DEFIANCE OF TERRORISM
A Vision from Latin America
Crl. Arturo Contreras Polgatti
The terrorism, as political phenomenon, has been present in the American continent since the finish of the II world war. In a first period, from 1946 to the finish of the Cold War, it was associated to movements with totalitarian left ideas from Cuba and the Soviet Union, principally, which employed tactics in order to impose a revolutionary government.
As that threat affected the fundamental values of the western civilization the US development a strategy of national security oriented to promote military governments in a Latin America in which the weakness of the democracies did the states an easy objective for the revolutionary movements. Consequently, their main objective was change the legal authorities for revolutionary governments.
Since the finish of the cold war to the 11.SEP.2001, the phenomenon was associate to minority groups in very precise zones of the hemisphere, like Colombia in the context of a three generations of civil war, and in Peru, with movements such as Luminous Path and Tupac Amaru, which promoted a revolutionary change inspired in the Maoist ideology. In both cases, the terrorist phenomenon had a low intensity, with the only exception of the attacks to the AMIA building in Argentina.
In the attacks of the 11.SEP., with an action of a vast strategic and political reaches, the world understood that the terrorist phenomenon has been situated in an upper stadium of development and of complex motivations. This action marks a milestone in the study of the theme, upon transforming in a political line of action of global nature against the U.S. interests. In this context, the phenomenon was assimilated by Latin America more by affecting the integrity of an important neighbor, than the terrorism to be cross the states of the region.
In synthesis, we are in a new setting, where the terrorist groups don’t want to change a regimen in an specific state. By the opposite, their political objective is certainly, to affect the values and the way of life of the western culture, represented by the US which is seen in his extremist vision, as the cause of the present wrongs of the world.
About the question ¿How successful has the US government been in establishing the principle that the international terrorism is a threat shared?, we can distinguish two phases.
First, since the 11SEP to the start of the Iraqi crisis. In this phase the american government received the endorsement and the international solidarity to carry ahead the total war against the terrorism. All the international forums recognized the concept that the terrorism is a transnational threat that should be fought in a multilateral way. Consequently, this first phase went very successful, every time that consensus existed and the international community undertake this flagellate in multidisciplinary, common and cooperative form, supporting the actions of US. In that way nobody doubt about the need of the militarily action in Afghanistan in order to finish with the Taliban government, as development agent of terrorism in a global level.
The second phase goes since the start of the crisis with Iraq, to the present. In this period, the unanimity of the international community in support to United States begun to deteriorated and eventually the international cooperation against the terrorism would been affected as a result of the military action against Iraq without the consensus of the UU.NN. In equal form, the situation will affect the credibility of the U.N. and eventually the international security system that she represent
I think that the strategy for development should be consider these events, which weakens the multilateral action and the center of gravity that the international community should maintain, in order to win in the war against the terrorism.
The terrorism is a global political phenomenon, in which combat it should be employed all the resources of the power of the states and also all the instruments that require a unite world community to coordinate the multinational action to confront the terrorism in a holistically form..
From this point of view, the US has been successful introducing and building a consensus among the governments of the states of Latin America. In fact, in the agenda of the Organization of American States; the Interamerican Meeting of Defense; and in the Hemispherical Conference of Ministers of Defense, the theme has been recognized as the main element of the common security agenda.
However, some states have problems to consolidate their sovereignty in all their territories. In fact, there are big empty areas of interior borders which make possible that groups of terrorist organize in them operations bases far from the state control. Colombia is an example of it. Of equal forms, the areas around the triple border, among Paraguay, Brazil and Uruguay, presents conditions for an strategic alliance between wounded organized crime and the international terrorism.
In that way, the governments with this problems have an important challenge to consolidate his presence and authority in all their respective territories limiting the conditions that make possible that radical groups acquire a territorial liberty of movements.
Another problem is the fragility of some states by the endemic economic, social and political problems which open spaces for populist solutions, situation would be affect the regional stability and security. In this context, the terrorism can found good social conditions for his activities.
The US has been successful in Latin America in the transference of his politics against the terrorism, which has been included with priority in the agenda of the main organizations and instances of security and cooperation in the zone. However, the role of US has a vital importance to generate, together with the states of Latin America, the conditions that make possible the economic and political stability that the region requires, for a solid democratic system and for a sustainable development condition, that in my opinion, is needed by the American national security and would be a direct contribution to her.
Regarding the need for closer cooperation among military, government and the private organizations, with allied and friendly nations to fight terrorism is widely recognized. How has this been accomplished in Chile and elsewhere in the region?
