European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10

UTA. September 18-19, Paris

PRESENTATION: Victims considered as civil society: a rational and effective weapon against terrorism
(Proposal to integrate victims of terrorism in public ethics of our democracies)

Agata Serran1 Rey Juan Carlos University SUMMARY: I. Introduction

II. Abandon the orthodox (and simplistic) view of terrorism as a conflict reduced only to the state and terrorists. The role of victims and civil society. III. Placing victims in the fight against terrorism: civil society as a rational weapon against terrorism. The Spanish case. The British case. The Italian case. IV. Conclusion

I.

INTRODUCTION. Although in recent decades, society and citizens unfortunately

have suffered many attacks by terrorist groups, the concept of victim of terrorism is still not very well defined. Both the political and social significance level of victims, in some cases, remain completely rejected and their role in the fight against terrorism has not yet become fully valued.

Degree in Political Science, Universit della Calabria (Italy). Master in Terrorism Analysis and Prevention at Rey Juan Carlos University (Spain). Today is keeping a Ph.D. in Terrorism Analysis and Prevention at Rey Juan Carlos University, Madrid.
1*

European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

To mark the twentieth anniversary of the bombing in 1989, against UTA flight 772 to Paris, which we remember today, I think it is of fundamental importance to remind ourselves who are the true victims of terrorism. What meaning should take them into society, and what type of role would be appropriate for the fight against terrorism. Firstly, decide who is the real victim in a terrorist conflict and who is the terrorist. Clarify the various distortions of victim which often arise especially in the terrorists' narrative and their environment. Secondly, I will discuss the needs for victims of terrorism to be visible socially / politically, both for their personal dignity and for social and political awareness of what happened in order to overcome the conflict. Thirdly, to talk about the importance of peaceful, social attitudes to rejection and condemnation of violence and potential terrorism, using civil society and victims as a rational weapon against terrorism2. During my speech, I will mention some terrorist conflicts, particularly the experience in the Spanish Basque country, the British experience in Northern Ireland and in Italy. The decision to highlight some characteristic features of such conflicts, reflects the belief that they are the most representative of the terrorist conflicts in Europe, because of their intensity and duration. Europe has suffered for the best part of the twentieth century. ignoring other experiences in the world. In fact, no terrorism is better or worse than another or more important, because it is always brutal. If we refer to the victims, they are always innocent, and are of various nationalities. II. ABANDON THE ORTHODOX (AND SIMPLISTIC) VIEW OF TERRORISM AS A CONFLICT REDUCED ONLY TO THE STATE
2

However, this choice is not

About civil society as rational weapon againsts terrorism see SERRAN, A., Le armi razionali contro il terrorismo contemporaneo, Giuffr Editore, Milano, 2009.

European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

AND

TERRORISTS.

THE

ROLE

OF

VICTIMS

AND

CIVIL

SOCIETY. As discussed above, in the rhetoric of many terrorist groups we see that the terrorists who perpetrate violence, are the real criminals and perceive themselves to be victims of injustice, for an offence committed by an enemy that they have imagined/identified. But in reality: who is truly the victim of a terrorist conflict? The victim never kills. The real victim of terrorism is one who suffers violence caused by terrorists for no reason, being an innocent victim. The innocence is the first thing which suffers, resulting from the action of someone who has decided his fate. We cant consider victims in all parts of a conflict. The terrorist considers himself a victim of the conflict, to stop him taking responsibility for the aggression that has taken place, and thus devalues the true victim. Although you cannot be indifferent to the suffering of prisoners and their families, this is not comparable to the suffering of the victim. Terrorists are not victims but are responsible for a brutal crime, a violation of human rights3. Regrettably, this conduct/failure to not take responsibility by the terrorist is reproduced similarly in the social and political attitudes of individuals who live in the area of terrorist conflict. Without participating in violent acts, the society that lives for many decades with the terrorist conflict can live with the murder and extortion of citizens, avoiding comment and in the worst case, justifies it. Thus, again, it victimizes the actual direct and indirect victims of terrorist attacks because, in addition to the violence, they are then the object of some neglect, a reduction/denial of its significance, a guilty isolation4.

