War on terror 'threat to civil liberties'<\/p>\n
Ivy Susanti, The Jakarta Post, Hanoi<\/p>\n
The global campaign against terrorism has missed the target and
\nhas violated civil liberties, delegates at a forum said in Hanoi
\non Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Ben Hayes from Statewatch, a London-based non-profit group
\nthat monitors state and civil liberties in Europe, said that
\nthere were similarities of government responses worldwide in the
\nwar against terrorism. He also noted that the empowerment of
\nsecurity apparatus in many countries had turned into a
\nprospective security business.<\/p>\n
\"The war against terror has become the war against democracy,\"
\nHayes told the fifth Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) People's Forum
\nmeeting while talking about antiterrorism and people's responses.<\/p>\n
The three-day forum was formally inaugurated on Tuesday in the
\nVietnamese capital.<\/p>\n
Hayes identified seven methods of dealing with terror issues,
\nwhich in turn have been \"terrorizing the global society\".<\/p>\n
He said that the campaign had encouraged the government to
\ngive extended power to the national police. \"They delegate power
\nto quiet popular protest, and there is also a new role for the
\nmilitary within the domestic police.\"<\/p>\n
For example, Indonesian police received additional powers
\nunder the new terrorist law, which was passed after the Bali
\nblasts in 2002.<\/p>\n
The new responsibility is followed by the building of a global
\n\"security industrial complex\" - which operates like multi-
\nnational corporations - promoting new technology of control and
\nnew methods of developing the domestic police, Hayes said.<\/p>\n
He also pointed out some questionable methods to prevent
\nterror attacks, such as detention without trial - often based on
\n\"evidence\" allegedly obtained from other suspects imprisoned in
\nplaces such as in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.<\/p>\n
Hayes went on that say there had been a contamination of
\nmigration and development policies, particularly in the European
\nUnion (EU), and it had consequently blurred the lines
\ndistinguishing terrorists and migrants, which included the
\nglobalization of surveillance and control particularly in air
\ntravel -- as demanded by the United States.<\/p>\n
\"The presumption of innocence, which is the basic right in
\none's legal standing, is yet another casualty,\" Hayes said.<\/p>\n
Laura Loudenius, a peace activist from Committee 100 in
\nFinland, commented that there should be more public discussion on
\nmilitarism, policing and security business to control these
\nactivities. \"The fastest growing sector is the security business,
\nbut we need more public debate.\"<\/p>\n
She suggested the public debate be carried out in the media to
\nraise public awareness. She also said that terrorist attacks
\nwere not all about economic powerlessness, but more of a cultural
\nissue, in which groups of people were perceived as \"the Others\",
\na concept that had detached them from the whole of society.<\/p>\n
Scholars said that some states had oversimplified the term
\n\"terrorism\" and failed to take the social and political contexts
\nthat prompts such violence into consideration.<\/p>\n
Achin Vanaik of the Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and
\nPeace in India, told the gathering that some countries fell short
\nof recognizing the differences between state and non-state
\nterrorism in their strategy to fight terrorism in their own
\ncountries. Consequently, a group of people who fight for justice
\nand economic equality could also be viewed as potential
\nterrorists.<\/p>\n
\"Both give different messages. In the non-state terror, the
\nmessage is addressed in two directions: the state and the whole
\npopulation. While state terror is aimed at the state's
\nopponents ... The essential problem is the state terrorism,\" said
\nthe fellow at the Transnational Institute, a research
\norganization based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.<\/p>\n
\"To recognize any political terrorism means to recognize the
\ncontext. Terrorism is not a pathology and it is not
\npathological,\" he added.<\/p>\n
He said one way to address the problem of terrorism was to
\nstrengthen international law and institutions.<\/p>\n
The ASEM People's Forum is being attended by people's
\norganizations, citizens' networks, social movements, trade unions
\nand non-governmental organizations from Asia and Europe. This
\nforum, aimed at enhancing understanding of social issues and
\ncooperation, is part of the ASEM Summit, which will be held next
\nmonth in Hanoi. It is also aimed at promoting the role of civil
\nsociety in the cooperation between the two continents.<\/p>",
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