Bombay Blues

I wrote the following essay few years ago following a discusision with friends about Palestinian freedom struggle or their acts of terror. I tried a great deal to understand if terrorism can be justified or reasoned at all. I now regret even spending that time trying to think what could drive these people to such insane and horrendous acts. Yesterday the images of terrorist attack on my beloved city left me gutted and sick in my stomach. What good can anyone achieve over so much death and destruction?

Excerpts from my essay:

Terrorism is the random use of violence to fulfil political motives that inflict pain and suffering on innocent people and damages on public property. An individual who commits such violent acts for his cause and which he thinks is justified - is a terrorist.

Today, almost every continent, every country is facing the threats of terrorism. Why are people resorting to such measures for achieving their ends? What causes can be identified for the mushrooming of such groups?

Fundamental differences and dissatisfaction with the government are the major reasons for people resorting to violence in order to meet their demands. Many times equal rights and respect are denied to people belonging to a particular group which can lead to hatred against the rest of the society by such groups. Poor social and economic conditions lead to unemployment and general unrest in the society. In such a scenario, the formation of terrorist groups is reactionary. Once a person is enrolled into such a cult, he is then often caught in its net by threats of the group itself.

A genuine cause can, indeed, be identified with a terrorist group, but it is rather rare. Even in such cases, it is a blind, irrational devotion to a cause which provokes the terrorist to commit acts of random and meaningless violence. It is these random acts of violence which makes terrorism such a dreadful crime. When in action, the terrorist simply seeks to destroy everything and anything which comes his or her way. The terrorist ensures greater attention to his problems by targeting the innocents.

We the sufferers of terrorism denounce the kind of violence adopted by terrorists; there is no case for defending such acts on grounds of morality as they bring about death and destruction to people without warning, mercy or reason.

The terrorist in his quest for his rights thinks little of destroying rights of others. However deeply we study the causes of growing terrorism, even understand the motivation behind it, we cannot find any reason good enough to justify it. Even if we leave aside moral and ethical issues and try to think from ‘their point of view’, we fail to find a justification for it hardly ever accomplishes its objectives.