arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)

Reflections on the terrorist attacks in Madrid

Dear Editor,

Although it is beyond doubt, that the Madrid attacks, which were
committed at the 11th of march with as a result that 201 people were
killed and more than 1400 were badly injured are very grave
violations of human rights, which must be punished very severly
according to international judicial principles, it is very important
to look at the deeper- lying backgrounds concerning terrorism.


The phenomenon terrorism:

In the first place, terrorism is neither a new phenomenon, nor an
isolated factor without causes.

In the Europe of the fifties of the last century, especially in the
France, there was a gulf of terrorist attacks, committed by the OAS,
an extremely right-wing political organisation, consisting of
military officers and French colonists who opposed the Algerian
independence.

The contemporary terrorism, however rejectable, is mostly being
caused by economic-politically and military unequal powerrelations
in the world between the Western countries and the Third World and
also by the sometimes grave repression of undemocratical
governments in the Third World, which are often being financially
and military supported by the powerful Western countries.

The media:

Those unequal powerrelations are also reflected in the
information-policy of the Western media.

It is striking, that there is mostly very much media-attention for
the victims of contemporary terrorism like the victims of the
WTC-attacks, the Palestinian suicide-attacks and the named Madrid
attacks in contrary with the thousands of victims of the
political-military conduct in the world for which mostly the Western
governments are responsible.

Striking examples are the great lack of attention for the many
Palestinian victims of the military conduct of the Israeli army in
the occupied Palestinian territories, the many Tjetjenian victims of
the Russian military conduct, the thousands of Iraqi
civilian-victims , due to the British-American bombings on Iraq last
year and the thousands of Afghanian civilian victims of the
Britis-American bombings in the attack on Afghanistan in 2001.

By this media-policy of not laying any causal connection between
committed terrorist attacks and
the Western military conduct in the Middle East it is impossible for
the Western public opinion to see the causal connection either.

Causes:

Of course terrorism has a complexity of factors.

Apart from the political-military conduct of the named powerful
countries there are more causes like the unequal division between
rich and poor in the world [roughly divided in Third world countries
and western countries].
Besides structural poverty-problems like climatological
circumstances, this great gap between rich and poor is mostly being
maintained artificially by unequal economical treaties and gigantic
debts, which are not resolved, unless there is a special political
interest in it [for example when a tgird world country is prepared
to support the Western countries, especially the USA in the
'''battle against terrorism'']

It is obvious, that above-named circumstances, combined with the
named military conduct inthe Middle East, leads to much hatred and
bitterness.


ETA or moslim-organisations:

Although it is a possible option, that the Madrid attacks are being
committed by moslim-organisations [but till now there is no serious
proof in that direction] it is in respect of the ETA striking again,
that the media and politicians are always referring to the
rejectable terrorist attacks of the ETA, but never to the political
conduct of the Spanish autorities, which not only suppressed the
Bask population without having any respect for their political and
cultural rights, but also are gravely violating the rights of
ETA-prisoners by often torturing them and subjecting them to very
bad detention-circumstances, while the honesty of their trial is
often dubious.

Also racist attitudes play often an important role by the treatment
of Maroccons and Africans who live in Spain, especially from the
side of the Spanish police.

In several reports respected human rights organisations like
Amnesty International [http://www.amnesty.org] and Human Rights Watch
[http://www.hrw.org] have condemned Spain regarding their conduct against
prisoners and the Maroccons and Africans.

Moslimorganisations:

It is commonly known, that Spain has been one of the head-supporters
of the British-American attack on Iraq last year, long before the
war was a fact.
Also was Spain one of the first countries to send troops in order to
support the British-American occupation army in Iraq.

I don't have to recall the course of the war [more than 6000
civilian deaths, mostly due to the internationally forbidden
clusterbombs, the arbitratily shooting of American troops on Iraqi
civilians at checkpoints or at demonstrations, which are serious
violations of human rights and the bad treatment of prisoners] in
details.

In each case it is obvious that this war has further enlarged the
hatred against the USA, Great-Britain and their supportig allies,
which is also the nutrition for further terrorist attacks, although
rejectable as military attacks on innocent civilians.

Reviewing the tragic Madrid-attacks it seems to me of the greatest
imprtance to look after the causes that lead to terrorist attacks.

Of course terrorism must be punished very strictly, but according to
the internationally judicial principles of a fair trial, a good
treatment of the possible attackers, clear proof and good
detention-circumstances.
At the other hand it is of the greatest importance to look after the
causes which lead to terrorism.

If governments negate the causes and take draconical measures in
return, which are mostly contrarily to human rights principles, it
will only lead to more hatred and renewed terrorist attacks.


Astrid Essed
Amsterdam
The Netherlands

What about state terrorism ? The author's vision of our wolrd is, as it is the case for lots of us, a childish view of a world where (occidental) political leaders can't be bad enough to kill innocent people. That is for arabs and poor people, but not for (occidental) political leaders.

It looks like the Bologna killings are already forgoten. At the time politicians and media accused PLO AND the red brigades. It is only a few years later that some of the true terrorists were trialed (but with much less media coverage than accusations expressed by these same media just after the attack). The terrorists were people from the political and military establishment, that is the government (they were alleged members of the Gladio network, set up by the CIA to organise terrorist attacks in order to charge communists and anarchists). But you can't put a complete government in jail, so you punish just a few of them and the show can go on. And it works, because today most of us, as the author of the above article, remember the former accusations but not the later trial.

(Sorry, ken niet voldoende Engels, dus doe ik het maar in het Nederlands).
I.v.m. die aanslag in Madrid blijf ik toch met een aantal
"waaroms?" zitten. Waarom een aanslag in een land waar de grote meerderheid van de bevolking tégen de oorlog was? Waarom een aanslag uitgerekend op gewone mensen en niet op leden van de regering? Waarom een aanslag op net die laag van de bevolking waarvan
misschien een groot deel tegen de oorlog heeft betoogd? Er is gezegd geweest dat die aanslag géén onderscheid maakte tussen regering en bevolking. Fout. De terroristen hebben dat onderscheid wél gemaakt: ze hebben ervoor gezorgd dat ze op de eerste plaats, ja zelfs uitsluitend
gewone mensen zouden treffen die juist tégen de oorlog waren. Er is gezegd geweest dat die aanslag de prijs is die Spanje moest betalen voor zijn deelname aan de oorlog. Fout: de ongeveer 200 doden zijn de prijs die arbeiders, studenten, bedienden en immigranten hebben moeten betalen voor hun protest tegen de oorlog. Zo'n aanslag kon alleen rijpen in het brein van extreem-rechtse etterbakken. Vandaar mijn conclusie: ofwel heeft Al-Qaeda geen moer met die aanslag te maken, ofwel (en dat is mijn indruk) is Al-Qaeda een fascistische mantelorganisatie van de CIA. Zie trouwens het artikel onlangs in De Morgen over de banden tussen het "moslim-terrorisme" en extreem-rechts.