Benjamin Haspel, Rebecca Rottinger
Introduction
How to tell a terrorist from a revolutionary hero? That’s the question we are going to explore in this report. Thinking about this topic, the first image that appears on my mind is the martyr-rebel icon of Ernesto “Che” Guevara printed on T-Shirts, CD-covers or advertisements. In the 1960s, this guerilla was, due to his socialist opinions and revolutionary actions, one of the most wanted enemies of the USA and the capitalistic western world. Left-wing anti-imperialists labelled him the “Liberator of Cuba” and the everlasting myth of the die-hard fighter for freedom was born.
img src= http://phorte.god-child.net
The question if somebody who fights for the freedom of his land is a terrorist or a revolutionary hero is not always just voiced about people who illegally attack innocent people. Also countries which officially attack people, and think they have the right to do so, just because they think that their way of life is the right one, could be considered as terrorist countries.
We will concentrate on the two major characters in the media right now: Osama Bin Laden and George W. Bush. The first thing that appears in people's mind when they hear those two names is that they both fight for power in the name of their religions. So for some people Osama Bin Laden might fight on the right side and for some the U.S. President George W. Bush fights for the right side. Both use their religion to justify death and punishment. To see how it is possible that both can be seen either as terrorists or as heroes we will try to give you an idea of what makes people think in two different ways.
Definitions:
Terrorist – “One who utilizes the systematic use of violence and intimidation to achieve political objectives, while disguised as a civilian non-combatant. The use of a civilian disguise while on operations exempts the perpetrator from protection under the Geneva Conventions, and consequently if captured they are liable for prosecution as common criminals.” (http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/definitions.htm)
Revolutionary – “A radical supporter of political or social revolution.” (http://www.webster-dictionary.org/definition/revolutionary)
Hero - “A man distinguished by exceptional courage and nobility and strength; someone who fights for a cause.“ (http://www.webster-dictionary.org/definition/hero)
Osama Bin Laden’s Past: “The Liberator of Afghanistan?”
img src= http://forum.apan-info.net
Time magazine's Scott McLeod, who visited bin Laden in 1996, says of his early days in actual combat; “He designed and constructed defensive tunnels and ditches along the Pakistani border, driving a bulldozer and exposing himself to strafing from Soviet helicopter gunships. Before long, he had taken up a Kalashnikov and was going into battle. In 1986 he and a few dozen Arab defenders fought off a Soviet onslaught in a town called Jaji, not far from the Pakistani border A year later, bin Laden led an offensive against Soviet troops in the battle of Sha`ban. Vicious hand-to-hand fighting claimed heavy mujahideen casualties, but his men succeeded in pushing the Soviets out of the area.”
He became a hero of the revolution, and a divine character of Islamic fundamentalism. Apart from being a glorious fighter he also turned into a religious leader, but still remained a down-to-earth person. The report quotes Hamza Mohammed, a Palestinian volunteer fighter; “He was a hero to us because he was always on the front line, always moving ahead of everybody else.” He continues, “He not only gave his money, but he also gave himself. He came down from his palace to live with the Afghan peasants and Arab fighters. He cooked with them, ate with them, dug trenches with them. That was bin Laden's way.”
http://www.islamicsupremecouncil.org/extremism/RadicalMovements/UBL/legend-wrong_main.htm
(Researched and Compiled by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani and Mateen Siddiqui. Published In ‘The Muslim Magazine’, Vol. 1 No. 4)
The Western Opinion
Bin Laden’s Declaration of War on the US – “A Global Jihad”:
After the successful recapture of Afghanistan, bin Laden focused on defeating the last remaining imperial superpower: the United States. He accused them of supporting the Israelis, who are located in the 'Holy Land'.
“You [Americans] will leave when the youth send you wooden boxes and coffins, and you will carry in them the bodies of American troops and civilians”, bin Laden vowed in an exclusive interview with an ABC News correspondent, “Allah ordered us in this religion to purify Muslim land of all non-believers, and especially the Arabian Peninsula where the Ka’aba is, which he went on to proclaim can only be cleansed through jihad.”
“This group and its leader, a person named Osama bin Laden, are linked to many other organizations in different countries, including the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.” (George. W. Bush)
img src= http://www.newwartimes.com
Cf: FBI ‘most wanted terrorists’ website:
http://www.fbi.gov/mostwant/terrorists/terubl.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1609184.stm
http://www.adl.org/terrorism_america/bin_l.asp
George Bush said: “The terrorists practice a fringe form of Islamic extremism that has been rejected by Muslim scholars and the vast majority of Muslim clerics; a fringe movement that perverts the peaceful teachings of Islam.” Karen Armstrong, author of a best-selling book about Islam, reports that the "vast majority of Muslims […] are horrified by the atrocity of Sept. 11."
