Eradicating Poverty Could Be One of the Most Effective Ways of Eradicating Terrorism

chillibreeze writer — Raja Ranjan

The economic aspects of terrorism

The issue of terrorism is often viewed through the prism of political, religious and ideological connotations. However, a closer look at the cause and effect of terrorism would reveal the inherent economic issues related with it. The force of hunger alone has the potential to transform into a destructive force of anger directed against an illusionary enemy, with innocent people and institutions being the victims. As Professor Samuel Huntington puts it, terrorism is not a mere war between religions, regions or even civilizations but the battle between the haves and the have-nots. Most often, the places that generate and breed terrorism and other related criminal activities such as drug & narcotics trafficking, money laundering, extortion, etc. are the economically and politically instable regions where poverty, hunger and isolation have resulted in terrorism and violence.

The Vicious Cycle

In the era of transnational economies, the incidents of terror not only unleash immediate fear and panic but a spiraling wave of economic recession across the globe causing irrecoverable loss and damage. This again creates a vicious cycle of poverty, economic backwardness and political instability in poorer regions leaving them a fertile ground for terrorism and other organized criminal activities. The incidents like 9/11 in the US and the most recent 7/7 in UK have proved that the tentacles of terrorism have reached the rich nations as well.
This global phenomenon and its huge economic fall-outs have added a new dimension to the analysis of economic development and necessitate a wide range of discussions and deliberations. The major areas of contemplation would be; the huge spending on security and anti-terrorism activities, impact on international trade and trading costs, influence on business and market environment and the changing insurance sector.

The Instigators and the Instigated

It's not a question of who instigates but who get instigated. The poor and deprived are vulnerable targets for the rich and powerful. As long as a section of the population remains poor they can be brainwashed and made to work for a few pennies. It's difficult to locate and destroy the instigators, but we can weaken them by dismantling their breeding ground.
At another level, no one can deny the fact that most of these terrorist outfits were once patronized and promoted by the rich nations for their own political goals and these nations have dug their own grave. They have a moral responsibility to eliminate the terror outfits with the help of a global coalition.

Reject Terrorism

It's very difficult to imagine a single method that could be a panacea for all these problems as each one has a unique origin, ideology, operating method and geography. So we have to deal with them case by case with a simultaneous effort to bring a permanent solution based on political, economic and social considerations. This can only be possible if and when all countries and governments realize that "Those who live by the sword will die by it too" and should out rightly reject any form of terrorism even if it is by their own people on their own soil. But I have to confess that all these sound too ideal to be possible.

Terrorism as an Economic Problem

Therefore all nations should, both individually and collectively, address the issue of terrorism as an economic problem, along with corrective measures in the form of military action and spreading the ideology of good will and hope. A society with an equitable distribution of wealth and power is the only way to eradicate terrorism. Until we do that, terrorism will remain a Damocles Sword over our neck and will continue to be a nagging threat in the 21st century.

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Raja writes for Chillibreeze