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• Terrorism


  The use or threatened use of force designed to bring about political change
• Terrorism


  The premeditated, deliberate, systematic murder, mayhem, and threatening of the innocent to create fear and intimidation in order to gain a political or tactical advantage, usually to influence an audience
• Objectives of a terrorist

  • Attention
  • Publicity for his cause
  • Acknowledgment
  • Recognition
  • Authority
  • Governance
• Reasons for becoming a terrorist

  • Oversimplification of issue
  • Frustration
  • Orientation toward risk taking
  • Self-righteousness
  • Utopianism
  • Social isolation
  • A need to be noticed
  • A taste for blood
• Humans do not join terrorist groups because they are poor, oppressed or religious. They seem to join in search of purpose, excitement or status. They seem to be fighting loneliness
• 9/11 attacks


  • Coordinated attacks by Al-Qaeda
  • FBI intelligence reports confirmed Osama's involvement
  • WTC collapsed and more than 3000 people died (excluding rescuers and civilians who were not in the buildings)
• Motive behind 9/11 attacks

  Resistance towards the Soviets through Maktab al-Khidamat<|>"Holy war" against the US soldiers in Saudi Arabia<|>"Slay the pagans wherever you find them"
• Aftermath of 9/11 attacks

  1. Movement to wage war against terrorism began – led by NATO, the US and its allies

  2. Economic and military sanctions against countries suspected of supporting/harbouring terrorist groups

  3. Invasion on Iraq

  4. War against the Taliban in Afghanistan

  5. Global intelligence sharing

  6. Increase in military readiness i.e. Indonesia and Philippines
• Long-term implications of 9/11

  • Social: race and religious interactions
  • Economic: losses due to sanctions, slowdown in the economy
  • Political: relations between the Muslim world and the west – suspicion on Muslim people, rise of radical Islam, more effort to bridge the gap between the Muslim world and the west
• Counter-terrorism (if due to ethnic problem)

  1. In-group policing

  2. Winning over moderates

  3. Empowering the ethnic community (i.e. bring development to Southern Philippines)
• Counter-terrorism (other methods)


  1. Self-policing

  2. Creating a "rival" ethnic group from the same community

  3. Bringing in democratic solutions, introducing proportional representation to ensure all the concerned parties are represented in the government
• The best way to deal with terrorism is to talk to the people who leave terrorist groups
• Political violence


  Violence is a common means used by people and governments around the world to achieve political goals
• Types of political violence

  • Primordial
  • Separatist
  • Coup d'etat
  • Protests
  • Revolution
• Primordialism


  The idea that nations or ethnic identities are fixed, natural and ancient
• Primordial violence

  • Happens among different tribes, religious/ethnic groups
  • It is natural to have/feel strong attachment towards one's ethnic/tribal group
  • Groups react violently for survival - as a response to threats/feeling of injustice/discrimination inflicted by other groups/institutions, etc
• Separatism


  The advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental, or gender separation from the larger group
• Separatist violence


  • Feeling of belonging/deep attachment to a region
  • Minority groups feel they are being dominated by the majority
  • Separatist groups trying to "separate" their region from the larger regional territory – they may do so to serve their own hidden agenda
• Coup d'etat


  A seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, military, or a dictator
• Coup d'etat


  • Overthrow of government by a small group of people in the military – make announcement in the media that the government has been overthrown and that the country is now under military rule
  • Happens mostly in 3rd world countries
• Protest


  The result of actions by individuals, groups, organizations, coalitions, and movements seeking to change or prevent change in institutional policy
• Protest violence


  • A peaceful demonstration can turned into violent protest – reaction of the authorities towards hostile crowds
  • Looting of public amenities
• Revolution


  Social revolutions are typically conceived as transformative historical events that fundamentally change the social structures of society
• Revolution


  • A situation that causes a "quick and dramatic change"
  • Change is fundamental/quite drastic
• Arab Spring

  • Started with the Tunisian revolution in December 2010 and led to the ousting of longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011
  • Street demonstrations, unrest
  • Demonstrations were precipitated by high unemployment, food inflation, corruption, lack of freedom of speech and poor living conditions
  • Protests inspired similar actions throughout the Arab world, leading to the ousting of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and Muammar Gadaffi in Libya
• Causes of revolution


  • Injustice
  • Gap between expectation and achievement – failure of government to meet people's expectation
  • Relative deprivation – majority's dominance against the minority, widening social class
• Stages of revolution


  • Organising revolution
  • Extremists take over
  • Old regimes decay
  • A Thermidor ("cooling off period") ends the reign of terror
  • Moderates take over