Islamic Voices
In fact , many Muslims stated that the violence of terrorism contradicts the basic principles of Islam. This might be the opinion of a few educated western-oriented Muslims, but the point of view of the uneducated masses, who are easily instigated, remains unrevealed. In some Islamic countries hardly anyone publicly denounces bin Laden and his radical violence. Bin Laden achieved iconic status and enthusiastic pro-bin Laden demonstrations take place in many Islamic countries.
img src= http://www.baltimoresun.com/
Daniel Pipes claims the following in his article ‘Muslims love bin Laden’ of October 23, 2001:
“In the Palestinian Authority, a Bir Zeit poll found that 26 percent of Palestinians consider the Sept. 11 attacks consistent with Islamic law. […] An online survey of Indonesians found 50 percent seeing bin Laden as a ‘justice fighter’ and 35 percent a terrorist. More broadly, I estimate that bin Laden enjoys the emotional support of half the Muslim world.”
http://www.israelinsider.com/views/articles/views_0174.htm
Another Article from an Al-Jazeera TV special might clarify the populist opinion about bin Laden and the important role of the media as a tool of Islamic manipulating propaganda. Al-Jazeera presented a talk show "Bin Laden – The Arab Despair and American Fear." It was broadcast shortly before the terror attacks on America and praised Osama bin Laden as the hero of the Muslim world. They claimed that 82% of Arabs see Osama as jihad fighter, not terrorist.
The only Bin Laden critic was the Sudanese author Al-Hatem 'Adlan, who lives in London and leads the Al-Haq Democratic Forces Movement. Adlan stated that he perceived the "bin Laden phenomenon" as "part of a broader phenomenon of international terrorism ... the main goal of which is to seize power by violent means." Opposing him was Abd Al-Bari 'Atwan, editor-in-chief of the pro-Iraqi London daily Al-Quds Al-Arabi – a regular guest in the Western media presenting the "Arab viewpoint." The majority of the show's callers, and the host, praised bin Laden and called the US a terrorist regime.
Some of the most interesting pro-bin Laden statements in the Al-Jazeera TV special "Bin Laden – The Arab Despair and American Fear":
"Bin Laden is not a terrorist, as Brother Adlan claims. In the eyes of Muslims throughout the world, bin Laden is fighting a Jihad for the sake of Allah…”
"I am looking at the viewers' reactions for one that would support your positions – but, unfortunately, I can't find any [against bin Laden]. All show unprecedented support for bin Laden."
"There was an opinion poll in a Kuwaiti paper, which showed that 69 percent of Kuwaitis, Egyptians, Syrians, Lebanese and Palestinians think bin Laden is an Arab hero and an Islamic Jihad warrior. ... 65 percent claimed that attacking American targets was justified, because it [is implementation of the principle of] 'an eye for an eye,' and because the American slogan is 'Might is Right' ... 76 percent would be sorry if bin Laden were caught.”
"You demand democracy and such things – here's democracy for you. This is [the opinion of] the people. Besides, I have a poll on the [Al-Jazeera] Internet site. Out of 3,942 people who responded, 82.7 percent saw bin Laden as a Jihad fighter, 8.8 percent as a terrorist, and 8.4 percent didn't know. This is an actual result about which there can be no argument. There is an Arab consensus from the Gulf to the [Atlantic] ocean. A real 82 percent – not like percentages in elections in Arab countries."
Sources:
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=25802
http://www.islamfortoday.com/fundamnetalism.htm
http://www.israelinsider.com/views/articles/views_0174.htm
George W. Bush - Terrorist or Capitalist Hero
George W. Bush is often celebrated as a hero by the citizens of the United States and for some other people in the world this might be understandable. But in other regions, especially in the Middle East, many people call him a terrorist. Why there are people who glorify him as a hero and why there are others which call him a terrorist? This is the question we will try to answer.
George W. Bush: the capitalist hero
img src = georgemustgo.blogspot.com/ 1
He could see what many pundits and tertiary politicians did not care about the assault on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center. He knew that America had a right and duty to react with force. His choice was legally and morally legitimate” (Chapin). So there is no doubt that there are people who are proud of what their president did in Afghanistan or Iraq. Some even call the days which followed the attacks as his finest moment, because Bush reacted like he instinctually knew what to do. The wish for revenge for most of Americans was very strong and Bush reacted the way they expected. At this time the feeling of staying together was prevalent in the United States and so his words, when he visited Ground Zero in September and brought the American flag with him, had a special effect on the people. As everybody knows, the American flag is a very strong symbol for the strength of America and their people and also for American unity. By bringing the American flag to Ground Zero he symbolically stated that America, even when it is hurt, is strong and will stick together to fight those people who hurt them. What made him even more a hero was the fact that he fought back without the help of other nations. A lot of people are really proud of their country, because they don’t need anybody to protect themselves: “As always, Bush ignored the whimpering of the chattering classes and moved swiftly to eliminate the viability of the Taliban and Al Qaeda. Thanks to George W. Bush our enemies now know that simmering, smoky, third world graves await those who viciously murder Americans” (Chapin).
Bush is also a hero because of his character, his decisiveness, and his emotional stability. He is full-heartedly an American citizen who believes in the American spirit and the “
Declaration of Independence – the perfect man to be President of the United States. His strong belief in God strengthen him in whatever he does and so he feels he has the legitimacy to what he has to do. His leadership and the restoration of the security of the United States makes Bush a hero.
