Intelligence and human rights in the era of global terrorism/ edited by Steve Tsang

Facing the threats posed by suicide Fombers, democratic governments have hard choices to make. On the one hand, they must uphold the basic values of democratic societies based on due process and human rights. On the other, they need to pre-empt the kind of destruction inflicted upon New York, Madrid, London, and Bali.

The premise of this book is that for intelligence organizations to be able to face up to the challenges of global ter rorism, they must think outside the box and utilize all of their resources effec tively and creatively. To overcome the enemy, it posits, we must also secure the peace, winning the hearts and minds of the terrorists' pool of potential recruits to cut off the supply of suicide bombers. The support and cooperation of the people in countries where the ter rorists strike must be sustained by ensuring they have confidence in their governments and intelligence services. Ironically, when a government and its intelligence services become so focused on pre-empting terrorist attacks that they encroach on the rights of their citi zens, they unwittingly fall into a trap set by al-Qaeda and its kind. These organi zations aim to destroy the democratic way of life so cherished in the West, and to incite the Muslim populations in democratic countries and their non Muslim fellow citizens into a vicious circle of mutual hatred and violence.

This book addresses not only the question of how intelligence organiza tions can improve their efficacy in pre empting terrorist outrages, but also the wider issue of removing the forces that sustain global terrorism as a scourge of the 21st century. The general public in the target countries and recruiting grounds must be persuaded with credi ble evidence that despite their rhetoric the terrorists are not engaged in holy war. It is up to governments, civil society, and the media around the world to work together if the evidence unearthed by national intelligence ser vices is to be accepted by the general public. Unless the emotional or quasi religious appeal of the global terrorists can be removed, the simple arrest of bin Laden and his associates or even the destruction of al-Qaeda as an organiza tion will not be sufficient to prevent others from rising to replace them.

STEVE TSANG is University Reader in Politics and Louis Cha Senior Research Fellow at St. Antony's College, Oxford University, where he is also Director of the Pluscarden Programme for the Study of Global Terrorism and Intelligence.