The Concept of Terrorism That Takes on a Whole New Dimension with Regard to the Sophistication - Coursework Example

Risk Management Order No. 366868 ‘Tomorrows terrorist may be able to do more damage with a keyboard than with a bomb’ (Daniel A. Morris, National Research Council, 1991) Introduction As the world enters into the 21st century, the concept of terrorism takes on a whole new dimension with regard to sophistication, manipulation and depth of destruction. In addition to this, science and technology have greatly advanced and progressed in leaps and bounds during the last few centuries and the acts of violence and destruction have progressed along the same lines. Conventional terrorism in this information age that we live in, has ushered in a new trend in terrorism that threatens to destroy the peace and harmony among its inhabitants. The “New Age Terrorism” that we speak of today, acts as a potential threat that would even go to the extent of destroying the world. This kind of terrorism includes, ‘cyber -terrorism’, techno-terrorism’ and “chemical warfare” where information warfare tactics are used, to help terrorists plan and execute their nefarious activities while disrupting the peace and harmony in society. While this new age terrorism seems to be advancing at an alarming rate, the laws of legislation seemed to be changing at a very slow rate. This wide disparity has left a yawning gap in the departments of safety, security and risk management. This essay makes an attempt to investigate and analyze the laws governing our society and the impact it has with respect to safety of the common man and the measures that are taken to bring down this factor while increasing the level of security and safety of life and property. The backdrop used for this analysis are the crashes of the 911 which took place in 2001. Background of the Essay One of the most gruesome scars on contemporary society is terrorism which has crossed all boundaries of humanity. One of the recent occurrences was that of the hideous and catastrophic terrorist attack on the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center that has gone down in history as one of the most massive acts of terrorism ever to have taken place in the history of any country. The 9/11 attacks has been a very important trigger that gave a whole new dimension to the organization of Risk Management. This terrorist attack by members of the Al- Qaeda headed by Osama – bin – laden had targeted the twin towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon building on 11th September 2001. It was these attacks that held great significance and ushered in the concept of “New age terrorism” throughout the world especially in places like the USA and the UK. There were four planes that were hijacked and used for the purpose of terrorism. Two of the hijacked planes were targeted to crash into the Twin Towers, the third plane targeted the Pentagon and the fourth plane crashed into a vast open space in Pennsylvania. The common factor that we find when comparing all these crashes was that there was absolutely no hint of warning as to what was about to take place, right up to moments before the gruesome attacks. Research analysis carried out on the 9/11 attacks show that there were no negotiations whatsoever on the part of the attackers, nor any hint of alert for safety of life and property. Records show that attacks of this kind had never taken place before in the history of the world. This study attempts to outline certain salient facts of the 9/11 attacks and use this as a backdrop to better understand the concept of new age terrorism and the impact it has on the different areas of Risk Management. The study also intends to help us get the right picture of terrorism as it exists today and help us understand if we are in a position to face such catastrophes in the future and how well equipped we are to meet such emergencies. Literature Review Definition of New age Terrorism Defining terrorism is quite a difficult task as it encompasses many things put together. Further, Media coverage of different terrorist encounters has confounded things making it all the more difficult to define. As Walter Laqueur states, “Even if there were an objective, value- free definition of terrorism, covering all its important aspects and features, it would be rejected by some for ideological reasons.” (Walter Laqueur, 1987) The New age terrorism of contemporary society is diametrically opposite to what existed in ancient times. Today, terrorism has a whole new dimension that includes many different kinds of terrorism. For example, Cyber terrorism is terrorism that takes place exclusively in cyberspace and the weaponry made use of by a cyber- terrorist includes malicious software and other electromagnetic pulse generators and other devices that destroy vital information. Techno- terrorists on the other hand do not engage themselves in any physical destruction but rather they rely on their cyberspace counterpart to provide publicity for its cause. Both Cyber- terrorism and Techno- terrorism could be included in the concept of new age terrorism since their activities disrupt the peace of society and causes a lot of violence and destruction. Nowadays a terrorist group could have few members but yet have a global reach. Poor states fall a prey to the richer states who entice its members with their money power and big promises and brain wash them into carrying out their criminal activities. Risk Management Though prevention is better than cure, yet people never learn from mistakes and it is inevitable that what cannot be cured has to be endured. Risk management and the management of safety and security has always been a highly debated topic on the do’s and don’ts in relation to different catastrophic situations. In lieu of the safety and security regarding life and property during disasters, Brian Toft and Simon Reynolds have come out with a compelling book on disaster management titled, ‘Learning from disasters’ Brian Toft and Simon Reynolds (2005) which gives us a deep insight as to how the different organizations for risk management formulate and implement their policies and procedures for managing disasters in trying to prevent future disasters. Their book demonstrates both theoretically and practically why people fail to learn lessons from past