REYES MATE, Justicia de las vctimas, terrorismo, memoria, reconciliacin, Anthropos, 2008, p. 67-87. Ibidem

European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

Cristina Cuesta, daughter of Enrique Cuesta, murdered by the ETA in 1982, testified that the victims in the Basque country have endured campaigns of harassment, slander, defamation, threats that often degenerated into deadly attacks. Most society isolated the forgotten victims, being suspicious, believing criminals directly, gossiping about the ETA and its environment to justify their actions, and especially demonstrating how to fear the boss5. That attitude is not only evident in the whole of Spanish society, but in the Basque society in particular. The invisibility of victims, surprisingly, may be caused by the most violent conflicts. According to a pragmatic approach and to justify the barbarity, the victims are often regarded as the political price that any society has to pay to progress, considering the terrorist murder of fate as inevitable or as a necessary step in history. However, the presence of the victim, regardless of their suffering, are significant both for their personal dignity and for social and political awareness of what happened and, so, to overcome the conflict. As stated by Reyes Mate, the victim sees something that others do not see. Therefore, I believe it is necessary for the victims of terrorism to be present, visible and active in society because they have a moral, legal, social and political significance, although the significance in most cases, for various reasons, ends up being minimized. that they have acquired rights. At this point, in the 21st century, the evolution of our rule of law, considers In our contemporary societies, the objective of our time with the victims of terrorism, should be to transform their dignity, in a moral and social way, to integrate, as part of the contents of the public ethics of democracy6. This conclusion, involves removing all obstacles to any group of intellectual content,
Cf. CUESTA C., La respuesta social ante el terrorismo y sus vctimas, in AA.VV, Las vctimas del terrorismo en el discurso poltico, Fundacin Miguel ngel Blanco, Editorial Dilex, Madrid, 2007. 6 About public ethic cf. PECES-BARBA; G., tica, poder y Derecho. Reflexiones ante el fin de siglo, Centro de Estudios Polticos y Constitucionales, Madrid, 1995.
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European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

social, political or legal, which might in some way and to some extent, as sometimes has happened, and is happening, within the rule of law reduce the status of victim of terrorism. To achieve the above objective it would be necessary to dispense with old prejudices, and leave behind the classical, simplistic vision, the phenomenon of terrorism, given the scale that it has achieved. It is necessary to consider the principals called upon to combat terrorism. Traditionally this role has been attributed exclusively to the state and its institutions, and civil society remained outside the terrorist conflict. It was understood from a narrow outlook, as only a conflict between the state and terrorists. This classical view of terrorism has caused great harm to the victims and the implementation as a collective value in our democracy. This is why a deal with terrorism is a big mistake considering civil society as the addressee, only passive in the violence. In truth it is part of the problem of terrorism with two dimensions. First, civil society is the real victim of terrorism, and, secondly, potentially has the capacity to become one of the largest mechanisms for combating terrorism. Civil society, and especially the victims of terrorism, can/should be the main principals and should enforce a peaceful weapon, that states no law should be missed in the strategy of combating terrorist brutality. In fact, before the socialization of violence that characterizes todays terrorist attacks, one of the best weapons would have produced the socialization of the fight against terrorism 7. Promoting an active role in combating terrorism with society and victims, we would need to abandon the traditional approach, whereby terrorism was conceived in the twentieth century and persists in many cases, until today. As I stated, this view of classical and state terrorism is perceived as a problem that affects only the state and, therefore, applies only for the state to resolve. According to this
7

SERRAN, A., Op. Cit.

