated by poor people from the Third World, and the fact that it is rooted in economic exploitation and oppression does not justify its occurrence.  Terrorism has to be stamped out wherever it exists.  

Having said that, we must also agree that the West is a creator of its own problem. Terrorism against the west is due to the fact that the West seeks to gobble the cream of the world’s wealth leaving only the residue for poor people of the world to live on. Hence, the solution for terrorism is equitable sharing of the worlds wealth hand in hand with religious and cultural equality until God himself shows the world which region he approves.  

On need not be a Marxist to believe that economic interest makes the world go round.  Even psychologists believe that physical needs have to be satisfied before all other needs are considered.  Hence, it cannot be brushed aside the fact that it is the bread and butter issue that leads to most conflicts in the world.  Yet to avoid considering solutions for the sword gash economic woes of the Third World, the West engages in interminable litany over its pin pricks of economic problems.  

Hence, it is apparent that unless the world agrees to dismantle immigration barriers within 30 years, global poverty will not be eliminated.  If the West expects it will be flooded with new comers from all over the world after 30 years, it will be in hurry to develop every country in the world to let people say where they are, enjoying riches where they are. This means that the Lultimate answer for terrorism is a global confederacy of nations or states.  Every scholar worthy of his salt agrees that a world government is the final solution for all the ills that afflict the world.  Moreover, modern technology of transpiration and communication has made it now easy to consider a world state.  It is only greed, nationalism and racism that keep the world’s people separated.  

But greed, nationalism, and racism are dysfunctional human behavior.  They have to be overcome. The first line of attack to overcome them is to end the global apartheid.  Once every one can live everywhere he likes, he will see people everywhere as sharing a common destiny.  It will be easier for such person to overcome greed, nationalism and racism.  

Just note what is happening in Europe.  There is freedom of movement and establishment of residence.  As a result, once bickering European countries have become fraternal nations.  Moreover, it is now unthinkable for France to sponsor terrorists to wreck in Germany and vice versa.  

In short, to end global terrorism the West must agree for eventual dismantling of immigration barriers.  It must start serious planning for a world government by the mid of the current century.  If it does this thing, the West will be seen as a big brother rather than as a big bully.  Nobody will target it for terrorist attack.  

The sad fact is that the above measures are hard for present-day greedy and racist people to contemplate.  Hence, we must wait for almighty God to undertake them.

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