Agenda

Fourth Committee

Terrorism

by
Jessica A. Wilken

“The question is not only how many lives have been lost in each
attack, but how many futures have been lost in their aftermath.” 
US President Bill Clinton 

Terrorism is an international crisis that cannot be solved solely on the national level. Solving the problem of terrorism must include defining what terrorism is, understanding the causes, considering what measures must be taken to prevent it, and eventually deciding how to punish individuals or groups that commit terrorist acts.

Definitions of Terrorism
Definitions of terrorism vary. The FBI defines a terrorist incident as “a violent act or an act dangerous to human life, in violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any state, to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social goals.” The US State Department’s Office of the Coordinator for Terrorism defines terrorism as, “premeditated politically motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents, usually intended to influence an audience.” The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) defines terrorism as, “the use of force or violence against persons or property. . .for purposes, of intimidation coercion or ransom.” The United Nations’ Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombing defines a terrorist bomber as “a person who unlawfully and intentionally delivers, places, discharges or detonates a bomb, explosive, lethal or incendiary device in, into or against a place of public use, a State or government facility, a public transportation system or an infrastructure facility, with the intent to cause death or serious bodily injury or the destruction of such a place resulting in major economic loss.” Jonathan White, author of Terrorism: An Introduction, categorizes his definitions of terrorism: simple -- violence or threatened violence intended to produce fear or change; legal -- criminal violence violating legal codes and punishable by the state; analytical -- specific political and social factors behind individual terrorist acts; state-sponsored -- terrorist groups used by small states and the communist bloc to attack western interests; and state -- power of the government used to terrorize its people into submission. 

History of Terrorism
“Acts of terror are old as history itself. But terrorism in our times has grown from a national to an international to a global threat,” stated Secretary-General Boutrous Boutrous-Ghali on United Nations Day in 1996. Examples of recent terrorism abound. In 1972, members of Black September raided the Olympic village in Munich killing 17 athletes. In 1978, former Italian Premier Aldo Moro was kidnapped and murdered. The US Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, was bombed in April of 1983, killing 16 people. In December, of 1988, a bomb destroyed Pan American Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 people. Terrorists exploded a bomb in New York City’s World Trade Center, killing six people and injuring more than 1,000 people during February of 1993. In April 1995, a bomb destroyed a federal building in Oklahoma City killing 168 people, including 19 children.

Another form of terrorism is biochemical terrorism. Biological agents are infectious microbes or toxins used to produce illness or death in people, animals or plants. Biological agents can be dispersed as aerosols or airborne particles. Often because of the lack of detectability terrorists target contamination of food or water sources. As long ago as the 14th Century the Tartars catapulted dead bodies over the fortified walls of Kaffa in an attempt to introduce a plague. Recently biochemical terrorism has become the most feared form of terrorism. On March 20, 1995, poisonous gas was released into a Tokyo subway system killing 12 people.

United Nations Action Against Terrorism

The Secretary-General stated on December 16, 1996:

No one country can separately deal with terrorism as terrorists move across borders. It requires the exchange of information to contain terrorists. I also believe that the United Nations can undertake tangible steps to prevent the spread of terrorism. Helping release hostages is one thing and saying we will take charge of combating terrorism is another. The only thing we can do is to bring Governments together to exchange information and work together so terrorists will not feel immune and realize that the circle around them is getting tighter. They will know that they are not protected if they are across the border. It is equally important that we deal with the root cause of the problem, which led them to terrorism, as it is seen by some as weapon of the weak. Terrorism could erupt from the feeling that a person is oppressed and has no voice except through terrorism.

To date, 11 international instruments have been established dealing with specific manifestations of terrorism, such as hijacking, bombings, and hostage taking. In 1996, during the 51st General Assembly, the United Nations established the Ad Hoc Committee on Instruments to Combat International Terrorism through Resolution A/51/210. This committee was instructed to draft an international convention for the suppression of acts of nuclear terrorism and of terrorist financing and concluded its third session in May of 1999.

In December of 1997, the General Assembly adopted the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings. The 24 article Convention made no distinction between terrorist acts and the activities of national liberation movements, which had been a point of debate. The 54th General Assembly was deeply disturbed by the persistence of terrorist acts. The Assembly strongly condemned criminal acts intended or calculated to provoke a state of terror for political purposes. It urged all States to become parties to relevant anti-terrorist conventions and protocols, and enact domestic legislation necessary to ensure the prosecution of perpetrators of terrorist acts. Also in 1997 the General Assembly passed a resolution from the third committee that “unequivocally condemn[s] terrorism.” The General Assembly would have “the General Assembly condemn violations of the rights to life, liberty and security and would reiterate its unequivocal condemnation of terrorism. . .”

In 1999 the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian, and Cultural) approved a resolution that “declared the methods and practices of terrorism to be activities aimed at destroying human rights.” (It was approved with a recorded vote of 93 in favor, 0 against, 63 abstentions). In December of 1999, the United Nations recognized that a significant measure against terrorism would have to come from a reduction in the financing that was supporting the international terrorist community. The Assembly adopted “An international convention designed to cut off funding for terrorist activities.” Adopted on the recommendation of the sixth committee (Legal), “states would be required to make the provision of such funding a criminal offense under their domestic laws, and to confiscate assets allocated for terrorist purposes.” The Assembly called upon all states “to enact legislation to implement the provisions of the specified anti-terrorism conventions and protocols to ensure that perpetrators of terrorist acts were brought to trial.”

Questions for further consideration:

1) Can the main causes of terrorism be identified? Can the UN take preventive measures to reduce the causes? 
2) Interrupting the financing of terrorists is another method of prevention but an international agreement must be implemented for this to be effective. What are the sources of financing for terrorism and how can they be combated?
3) Recalling past terrorist acts of biological warfare, how can the international community safeguard food and water sources? As states in the UN, can we provide protection to safeguard underdeveloped nations against biological warfare? What do we do to limit the creation of biological agents?
4) The recent terrorist acts against UN personnel and national embassies have created a heightened sense of the need for security. How do we ensure the safety of UN peace workers from terrorist action? 
5) What action should the UN take, if any, against nations that harbor known terrorists? Should sanctions be applied for countries that finance terrorist activity?