European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

belief, which we call the myth of exclusivity of the state, the responsibility for solving the terrorist conflict lies with the state and also the institutions, which propose to defend, limit or avoid damage to subversive phenomenon. Clearly, this traditional approach ignores a key issue: those affected by terrorist violence are not only state institutions, territories and/with political-economical interests but also, and above all, people, citizens, and civil society8. Unfortunately, numerous academic and university studies that have been carried out during the last part of the twentieth century, including up to the present, have been built on the foundation that contains the myth of exclusivity of the state. If we examine most of the literature, occurring in countries affected by "years of lead", we note that in the eighties and nineties they were the object of studies of the experiences of terrorists, and never off the victims. They were interviewed in order to discover what were the ideas that led them to degenerate into such criminal acts. This "neglect" towards the victims of terrorism is a consequence of the classical mind on terrorism that has dominated and still dominates our contemporary societies. In fact, it persisted especially until the 1990s, in the Spanish context and, surprisingly, in many European countries still remains. Civil society relegated to a secondary role with respect to "terrorist" or "terrorism".

III. LOCATING VICTIMS IN THE FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM: THE SOCIETY AS A RATIONAL WEAPON AGAINST TERRORISM. Because of what has been previously said, it is relevant to highlight the dual role of civil society as a victim of terrorism and as a relevant player against this criminal phenomenon. The role of civil
8

Cf. URIARTE E., Terrorismo y democracia tras el 11-M, Espasa-Calpe, Madrid, 2004 and URIARTE E., Cobardes y Rebeldes, por qu pervive el terrorismo, Temas de Hoy, Madrid, 2003.

European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

society in three European cases of interest: the Spanish, British and Italian cases. a) The Spanish case. A constant demonstration of the effectiveness of this dual role is the activity of the many people involved in the associations of victims of terrorism, in particular the whole of Spain and the Basque Country. This work began to take effect in the early 1990s and so far has been incredibly important. In fact, collective and social rejection of terrorism, thanks to such partnerships, has voiced and represented in these decades, the majority of Spanish society that upholds democracy and opposes terrorist violence. Civic movements against terrorism in Spain have become, and remain a "social rebellion," that morally condemns this brutal crime and has advocated a peaceful and rational life, liberty and equality, and fundamental rights against the attempted imposition of violence and of a model of Stalinist-Leninist ethnic nationalism. We can define some attitudes of peaceful emblems of massive rejection of terrorism in Spain. One example is of the manifestation of the "spirit of Ermua," during the kidnapping and murder of Councilman Miguel Angel Blanco, on July 12, 1997, and in the same way the Madrid slaughter, perpetrated by Islamist terrorism on 11 March 2004 (192 dead and 1,500 wounded). In these two cases which are part of the history of Spain and Europe, there were shared emotions of millions of people defending the right to life. These are two models of the responses that have been given to terrorism, within the international community and possibly the most effective. We have shown the capability and capacity of responses of civil society as a rational weapon against terrorism. Despite the brutal assaults that Basque society has suffered for decades by the actions of the terrorist organization, ETA, and its social environment, society has not reacted with a personal vendetta

European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

but with the respect of the law9. The situation that exists in the Basque Country is defined paradoxically, within the rule of law. More than 200,000 citizens have been exiled from the Basque country. They have abandoned their land, their professions and their homes, under the threat of being killed. All the political party non-nationalists live permanently with bodyguards to protect their lives. The Basque government, democratically elected by Basque society, has been threatened with death just by being elected because they do not respond to ideas (ethno nationalists/Marxists- Leninist), who seek to impose their ideals, by a violent terrorist environment. b) The British case. However, as the social responses to the terrorist phenomenon largely vary, depending on the society in which they occur, and also because of the socio-political context, it is likely that companies which have suffered and/or suffer terrorism, may not always be active. The peaceful attitudes of rejection of terrorism are the results needed to strengthen counter-terrorism measures taken by the democratic rule of law. In fact, it is very common in societies characterized by strong polarization/fragmentation of society and a developed subculture of violence10, to respond to terrorist violence with violence. This is the case of the Northern Ireland experience, characterized by a sectarian society, divided into two rival communities, Republican/Unionist and Catholic/Protestant11. They clashed violently with each other for three decades. In 1998, with the signing of the Belfast Agreement in Northern Ireland, peace was agreed. However, after eleven years of agreement, we can state that they have not yet
ALONSO, R., La ulsterizacin de Euskadi, sul quotidiano spagnolo ABC, 13 marzo 2009. 10 About subculture of violence cf. WOLFGANG, M. E. & FERRACUTI F., The subculture of violence, towards an integrated theory in criminology, Social Science Paperbacks by Tavistock Publications Limited, United Kingdom, 1967. 11 About northern ireland terrorism Cf. ALONSO, R., Irlanda del Norte, una historia de guerra y la bsqueda de la paz, Editorial Complutense, 2001. Also Cf. ALONSO R., La paz de Belfast, Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 2000 and ALONSO R., Matar por Irlanda, el IRA y la lucha armada, Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 2003.
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European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