George W. Bush- The Terrorist
Many people are convinced that the United States has an unelected leader that was put in power during the coup of 2000 not by the people of America, but by himself with the help of other offenders. Some Americans have a poor opinion about their President and his behavior towards his own country and other nations. “We have a sadistic President bush who used to be content to mock people on death row who were begging for their lives, now playing in the big leagues”, says Webber in his article at http://www.nogw.com. Before Bush came to office as the President of the United States he was the governor of Texas, an office which includes imposing the death penalty. A lot of the advocates of the human rights look at this as a deed of terror. And now someone who acts like a terrorist towards his own people becomes the President of that country.
A lot of people blame Bush for his narrow contact to Israel. People all over the world are convinced that Bush is just a marionette of the Israeli government, “We have Zionist controlled Israel who now controls America and is morphing the 2 countries together.” (Webber). (This site is very anti-Zionist in general and sets up some very radical assertions.) The United States has killed thousands of people to fight against Terrorism. “They have killed more than 3000 Palestinians, 10000 Iraqis and 3000 Afghan civilians, committing untold war crimes and crimes against humanity. The war crimes in Afghanistan are perhaps the most repulsive. They include the use of Tactical Nuclear Weapons and massacres of prisoners of war. Thousands of Taliban prisoners were killed while being transported in airtight shipping containers without food, water or air. Once the prisoners arrived, over 600 Taliban POWs who survived the containers' shipment to the Shebarghan prison ... were taken to a spot in the desert and executed in the presence of about 30 to 40 U.S. special forces soldiers," according to Webber. And this all happens in the name of the American President.
http://www.commondreams.org/views01/1221-01.htm.
If it was because of the oil or because of showing the immense power of the United States after the attack does not matter, because it is irresponsible and in the opinion of many people it was an act of terrorism. That is why a lot of Americans are blaming their President directly as the responsible for the deaths of thousands of people in the WTC. Here is what a mother, whose son died in the WTC, and who went to Supreme Court to blame Bush, wrote to her President personally:
img src = thorandersen.tripod.com/ art/wantedbush.shtml
“You, Mr. Bush, should be held responsible and liable for any and all acts that were committed to aid in any "cover up" of the tragic events of September 11, 2001. As President you have a duty to protect the American people. On September 11th you did not instruct your staff to issue a nationwide emergency warning/alert to advise us of the attack on America. We had to receive the news of the attacks via the news networks.” For a mother and others who lost a loved in the WTC this is terrorism.
911 Victim Ellen Mariani Open Letter To The POTUS
Thursday, 27 November 2003 http://www.commondreams.org/views02/0601-01.htm
The next issue what makes President Bush a terrorist in some people’s opinion is the fact that he interferes in countries without any legitimacy. The best example for that is the Iraq war. President Bush did not have a UN-mandate to attack Iraq. The searchers of the UN did not find any biological or chemical weapons in Iraq and so there was no reason to start the war. But Bush was not interested of what the United Nations or other countries were saying. So what was the reason for killing thousands of innocent people? There is none. It is therefore understandable that a lot of the Islamic people see the attack as an act of terrorism against their people. Many critics from throughout the rest of the world, including Americans, agree with their opinion. Let us now look what happened there after Saddam Hussein and his regime was brought down. The torture of the prisoners in Abu Ghraib prison was a really terrible occurrence and the people who did this to the prisoners have to be tried for it. But what makes it more terrible is the fact that Bush and his administration knew before the press releases that their soldiers were acting against the Geneva Convention. “An article in the May 24 issue of Newsweek titled "The Roots of Torture" reveals that White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales wrote a January 25, 2002 memo to Bush, urging him to disregard the "obsolete" and "quaint" provisions of the Geneva Convention. He advised the Bush administration to do this precisely because the interrogation methods it was already using on prisoners captured in Afghanistan violated the Convention, leaving U.S. officials open to prosecution for war crimes.”, Sweet wrote in his essay. Some people say that the soldiers were told by their government to do what they did, something which has not been proved. But even to know that the President about the United States and his Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, knew about what happened in the prison puts them in the position of terrorists which act not just against the Geneva Convention, but also against human rights, something which President Bush likes to stress in his speeches. “Even if Bush and Rumsfeld did not personally order the violation of the Convention, Article 12 of the Convention holds them -- not the individual soldiers directly involved -- responsible, as the leadership of the "Detaining Power," for the maltreatment of detainees. Thus, in theory, not only General Sanchez but President Bush and his Defense Secretary Rumsfeld should be placed on trial for violating the Geneva Convention, and also the 1996 federal War Crimes Act, and the Torture Convention” (Sweet). All these points might make it understandable why some people consider Bush a terrorist. He does not act like the Islamic terrorists, because he tries to act under the law, but this does not excuse his behavior.
Sources:
http://www.commondreams.org/views01/1221-01.htm
http://www.commondreams.org/views02/0601-01.htm
