Anti terrorism

Youjung Kwon

kwon1996@gmail.com

   As society advances simultaneously with the expansion and amalgamation of various nations and cultures, terrorism and anti terrorism movements have gained momentum over the past few years. The abysmal episode of the 9/11 attacks and recent IS terrors among Middle Eastern nations have intimidated governments and struck fear into individuals all over the world. In order to alleviate this paranoid atmosphere, the Korean government promulgated and enforced a new Anti Terrorism legislation, number 14701 on May 3rd, 2016. In this article, we plan to examine the definition, purpose, and dynamics of anti terrorism, and finally the controversy that it stimulates.

   Anti terrorism legislation aims to prevent terrorism, prepare the nation for imminent danger, and protect its people from the threat it projects. “Terror,” according to anti terrorism laws, is defined as the unlawful use of force to intimidate or coerce against the government or local agencies for social objectives. Terrorism has five notable characteristics: First, it is premeditated. Second, it is directed at a wider audience than the victims. Third, it attacks random yet symbolic targets. Fourth, these acts are perceived by society as abnormal. Lastly, it tries to influence political behavior in some way, such as to persuade revenge tactics or undermine the government.

   During the 1970s, Italy suffered from the Red Brigades, a national terrorist group. They were led by Marxist university students that were ready to rise up against their "capitalist masters." They committed more than 10,000 terrorist acts throughout Italy, including kidnappings, bombings, political assassinations, and shootings, killing over 400 people. As the Red Brigade’s violence germinated over the years, the Italian government increased the authority of the police to stop them. One of the most successful tactics the Italian government used was to reduce the sentences of convicted terrorists if they volunteered to provide information about the Red Brigade activities. Many eventually decided to cooperate with the authorities, and the Red Brigade consequently began to collapse. By the mid-1980s, the Red Brigades were nearly extinct. This way, Italy was able to successfully counter its threat.

   However, although there have been effective measures taken to combat anti terrorism, there have been times where repercussion diverged from those actions have occurred. In the case of the US, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI, the US’ prime law enforcement organization) was criticized severely for consistently phone tapping without a warrant. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the FBI had used an elaborate program called Stingray in order to eavesdrop on suspicious phone calls over the past five years. Stingray is a system that includes an antenna, computer software, and a particular installation, and imitates a phone base station in order to connect to a phone without direct connection. When this fact was leaked, the FBI was denounced nationally. However, there was only public rage that took place, but no specific actions were taken in order to change the system. This was a public instance where an anti terrorism countermeasure had backfired.

 

   As expected, Korea is also going through controversy after this anti terrorism legislation was passed. The arguments of those who agree are as such: first, the nation is protected by a minimum amount of safety. As Korea has been a divided country with constant threats from the North, there is more need for the government to be cautious. Most of OECD countries have already passed counterterrorism laws and ran institutions that act as a control tower. However, domestic counterterrorism regulations are very weak, for there is a total of only five legislations related to terror statutes. Second, those who support anti terrorism assert the importance of premeditated elimination of those who are in great suspicion of terror acts by eliminating a small portion of everyone’s rights, rather than fully taking away everyone’s right to be safe. Lastly, ordinary citizens are not inspected, meaning there is no risk of personal information to be exposed or hacked.

 

   However, there is another side that disagrees to this legislation. Their reasons are as follows: when the government has the right to gather information without the consent of individuals, there is a possibility to abuse this power. This inevitably leads to those in power becoming only stronger with this dominance. Anti terrorism legislation opposes the basic human rights stated in the constitution, disregards the existing separation of powers, and fully goes against warrant requirement laws. Second, the anti terrorism law’s definition of “terrorist” is flexible and vague, meaning that anyone can be defined within this category with a bit of fabrication and comprehensive investigation. Although the nominal objective of anti terrorism laws was intended for the good of everyone, the end does not justify the means. In other words, individual rights should still be respected.

 

   Then what is an appropriate measure that the government can take in order to properly counter this problem? In a broad view, the government must focus on increasing education. Prevention is better than a cure, but unfortunately, our laws are more to serve as a cure than prevention. Nothing is better than fundamentally understanding the differences between one another to reduce hate and terrorism. On a more elaborate view, the government must modify the legislation that they have passed. The indiscriminate power to investigate without a warrant must be reassigned from the National Intelligence Agency to the counterterrorism center. Also, an institution of restraint must be set up in order to rein in rash decision-making.

 

   The recently passed anti terrorism legislation has created a permanent burden for the government and the nation. There are still many that hold suspicion against each other and authority, let alone uncertain regulations. Hardly a week goes by without an act of terrorism affecting innocent people in the wrong place and wrong time. When the nation is able to finally reassure its people, countering this scourge will become much easier.