come

to

consolidate

social

reconciliation

and

full

political

normalization12. On the one hand, as regards progress in the confiscation of arms, the central issue negotiations with the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) and the Defence Association Ulster (UDA), two of many loyalist paramilitary groups, announced only in June 2009, its complete disarmament process, after the Irish Republican Army (IRA) got rid of its arsenal in 200513. From a political standpoint, devolution of central power to the Northern Ireland Assembly, another key element of the Good Friday Agreement, was restored only in May 2007 after five years of suspension. This gave the Democratic Party leaders, Ulster Party (DUP) Ian Paisley and Sinn Fein, Martin McGuinness, the post of Chief Minister and Deputy Chief respectively14. Such characters, which are now described as the bringers of peace are those, who for thirty years, during the conflict, have played senior positions in the political wings of the paramilitary organizations on both sides. Moreover, as regards the judicial advances, since the attacks prior to 1998, the Agreement had contemplated the release of prisoners belonging to organizations that have announced "a cease fire" for attacks after the Agreement , as the Omagh bombing has ruled against four of the five suspects after the attack 11 years ago, on 8 June 200915. Despite these problems, highlighting the fragility of the peace achieved, it is noteworthy that in response to some attacks by IRA dissidents in March 2009 in Belfast, which resulted in the death of a local policeman and two British soldiers within 48 hours, the Northern Ireland population, responded with a manifesto of peaceful rejection
ALONSO, R., Irlanda del Norte: paz sin justicia, sul quotidiano spagnolo ABC, 10 April 2008. 13 Cf. El mayor grupo lealista del Ulster completa su desarme, El Pas, 27 June 2009. 14 Cf. Parliament returns to the Northern Ireland Assembly as devolution is restored to Stormont, BBC news, 8 May 2007. 15 Cf. La justicia norirlandesa condena al IRA Autntico diez aos despus por el atentado de Omagh, El Pas, 8 giugno 2009 e Omagh civil trial, four men have been found in court to be responsible for causing the Omagh bombing, BBC news, 8 June 2009.
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European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

of violence, as thousands of people demonstrated in the streets of Northern Ireland in silence, not wanting to lose the partial stability achieved. c) The Italian case. Also fear and terror that terrorism can inflict on the population can cause social attitudes of passivity and silence. In the case of the Italian experience, during the years of lead, was characterized by the expression of two types of terrorism competing among themselves, the extreme left and extreme right, which created a conflict without peer. In this situation, the role of society and most of the victims was passive, in the shadow of a painful silence and a deliberate tolerance. According to a study by the Cattaneo Institute in Bologna 16, in Italy from 1969 to 1982, there were 2712 episodes of violence claimed by both groups of the extreme left and right. In the same period, in the Italian context, there were operating around 537 left-wing terrorist groups and 120 of the extreme right. From 1969 to 1988, deaths due to political violence, including acts of international terrorism, were 43017. Among these over 130 were killed in the killings attributed to right-wing terrorism, who attempted to dismantle the participation/protection of Italian intelligence. Some of them were the massacre of Piazza Fontana in Milan in 1969, the ravages of Piazza della Loggia in Brescia in 1974, the train Italicus in the province of Bologna in 1974, the destruction of Bologna station in 1980. After many decades, there are still attacks without name, no blame, no justice but, with so many victims. The victims are, and will always, exist even if it is concealed. However, if there are victims who have suffered, this is the responsibility of the State and society for having
DELLA PORTA D., ROSSI M., Cifre crudeli, Bilancio dei terrorismo italiani, materiali di ricerca dellIstituto Cattaneo, 1984, Bologna. 17 Datas offered by Luca Guglielminetti, International Relations manager dellAIVITER of Associazione Italiana Vittime del Terrorismo e dellEversione Contro lOrdinamento Costituzionale dello Stato.
16