disasters. In such a scenario, history is bound to repeat itself time and again because of man’s careless attitude towards risks involved and safety measures that should be taken prior to the catastrophe. Toft and Reynolds (1997) explains why the various organizations of the risk and safety management failed to deliver during a crisis. In different studies they analyzed disasters and concluded that sometimes technical reasons were the cause of failure but at most times the failures were connected to poor hindsight of risk and safety management in the various organizations. According to them good risk management was not only a state of mind but also a state of the art. Toft and Reynolds (1997) According to O’Connell, the Chair of Thunderbird’s International Risk Management organization, bitter lessons are more readily accepted and made use of in our daily lives only after such tragedies take place. (Sandy Smith, 2002) He also states that we have to learn, the past in order to make better preparation for the future. Analyzing the catastrophic events that took place at the WTC, O’ Connell comes up with a couple of startling facts faced by the risk management team when the tragedy occurred. The first step in preparing ourselves to meet future emergencies is that we have to change our way of thinking according to the contemporary “new age terrorism” because terrorism today is quite different to what that was in the past. The right mind set to deal with terrorism today would make it much easier to accept and follow the different changes in the various institutions of risk management. O’Connell gives us a good example of an important area of change which is communication. Referring to the scenario at the WTC he states that "communication broke down because various agencies were using incompatible equipment and different frequencies." (Sandy Smith, 2002) He stressed on other key areas of improvement such as modern and standardized equipment, proper access to intelligence and other institutions of risk management, long term stress debriefing and most importantly good training lessons not only for the firefighters but also for police personnel belonging to different rescue units and other personnel belonging to the various emergency departments within the institution of public safety and risk management. O’Connell also stressed the need to do away with redundant and damaged infrastructure and to equip ourselves with the state of the art communications systems and other standardized equipment using the latest technologies and make the systems available to the public for their safety. He also stated that there was a dire need to introduce a common command system and procedures and allow access to the public. He felt that making use of the media to impart awareness training programs to the public that would greatly help them to implement such a system in a more successful manner. O’Connell makes reference to the physical and psychological health of the survivors of the tragedy and also that of the care –providers. The strong infrastructure using modern day technology and equipment for building the physical and psychological health of all those affected should be established so that the restoration process is much quicker and much more effective through various relief and restoration programs. In addition, the reassurance from the rescue workers and the building of ‘a sense of community’ would go a long way in helping to restore normalcy in the life of an individual. Salient Laws of Risk Management Clive Walker, professor of Criminal Justice Studies and James Broderick (2006) have written a book on the ‘Civil Contingencies Act 2004 that demonstrates a deep understanding of factors such as risk management and resilience in relation to the laws governing the United Kingdom. Their book gives us a deep insight into the theoretical and legislative issues that make up the administration of our society and the impact they create on the constitutional and human rights issues. Clive Walker, who is a big name in the arena of terrorism laws and the laws governing the civil contingency, enlightens us on the important factors of risk and resilience especially during emergency situations. Prominently featured in his book are the controversies surrounding the recent legislation against terrorism and how to cope in difficult situations with the existing laws. Some of the problems he enumerates in his book are on industrial strikes, shortage of power and water supply, climate changes, catastrophic events during floods and drought, disasters occurring in the food chain and fuel strikes of 2000. The highlight of his book centers around terrorism in relation to the catastrophic terrorist attacks on the WTC in 2001 and further on that of biological and chemical weapons of our contemporary world. Walker’s insightful book provides us with a vital understanding because it gives us a detailed explanation of the civil contingencies act that is divided into three main parts. The first part deals with the planning aspect, while Part II examines in detail the powers of the regulatory and emergency acts. In Part III, Walker makes a thorough examination of the operational and organizational resources presently available and tries to bridge the gap with implementation of enhanced theoretical and legislative laws which could have a great impact on constitutional and human rights issues. In comparing the laws that previously existed, Walker states that they have to be revolutionized in order to meet the emergencies of present day terrorism. In implementing new laws the cost would far exceed its benefits, but even so would be indispensable during disasters. He strongly felt that the public should be an indelible part of the system by educating them on the laws that govern the society in relation to risk management and resilience during disasters. By doing this, the public would be more aware of how to react and help each other during different catastrophes. Such an education would go a long way in helping to save both life and property especially during disasters. Problems faced by ‘New Age Terrorism’ Times and attitudes keep changing at a greater rate than the legislation governing safety and risk management. The Royal Society has published an indispensable bestseller that encompasses an authoritative report of important