The new phenomenon evolving in the West of elements who are joining extremist groups, and their raison d’etre, must be taken and dealt with seriously.
In his recent speech to the Australian Institute of International Affairs titled “Evolution of terrorism — and what it means for Australia”, Mr David Irvine, the Director-General of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), said ASIO’s Act of 1979 definition of terrorism is “…acts or threats of violence or unlawful harm that are intended or likely to achieve a political objective, whether in Australia or elsewhere, including acts or threats carried on for the purpose of influencing the policy or acts of a government, whether in Australia or elsewhere…”
Notwithstanding the lack of international consensus on the definition of terrorism, I find ASIO’s definition interesting primarily for its frank admission of the political connection and motivation behind acts of terrorism. But what is lacking in this admission is any mention of the policies which the terrorists want to influence or change.
While the Western governments, especially the USA, Britain, Canada and Australia, are shy to address the policies propelling acts of terrorism, devoting all their efforts to covering-up on those policies and shifting attention to artificial and absurd motives which have nothing to do with what fuels the perpetrators of terrorism, we find the terrorists themselves are not as shy to indicate the policies which drive them to commit their violence.