DATE=4/17/2000
TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT
TITLE=TERRORISM CONFERENCE
NUMBER=5-46143
BYLINE=MICHAEL LELAND
DATELINE=OKLAHOMA CITY
CONTENT=
O
VOICED AT:
INTRO: This Wednesday (April 19th) marks the fifth
anniversary of the worst terrorist act committed on
United States soil. The bombing of the Murrah Federal
Building in Oklahoma City left 168 people dead and
injured 500. This week, Oklahoma City is hosting an
international conference on terrorism. The meeting is
designed to assess how terrorism has changed during
the last 20 years and to try to predict its future
course. V-O-A's Michael Leland has more.
TEXT: The conference is a follow-up to a similar
meeting held in 1980 by the RAND Corporation, a
California-based public policy research organization.
It has joined with the Oklahoma-based Memorial
Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism for this
year's meeting on the changing nature of terrorism.
Some areas of terrorism have changed little in 20
years, such as the continued presence of state-
sponsored activity. Experts say changes include an
increase in the number of terrorist groups or
individuals who seem to be motivated by religious
beliefs. They cite Aum Shinrikyo in Japan as one
example. Another change is a greater variety of
weapons at a terrorist's disposal. Assistant
Commissioner of Police at Scotland Yard in London,
David Veness, says more attention should be paid to
the possibility that terrorists might one day use
computers, or chemical, biological, radiological or
even nuclear weapons to threaten or attack.
/// VENESS ACT ///
It is generally advised that the threat is low,
but it is important to observe that it is not
nil. Inaction, therefore, is not an option. A
C-B-R-N (chemical, biological, radiological,
nuclear) terrorist attack will predictably
produce a greater social impact than
conventional weaponry. It is not only a crime,
but also a public emergency.
/// END ACT ///
Former Swiss Defense Ministry analyst Jean Francois
Mayer says preventing individuals or groups from
committing terrorism can be difficult because there is
usually no single factor that suggests a person or
group will commit a violent act. He urged local and
national officials to be alert for more subtle signs
of trouble.
/// MAYER ACT ///
Past cases show us that violence at a low level
often preceded more serious acts of violence or
terrorism.
/// END ACT ///
A Senior Advisor at the RAND Corporation, Brian
Jenkins, cautioned against expecting protection from
all forms of terrorism. He says one advantage
terrorists have is the ability to attack just about
anything, anywhere, at any time. But, he says people
should not begin living life as if they are always in
danger, and need to balance individual freedoms with
the need for safety.
/// JENKINS ACT ///
We may suffer casualties but we will not be
moved by terrorist violence or the fear it
creates. The less panic, the less paranoia, the
less of a public demand for responses that
threaten our liberties.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Veness of Scotland Yard says the Oklahoma City
bombing is an example of how a terrorist can catch a
community off-guard. But, he says, it is also an
example of how to fight terrorism - by rebuilding what
was destroyed, and using the attack as a starting
point for additional research and discussion of
terrorists' methods and motivations. The Institute
for the Prevention of Terrorism here in Oklahoma City
is designed to do just that. It will become the
United States' leading center for terrorism research
and education. (Signed)
NEB/MJL/TVM/gm
17-Apr-2000 19:11 PM EDT (17-Apr-2000 2311 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