discussions and debates from scientists, engineers and researchers alike. These debates and discussions are focused on the management and implementation of different risks faced by humans in our environment. Evidence shows that terrorism today has undergone a major shift when compared to terrorism in days gone by. Modern day terrorism portrays to be more harmful because of its sophistication in conjunction with the great advancement in modern science and technology. The terrorist today makes use of information warfare tactics which allow him to cause great destruction even without physical harm to individuals. They are quite capable of manipulating and implementing their deadly plans and hardly being detected before great violence and destruction is caused to human life and property and that too on a very massive scale. The present day information warfare tactics make it easy for a small group of terrorist to operate without the support of the big terrorist organization or sponsors of a wealthy state and create massive destruction even at the global level. State sponsored terrorism has almost come to a grinding halt as smaller terrorist groups distribute themselves across the globe and support themselves by carrying on their criminal activities. This newfound freedom of terrorism could be the death knell of the states if they chose to target them. Since the states lack control over such terrorist organizations, they’re not in a good position to counter the terrorist activities. Taking advantage of such a situation, the industry and business marketing organizations are evolving with targeted production which focuses on a select audience. Such groups are always on the look out for new technology that could get across their messages or actions that have been meticulously planned by terrorist organizations. This kind of cyber networking makes it all the more daunting for the crime squad to keep up with. In such a scenario, the task of security and the risk management institutions become all the more difficult as they are unable to plan and prepare ahead of time for any catastrophic event. In the past, the media played an exclusive role in broadcasting information around the world, but now with the introduction of the Internet and the Direct Broadcasting Satellites with more than 500 channels, terrorist groups have a field day in formulating, creating and distributing their news of all the activities to millions of people around the globe. The World Wide Web and the Internet are used extensively by terrorist organizations to plead their cause and get their “message” across to a global audience making the situation even more threatening and menacing. The Rationale behind “New Terrorism” People are no longer safe in the contemporary world due to the “new terrorism” that seems to have become part and parcel of the society. The trust and faith amongst citizens that was once there has now been lost. Joining a terrorist outfit seems to be quite the norm today because their rationale behind their thinking has taken on a totally different perspective. There are many reasons that contributes towards this rationale such as political power, disparity and the standards of wealth, poor economy, double standards of living and many such difficult situations that act as vicious circles forcing innocent people into becoming terrorist and the price they pay in terms of life and money is unimaginable. The Government’s Response to Terrorism The Government on its part is striving hard to wipe out terrorism but the process is slow and long drawn. The governments of countries like the USA and the UK have made a lot of amendments to their existing legislation in addition to bringing out many antiterrorism activities and policies to curb the escalating terrorism. The military has been called upon to play a major part in antiterrorism and asked to use force if needed. While the government focuses its attention on protecting the rights of its citizens in relation to the physical world, this is not possible in cyberspace. However, a lot of ongoing effort is carried out in the field of research and technology but still there is a long way to go before terrorism is drawn to a complete halt. The commercial sector is playing a major role in the development of innovative technology which is crucial to the present scenario. Both the government and the military are trying their best to adapt civilian products for the use of the military sector. Conclusion Trying to bring terrorism under control or wiping it out altogether seems to be quite an impossible task because of the information technology that has advanced beyond measure. Sensitive information is easily passed on undetected through the Internet that protects the person’s identity. Nowadays, the risk of terrorism is much higher and people are more vulnerable to dangerous situations. Moreover, There is no prior warning or any indication when any one catastrophe about to occur. Mass destruction to both life and property has become a familiar occurrence due to the “new age terrorism”. No amount of vigilance and security can stop terrorists if they decide to carry out their plans of killing and bloodshed. Though man has become more civilized over the years, yet he still remains a primitive in the area of safety and security towards others. Unless each individual person brings about a change within himself, can the world become a much safer and secure place to live in. References Brian Toft and Simon Reynolds (2005) Learning from Disasters, A Management Approach, 3rd.edn. Palgrave Macmillan, Perpetuity Press Ltd. Clive Walker and James Broderick (2006) The Civil Contingencies Act of 2004, Risk, Resilience and the law in the United Kingdom, Pgs. 412, Oxford University Press. Daniel A. Morris, Tracking a Computer Hacker, National Research Council, USA Bulletin, 2001 Information Age Terrorism by Matthew J. Littleton www.fas.org/irp/threat/cyber/docs/npgs/terror.htm Sandy Smith, (2002) Risk management expert unveils lessons Learned from the 9/11. www.ehstoday.com/news/ehs_imp_35625/ Royal Society Publishing (1992) Risk Analysis, Perception and Management. Pgs. 199. Laqueur Walter, The Age of Terrorism, Boston; Little, Brown & Company, 1987, pp. 149 – 150. Terrorism – The Problems of Definition www.cdi.org/friendlyversion/printversion.cfm?documentID Read More