As I expressed previously, the battle to the terrorism demands the action arranged and organized of all the society, because the challenge requires the coordinated action of all the factors of powerful of the state. Therefore, it should be part of an integral process of planning that permit the harmonic application of decisions and actions in different areas and levels of the social life and under the direction of the government. However, that needs a mutual confidante between all the sectors of the social life. In that way in the Chilean transition to the democracy worked together civilians and the army forces in order to apply de constitution and the law to overcome the recently history. Now we have a united society with solids institutions. Bat our case is singular. In other parts of the region persist a division between civilians and militaries and that problem needs a solution to be successful in this circumstances
Consequently, the cooperation between the organs of defense and the agencies of security of the societies; the action of the governments articulating the employment of all the resources of the state; and the commitment of the civilians, conforms the base of the battle against the terrorism.
In other way the region does not present a homogeneous reality about the terrorism as a transnational threat, because it doesn’t affect with equal intensity to the different countries, so that the priority for the governments is not always coincident. For example, in the region are states with economic, social, political and corruption problems that affect the respective state processes with uneven intensity. In fact, there are some countries which institutional or structural fragility are a problem to adopt integral decisions to fight against the terrorism in a successful form.
But Latin America obtained good success, in the regional organizations, in which the theme has been assumed in a complete consensus, to apply decisions according to the different situations and realities that the region lives. In this way in the American States organization, the JID, and in other instances as the defense ministers meetings, in the conferences 2 + 2 of defense and foreign affairs minister; and in the summits of presidents, the theme has been deep debated, being agreed an hemispherical cooperation that has given fruits in different environments.
However, some difficulties had been detected as a consequence of constitutional or legal aspects of the different countries. Some of them permit the participation of the army forces in the antiterrorist fight but in other countries this action is explicitly prohibited.
Another thing especially interest is the lack of specialized intelligence agencies which be able to exchange information, to work joint in the watching preventively to the potential terrorist groups and to act when it be necessary.
Also it is necessary to consider that in the region exist conflicts between states by historic demands or for unclear borders.
However, the regional panoramic is encouraging since the governments are been taking decisions in a multilateral way. That circumstance is permitting an adequate coordination of the capacities of the region.
In relation to the most significant obstacles than the government of US will face in meeting the objectives of the National Security Strategy and the national counter terrorism strategy within the region, we can visualize the following:
The American strategy considers that the countries should exercise fully its right on their territory with the purpose to apply the law to control criminal or terrorist groups. In this context, there are states which have not a real presence in all their geography. That situation demand a greater commitment of US with the development and the consolidation of the local states in the most critical areas of the region.
That will request to surpass misunderstandings in order to see that presence and the cooperation of the US, forming part of a common effort of security and social developing. Consequently, the US would be persist in the ALCA option, as a tool to fortify the economy of the region helping in that way to consolidate the democracy and the states of the region.
Another aspect, the national security strategy considers to act in preventive form and if is necessary unilaterally. In that context is pertinent to considerate the historic position of the Latin American countries which privilege the multilateral option in the solution of the conflicts, the not intervention in internal matters and the full respect to the sovereignty of the states. More still, any use of the military power in their traditional position to be supported by the NN.UU or the American States Organization, as the main referring of regional security, aspect what has remained in evidence in the crisis with Iraq.
However, I think that the new National Security Strategy is a good instrument to stimulate an effective approach of the US to the region, mainly, through a political and strategic talk and with a deeper economic cooperation in order to facilitate the consolidation of the development of the states.
Regarding the evaluation of the role of the regional alliances of security and the multilateral organizations in the war against the terrorism, it is necessary to say that all the regional organizations were organized to confront the military threats of the Cold War. Consequently they should be modernize to permit confront the not traditional threats.
In this aspect, the regional organizations also have to assume the effective coordination with economics, security and defense organizations of other regions, as the APEC, because it is absolutely necessary to have an holistic vision to prevent the not traditional global threats.
In that way I think that in the new hemispherical vision of security, it should be incorporate all the military and civilian organization of the region in order to surpassing the distrust among the military and civil worlds and confront together the terrorist threat. This fight demands national and international cohesion, unit, coherence and coordination, and in that task, all the Latin American instances have a role to comply.
CONCLUSIONS.
To confront the new threats is vital to generate in the international environment the major possible multilateral consensus, to isolate and to neutralize the international terrorist. In the case of America is necessary besides fortify the north-south relationships in order to work together to build an economic and political development which permits to the states of the region a complete political consolidation.
This, in my opinion is the most important thing in this process because we are sure that the destiny of the Americas, of the north, central and south, is only one and indivisible, and in that task all the region have a compromise in the preservation of the liberty and the values of our civilization.