Intelligence and Human Rights in the Era of Global Terrorism

Facing the threats posed by suicide bombers, 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 terrorism they must think outside the box and utilize all of their resources effectively 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 terrorists 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 citizens, they unwittingly fall into a trap set by Al-Qaeda and its kind. These organizations 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 organizations can improve their efficacy in preempting terrorist outrages, but also the wider issue of removing the forces that sustain global terrorism as a scourge of the 21 century. The general public in the target countries and recruiting grounds must be persuaded with credible 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 services 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 organization–will not be sufficient to prevent others from rising to replace them.