The fight against terrorism has to be based not on destroying a certain group of terrorists but as a campaign of human rights. Geneva Conventions and international human rights law specifically establish that terrorism is not a legitimate act of war or politics. These rules specify that civilians should never be deliberately killed or abused, regardless of the cause. Mr. Bush's refusal to condemn Israel's bombing of civilian targets in an impotent Lebanon may be politically expedient but it says that United States considers it all right to deliberately bomb civilian installations and killing innocent civilians for the cause of punishing Hezbollah.
Roth, 2002] argues that disregard for civilian life must not be condoned, "The pathology that led a group of men to attack thousands of civilians on September 11 may never be understood, but it is essential to understand the mores that would countenance such mass murder as a legitimate political tool. Sympathy for such crimes is the breeding ground for terrorism, and sympathizers are potential recruits. Building a stronger human rights culture -- one in which any disregard for civilian life is condemned rather than condoned -- is essential for defeating terrorism in the long run."
September 11 has given many dictatorial and repressive regimes a chance to crush legitimate opposition which in the name of 'fighting terrorism'. These countries can do what they like with their dissidents while they support U.S. efforts in fighting terrorism against Bin Laden and his sympathizers.
Fight against terrorism will be helped greatly by U.S. support for international law. U.S. have constantly refused to ratify many of the international treaties relating to international convention on human rights. United States has a decent record on human rights but asking for special treatment on many of these issues has not gone well with international community. Our go-it-alone policy on Iraq, failure to find any weapon of mass destruction in the country and the much publicized breaches of the rules of war have not helped in the international war against terrorism. United States government needs to review its policies on support for international laws to protect us from terrorism.
Roth, 2002] finds that failure to ratify international human Rights law has placed us in an awkward position. He argues that, "The administration is thus in the uncomfortable position of seeking global law enforcement cooperation to protect its own citizens from terrorism while trying to undermine a global law enforcement institution that many governments rightfully see as essential for protecting others from comparably severe crimes."
We need to follow policies that can at least satisfy our traditional allies on working together for a terrorism free world. Vociferous support for democratic reforms should not be limited to countries opposing U.S. policies but our 'allies' should also know that democratic reforms and respect for human rights will be a condition for U.S. support. United States has a great deal of respect for its humanitarian stance on most international issues. Real support for democratic reforms and withdrawal of support from cruel autocratic, non-representative dictators, kings and emirs and namesake democracies will only enhance U.S. prestige and reduce the risk of terrorism on our soil as well as to our interests abroad.
Protecting Ourselves from Terrorism- b) Domestic Measures
Soon after the 9/11, tragedy U.S. government took steps to strengthen anti-terrorism measure on home front. The measures have been largely successful and United States has remained safe from even minor incidents involving terrorism. The Office of Homeland Security has stressed that this incident-free period is due to actions taken to reduce threat of terrorism on U.S. soil and several terrorist attempts were foiled by advance intelligence.
The threat of terrorism requires us to prevent both domestic and international terrorists and their sympathizers from causing harm to our country. In doing so what can keep the United States great will be our desire and effort to protect civil liberties, avoid racial isolation of our citizens and achieve the result with least possible impact on democracy and freedoms.
We are fortunate to have a free press, people with a concern for freedom and privacy, courts that are willing to exercise their power to protect these concerns without compromising national security. We can therefore be reasonably sure that actions by the executives will be closely scrutinized and fighting terrorism will not unduly invade on democracy and civil rights.
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