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European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

preferred to forget and hide it. The Italian state and society have used the logic of oblivion, impunity, mystery, secrecy and not the truth. In Italy, there are a few voices today, after forty years of suffering in silence, who are trying to recover the memory of their relatives or their experiences18. These reports claim that the victims have been stigmatised, labelled, denigrated socially and politically abandoned. It has been generated, so what we call the "paradox of impunity", which the victims are, in the eyes of the community as the "perpetrators", while the real culprits, the terrorists, publicly expressed their experiences of armed struggle, as legitimate war memories, in political office / or in publishing his books.

VI.

CONCLUSION

Ultimately, as we said, whether the victim is killed or injured, the innocent who suffers the loss of a relative, who suffers the harassment and threats of terrorism, they can/should take an active social role, rejecting the peaceful fight against terrorism and to affirm its significance. However, do they speak only to acquire a social meaning or political significance? In fact, as mentioned earlier, the victim of terrorism, by the very fact of being a victim of terrorism, has a political significance19. By that, the political nature of its very existence has to be present in the solution of what is often called political conflict20. However, we must not confuse the political significance of victims with its politicization. Politicising the victims would be a mistake because of its significance; it is the objective fact of being a victim to the
In Italy there arent several publications about terrorism victims experience. There are only some example as: ARDITTI R., Obiettivi quasi sbagliati, Sperling & Kupfer, 2007; CANTERI R., Terrorismo: laltra storia. Gli anni di piombo raccontati dai feriti e dai familiari delle vittime, RCS libri, 2007. And CALABRESI M., Spingendo la notte pi in l, Mondadori, 2007. 19 Cf. REYES MATE, Op. Cit, Anthropos, 2008, p. 67-87. 20 TEO URIARTE in Ibidem, p. 110-115.
18

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European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

violence that is occurring and not to hold a political opinion. As stated by Rogelio Alonso, the involvement of victims in counter terrorism policy, should not be construed as a negative manipulation of those who have been victimized or as an unfair exploitation of their pain but it will make this political dimension of those who have been victimized by a terrorist organization21. What we mean by involvement of victims in conflict resolution, is far from the acquisition of power or futile honours, privileges that they could win because of their visibility. We understand that participation would be desirable, to help resolve the conflict. It could be that victims who "by virtue of being thought more insight into the values that should guide the society as a whole22. What does this mean to the solution of the conflict? Being present in the solution of the conflict, does not mean that victims should/could be those who will conduct counter-terrorism policy. This is the responsibility of society as a whole: the state government. Being present in the solution of the conflict means that victims and their suffering, their demands for justice, are taken into account during the settlement of the conflict. Making them visible to prevent a breach of the law, or use the solution to prioritise decisions, that are based on the justification of the crimes, in the handling of the incident to the aim of achieving political mileage. The political participation of victims is necessary in order to build a lasting peace based on political reconciliation. The president's words testify to the Support Group for Victims of Omagh in Northern Ireland, Michael Gallagher, who in an interview on 18 November 2005 declared: "In the case of Northern Ireland, victims were not consulted. That was a big mistake, but if we are to achieve a lasting peace it is essential that the process for

ALONSO R, Las consecuencias polticas del terror, sul quotidiano spagnolo ABC, 04 dicembre 2008. 22 MGICA HERZOG E., La sociedad civil ante las consecuencias del terrorismo. Vctimas del terrorismo, libertades civiles y derechos humanos, ARI del 16/06/2009, Real Instituto Elcano, www.realinstitutoelcano.org
21

