Terrorism; Is The World Losing The War?

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The war against terrorism seems not be achieving its objective and it also seems as if the terrorists are gaining more grounds and unleashing more terror on the world. Different tactics are employed by the people involved, even as the various nations are also trying their hands on different tools of curbing this act of violence and intimidation.

Several countries have suffered one form of terrorist attack or the other. The Lockerbie attack of 1988 is still fresh in our memories; the Saudi attack, the American embassy attack in Nairobi, the Indian attack by Pakistani terrorists, the attack on Egypt, the Madrid attack, the London attack, the Ugandan attack, and the September 11 attack on the United States of America, etc all indicate that the end to these acts does not seem to be near at sight.

The attackers seem to be shifting their well coordinated activities from one continent to the other. And when everyone is about to heave a sigh of relief, a new act of terror is unleashed. The developed countries of the world have employed their sophisticated technology to try to curb this trend but to no avail. They have even made some mistakes in the process of diagnosing the existence of terrorism in certain parts of the world.

Recent revelations that Iraq did not pose any threat before 2003 are instructive; it therefore means that adequate investigations should be conducted before raising an alarm as to the existence of terrorism. Wrong diagnosis is bound to worsen the situation rather than bringing it under control, since some of the people involved have always complained of oppression, intimidation and marginalization. There is therefore need to apply caution in handling this menace that is threatening the corporate existence of the world.

Since the use of force has not helped in bringing the situation under control, there is therefore the need to try other methods such as:

1.Dialogue: Dialogue remains the best way to solve a problem, especially the one that is hydra-headed. It is obvious that when a man realizes he is being forced to do a thing, he hardens his mind to do exactly what he feels pleases him and not what should please the next person. But when all come to the dialogue table, what could not be achieved on the battle front could be achieved. Think of how long America has been in Afghanistan and Iraq: the use of sophisticated weaponry has not stopped the stubbornness of the Afghan or Iraqi people.
2.Racism: Racism has also been one of the issues raised by the people involved in these offensives. There is need to stop racial discrimination or at least reduce it to the barest minimum in order to make those who have hitherto complained of racism to feel wanted by the world. Nobody should be made to exist in isolation on account of regional backwardness, poverty, illiteracy or colour difference.
3.Religious re-orientation: All major religions preach tolerance and the sanctity of the human life. However, some of the religious leaders have twisted the interpretation of their holy books to suit their personal selfish motives. They have brain-washed their followers to believe that there is gain in violence, killing, maiming, religious intolerance, religious wars, arson and suicide bombings. There is need therefore for Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism, etc to re-orientate their followers to adhere to the provisions of their holy books and stop wasting their lives and that of other people. They should realize no one goes to heaven by killing another person (in whatever guise) or by committing suicide.
4.Change in curriculum: Government should also play a major role by adding religious tolerance into the curriculum of both primary and post primary schools so that every student should know right from elementary level that God does not in any way support violence. They should be made to respect the religious views of others without coercing anyone into accepting their own views. They should also be made to understand that Christians and Moslems are from the same grand parent – Abraham; as such there would be need to tolerate one another.
5.Cultural exchange: There should be cultural exchange between countries so they could understand the core values of one another, and ensure that the various cultures are respected. Cultural exchanges would foster unity amongst nations and reduce their level of hostility and intolerance toward one another.

The world would be a better place to live in, if we learn to tolerate one another and respect each other’s cultural and religious differences. We would no longer live in fears or sleep with our eyes open; the lives of future leaders, teachers, professors, engineers, nurses, doctors, accountants, pilots, pastors, imams, industrialists, etc would no longer be wasted. When human lives are no longer wasted, the world would develop at a faster pace, and everyone would be happier living together.