War Against Terrorism
By B K Sen
Oct. 6, Mizzima News(www.mizzima.com)
The clouds of war gathering over the issue of the terrorist attack on the World TradeCenter in New York are ominous. The attack itself was a dastardly act. Nearly six thousand innocent lives were lost. It was a challenge to civilization. Civilized society wonders if it can exist or whether a handful of bandits will rule humanity.
It is not an issue of Islamic religion versus the rest of the world. The Islamic façade, which the terrorists have given to the heinously violent acts, cannot hide their real motives. By and large, the Islamic world has condemned the attacks and aligned with the rest of the world.
The issue that has emerged is whether a War against Afghanistan, housing the operational headquarters of the terrorists, will destroy terrorism. US war ships and troops have moved in around Gulf Seas and taken position to strike.
The question arises: will bombing and other military operations not strengthen the Taliban forces? Afghanistan, which is divided today, will become unified under rabid right-wing fanatics. Terrorism will become nationalism. The Talibans will be masquerading as champions of a defensive just war. Through the centuries, the Afghans have been intensely nationalistic. Alexander the Great, Persia, Britain, the Soviet Union and Pakistan tried to control the country but failed. The US record is equally dismal.It sponsored the collapse of the Soviet occupation, in the course of which it created the Taliban. Thereafter, the US allowed Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to interfere in the internal affairs of Afghanistan. Only with the rise of Osman bin Laden in late 1996 did the Clinton administration wake up.
With a series of bombings of its Embassies, a slight shift of US policy was brought about. The US concern was to apprehend bin Laden and at the same time not to confront the Taliban. The collateral result of this policy was the emergence of a pervasive network of terrorist groups in more than 34 countries and the generation of an abundance of funds through money laundering. Al-Qaida is the hard core-organization of Laden. (GW Bush in a speech to the US Congress on 21 September 2001: "Its goal is remaking the World and imposing its radical beliefs on people everywhere"). The situation is indeed critical. The terrorists have put on the garb of Islamic Revolution.
In the Islamic world, however, a number of countries are moving beyond fundamentalist belief systems, and the rule of law has become the beacon light for the oppressed millions. The dictators who rule a number of Islamic countries are under threat and face a dilemma. If they ally themselves with the fundamentalist forces, their regimes will be toppled. If they oppose the fundamentalist forces, pro-democracy forces may well dissolve their regimes. The Taliban is exploiting this dilemma. This also explains the ambivalent role that a number of Islamic leaders have chosen.
The aggressive speeches of Bush and his attempt to bypass the UN have sown deep suspicion in the minds of many Islamic people. The Taliban has been successful in eroding the initial support that the US had garnered from states like Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and others. This will be the political context of the war that the US intends to launch.Furthermore, there are divisions in the ranks of its allies who are debating for a global coalition to fight terrorism. The absence of rule of law is at the bottom of Afghan woes. At no time has there been a government based on and rooted in the rule of law in Afghanistan. The paramount issue in Afghanistan is political, not military. A government of nationalities of the Afghan people is the first priority. It is good that swift US military action has not taken place. It is good that the world community has asserted itself, cutting across the religious divide.
The terrorists have to be dealt with now or never. The world has to be made safe and secure. Democratic interaction has to proceed. International humanitarian assistance to the suffering Afghans must be accelerated. Democratic transformations and development are pre-requisites for the eradication of poverty and ignorance. Those who wreck peace deserve to be punished. Peace is a paramount requirement.
In the context of Burma, this situation is potentially dangerous. The US oil giant UNOCAL, which has business interests in Burma, proposed setting up a gas line through Afghanistan. Taliban ranks have swelled by increasing numbers of foreign volunteers from countries as diverse as Pakistan, Algeria and Burma. (The Nation Sep 22, 2001) Article by Stefan Smith under caption "Taliban, Pakistan's foreign policy failure" also had an exclusive interview with Bin Laden and Laden stated, "there are areas in all parts of the world where strong Jihad forces are present from Indonesia to Algeria, from Kabul to Chechnya, from Bosnia to Sudan, and from Burma (Myanmar) to Kashmir".
It is a surprise that Laden has mentioned Burma alone of the countries where Islamic fundamentalists exit in operation. There is a group,Arakan Rohingya Islamic Front fighting the Burmese military Junta for decades for an Independent state on the western borders of Burma. The group also formed Rohingya Liberation Army. In 1999, the Rohingyas joined the Democratic Alliance of Burma (DAB) headed by Karen National Union (KNU), an ethnic armed group operating on southeastern borders of Burma and Thailand.
The Muslim minorities constitute nearly 15% of forty million populations in Burma. The ruling military junta in Burma, State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) on this occasion sent a delayed message of condolence to the US State Department. The delay was said to be a protection against existing tension. The SPDC has antagonized the Muslim minorities. If the news report quoted above is true, then the situation in Burma is volatile and needs careful handling.
Long repressive rule by the Junta has generated widespread discontent and the ethnic minorities and religious groups have been worst victims. They may be forced to seek assistance outside. The Talibans will be too ready to play the lead role. Burma will not be able to remain in isolation, which she has undergone for decades.
Burmese people are victim of one form of terrorism, namely State terrorism. This has to end. Democratic transition and rule of law can only ensure that fundamentalism of any form, Islamic, ethnic or military or otherwise does not overtake Burma.
(B.K. Sen, based in Thailand, is a member of Burma Lawyers' Council.)