There were four planes that were hijacked and used for the purpose of terrorism. Two of the hijacked planes were targeted to crash into the Twin Towers, the third plane targeted the Pentagon and the fourth plane crashed into a vast open space in Pennsylvania. The common factor that we find when comparing all these crashes was that there was absolutely no hint of warning as to what was about to take place, right up to moments before the gruesome attacks. Research analysis carried out on the 9/11 attacks show that there were no negotiations whatsoever on the part of the attackers, nor any hint of alert for safety of life and property.

Records show that attacks of this kind had never taken place before in the history of the world. This study attempts to outline certain salient facts of the 9/11 attacks and use this as a backdrop to better understand the concept of new age terrorism and the impact it has on the different areas of Risk Management. The study also intends to help us get the right picture of terrorism as it exists today and help us understand if we are in a position to face such catastrophes in the future and how well equipped we are to meet such emergencies.

Literature Review Definition of New age Terrorism Defining terrorism is quite a difficult task as it encompasses many things put together. Further, Media coverage of different terrorist encounters has confounded things making it all the more difficult to define. As Walter Laqueur states, “Even if there were an objective, value- free definition of terrorism, covering all its important aspects and features, it would be rejected by some for ideological reasons.” (Walter Laqueur, 1987) The New age terrorism of contemporary society is diametrically opposite to what existed in ancient times.

Today, terrorism has a whole new dimension that includes many different kinds of terrorism. For example, Cyber terrorism is terrorism that takes place exclusively in cyberspace and the weaponry made use of by a cyber- terrorist includes malicious software and other electromagnetic pulse generators and other devices that destroy vital information. Techno- terrorists on the other hand do not engage themselves in any physical destruction but rather they rely on their cyberspace counterpart to provide publicity for its cause.

Both Cyber- terrorism and Techno- terrorism could be included in the concept of new age terrorism since their activities disrupt the peace of society and causes a lot of violence and destruction. Nowadays a terrorist group could have few members but yet have a global reach. Poor states fall a prey to the richer states who entice its members with their money power and big promises and brain wash them into carrying out their criminal activities. Risk Management Though prevention is better than cure, yet people never learn from mistakes and it is inevitable that what cannot be cured has to be endured.

Risk management and the management of safety and security has always been a highly debated topic on the do’s and don’ts in relation to different catastrophic situations. In lieu of the safety and security regarding life and property during disasters, Brian Toft and Simon Reynolds have come out with a compelling book on disaster management titled, ‘Learning from disasters’ Brian Toft and Simon Reynolds (2005) which gives us a deep insight as to how the different organizations for risk management formulate and implement their policies and procedures for managing disasters in trying to prevent future disasters.

Their book demonstrates both theoretically and practically why people fail to learn lessons from past disasters. In such a scenario, history is bound to repeat itself time and again because of man’s careless attitude towards risks involved and safety measures that should be taken prior to the catastrophe. Toft and Reynolds (1997) explains why the various organizations of the risk and safety management failed to deliver during a crisis. In different studies they analyzed disasters and concluded that sometimes technical reasons were the cause of failure but at most times the failures were connected to poor hindsight of risk and safety management in the various organizations.

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