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European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris

victims has a voice. If victims are not represented peace will not be lasting, their active role is essential23. Including the victims in the proposals intended to solve terrorism is, undoubtedly, the first step to pay for the "collective debt" for the whole of society. We have become the victims, and the foundation stone to construct the objective of our time: turning our dignity in a moral and social way, protected by law, to integrate, as part of the content way of our democracy. of ethical

REFERENCES:
AA.VV, Las vctimas del terrorismo en el discurso poltico, Fundacin Miguel ngel Blanco, Editorial Dilex, Madrid, 2007. ALONSO, R., Irlanda del Norte, una historia de guerra y la bsqueda de la paz, Editorial Complutense, 2001. ___ ___ ___ ___ La paz de Belfast, Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 2000 Matar por Irlanda, el IRA y la lucha armada, Alianza Editorial, Madrid, 2003. La ulsterizacin de Euskadi, sul quotidiano spagnolo ABC, 13 marzo 2009. Las consecuencias polticas del terror, sul quotidiano spagnolo ABC, 04 dicembre 2008.

___ Irlanda del Norte: paz sin justicia, sul quotidiano spagnolo ABC, 10 aprile 2008. ARDITTI R., Obiettivi quasi sbagliati, Sperling & Kupfer, 2007; BERISTAIN IPIA, A., Vctimas del terrorismo, nueva justicia, sancin y tica, Tirant
23

Sin la voz de las vctimas la paz no ser duradera, El diario Vasco, 18 November 2005.

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European Conference of the Victims of Terrorism, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the bombing against the DC10 UTA. September 18-19, Paris Lo Blanch, Valenzia, 2007. CALABRESI M., Spingendo la notte pi in l, Mondadori, Milano, 2007. CANTERI R., Terrorismo: laltra storia. Gli anni di piombo raccontati dai feriti e dai familiari delle vittime, RCS libri, 2007. DELLA PORTA D., ROSSI M., Cifre crudeli, Bilancio dei terrorismo italiani, materiali di ricerca dellIstituto Cattaneo, Bologna, 1984. MGICA HERZOG E., La sociedad civil ante las consecuencias del terrorismo. Vctimas del terrorismo, libertades civiles y derechos humanos, ARI del 16/06/2009, Real Instituto Elcano, www.realinstitutoelcano.org PECES-BARBA; G., tica, poder y Derecho. Reflexiones ante el fin de siglo, Centro de Estudios Polticos y Constitucionales, Madrid, 1995. REYES MATE, Justicia de las vctimas, terrorismo, memoria, reconciliacin, Anthropos, 2008. SERRAN, A., Le armi razionali contro il terrorismo contemporaneo, Giuffr Editore, Milano, 2009. URIARTE E., Terrorismo y democracia tras el 11-M, Espasa-Calpe, Madrid, 2004 ___ Cobardes y Rebeldes, por qu pervive el terrorismo, Temas de Hoy, Madrid, 2003.

WOLFGANG, M. E. & FERRACUTI F., The subculture of violence, towards an integrated theory in criminology, Social Science Paperbacks by Tavistock Publications Limited, Gran Bretagna, 1967. OTHER NEWSPAPER ARTICLES CONSULTED: El mayor grupo lealista del Ulster completa su desarme, El Pas, 27 de junio de 2009. ___ Parliament returns to the Northern Ireland Assembly as devolution is restored to Stormont, BBC news, 8 de mayo de 2007. ___ La justicia norirlandesa condena al IRA Autntico diez aos despus por el atentado de Omagh, El Pas, 8 de junio de 2009 ___ Omagh civil trial, four men have been found in court to be responsible for causing the Omagh bombing, BBC news, 8 de junio de 2009. ___ Sin la voz de las vctimas la paz no ser duradera, El diario Vasco, 18 de noviembre de 2005.

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