Radicalism rooted in an inferiority complex

Radicalism rooted in an inferiority complex

Asher Tauran, Jakarta

Finally our public debate about terrorism has reached a
reasonably transparent level. Many may doubt whether the articles
entitled Poverty not a cause of terrorism and enlisting clerics
on war on terror is strategic (The Jakarta Post, Dec. 5) could
have been published some years ago as an eye opener for the 2000
Christmas bombings or the Maluku and Poso sectarian violence.

While in those days the people in Maluku and Poso were facing
the realities of religious fanaticism on a daily basis, the
general public and government at that time were busy competing in
expressing their most fanciful conspiracy theories, linking Tommy
Soeharto's jailing, Gen. (ret) Wiranto's hunger for power, Lt.
Gen. (ret) Prabowo Subianto's megalomania, the Indonesian
Military (TNI) and much more.

In the meantime, many clerics in our country were totally
convinced that their law-abiding, God-fearing, pious and
religious followers simply could do no wrong and quickly pointed
their fingers to their favorite whipping boys, the perpetually
naughty Americans.

Now, we have finally stopped burying our heads in the sand and
are all wondering why? What sort of people become terrorists and
why? Now this is tricky. Without clearly defining "terrorism" any
discussion regarding the subject may be more often than not an
exercise of finding common ground in its definition.

The essence of terrorism for a large part lies in the
unwillingness and/or inability to achieve one's objective through
peaceful means. One can only guess about the reasoning for
following a path of violence as a consequence.

When we talk about people who do not get what they want and
then react using violence as a consequence, we are merely talking
about the human psyche. Religion, ideology, politics all matter
and are all relevant, but it would be wise to scrutinize the
psychology behind the killer in greater detail.

I remember my college days when the "Mr. A" and not "Miss B"
question regarding Nazi cruelty was highlighted from a
psychological angle. Central to this theory was a sense of pride
and belonging, (the Nazi party, the SS, Hitler Jugend and other
select affiliated organizations, etc.), loyalty to one leader
(Hitler) and one credo (Heim ins Reich), an easily identifiable
and vulnerable enemy (the "bloodsucking" Jew, untermenschen in
general), a vision of greatness (the Third Reich), symbols (the
Hitler salute, reverse swastika, the black, Totenkopf SS
uniforms) reference to past glories (Bismarck) and a sense of
being unjustly victimized (treaty of Versailles).

The bottom-line of the psychology behind the Nazi madness was
a longing for greatness. What more could trigger such longing
then a long period of a (perceived) sense of inferiority? For
some that sense of (perceived) inferiority is simply unbearable.

To escape that sense may be worth killing for, or better yet,
dying for as a (superior) martyr for whatever religious,
ideological or political reason.

The writer is a graduate from the University of Amsterdam
(European Studies). He can be reached at
principe@indosat.net.id.