Chapter Eleven: Nationalistic and Ethnic Terrorism

1. Chapter Eleven:Nationalistic and Ethnic Terrorism

2. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism

3. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism • Daniel Byman and the logic of ethnic terrorism • Ethnic terrorism differs from terrorism carried out in the name of ideology, religion or economic gain • Ethnic terrorists are usually more nationalistic than their religious counterparts

4. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism • Ethnic terrorists and national identity • Ethnic terrorist try to forge national identity • Their primary purpose is to mobilize a community • Terrorist activity is used to make a statement about the group’s identity • Terrorism polarizes other ethnic groups and forces them to either ally with the terrorists or oppose them

5. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism • Ethnic terrorism and violence • Violence keeps the idea alive • Violence sustains the conflict, even when political objectives are far out of reach • Violence also serves to undermine moderates who seek peaceful solutions

6. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism • Fear as a tool of ethnic terrorism • Violent ethnic terrorists use fear to polarize various constituencies • Fear polarizes cultural differences, forcing greater identification with one’s own group • Fear keeps a group from developing alternative identities

7. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism • The limited response of the government • Governments can enter the game and try to promote rival identities • Governments can engage in group punishment • Governments can try to gain the cooperation of moderates • Governments can open the doors to political participation

8. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism • Lifeline of ethnic terrorism • Ethnic terrorist organizations tend to be long-lasting because they can build logical structures and they can hide in a ready-made population

9. The Logic of Ethnic Terrorism • Three methods for government policy • Empowering the community • Winning over moderates to the political system • Encouraging self-policing

10. The Basque Nation and Liberty

11. The Basque Nation and Liberty • Euskadi ta Askatasuna (ETA or Basque Nation and Liberty) • The ETA has waged a campaign of violence since 1959 that has killed more than eight hundred people • The ETA’a goal is to establish an autonomous homeland in northern Spain and southern France

12. The Basque Nation and Liberty • The Basque separatist movement and its relation to terrorism • Basque separatists believe they should be allowed to develop a homeland in Spain, and since the 1950s, Basque separatism has been an important issue in Spanish politics • Current problems are a result of gradual loss of national identity that began in the nineteenth century when Madrid assumed greater control of the region, and accelerated in the early twentieth century because of industrialization

13. The Basque Nation and Liberty • The ETA and the nationalist movement • The ETA formed as an offshoot of a nationalist political party in 1959 • In 1966, the ETA voted to engage in armed revolution • In 1968, the group started a terrorist campaign

14. The Basque Nation and Liberty • The ETA-M • A more militant group, the ETA-M, broke away from the ETA in 1974 • ETA-M described itself as the military wing of the ETA and was responsible for the worst atrocities of the 1970s and 1980s

15. The Basque Nation and Liberty • Characteristics of the ETA • Membership matches the composition of the local population, although most terrorists are male • The ETA is primarily a working-class movement • Members of the ETA were either born in a Basque family, or they were raised in Basque enclaves and feel a strong ethnic identity • The overwhelming majority feel they are fighting for all the members of their community • Most interestingly, members of the ETA did not view terrorism as a full time activity

16. The Basque Nation and Liberty • Similarities between the ETA and IRA • The eventual goal of Basque terrorism is regional independence • The majority of Basques do not support the terrorist campaign, even though most support nationalism and some form of independence

17. The Basque Nation and Liberty • Current State of the ETA • As Spanish authorities opened opportunities for democracy and national expression, the ETA transformed itself into a social movement • When the political system opened, the desire for ethnic cultural identity was not strong enough to support violence • At this time, the ETA still engages in terrorist violence

18. The PKK and Its Alter Egos

19. The PKK and Its Alter Egos • The Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) • The PKK, founded in 1974, is a Marxist-Leninist organization composed of Turkish Kurds • Officially changing its name to Kurdistan Freedom and Democracy (KDEK) in 2002, it operates in Turkey and Europe, targeting Europeans, Turks, rival Kurds, and supporters of the Turkish government • Since 1990, it has employed the language of nationalism, and since 1995, it has also used the verbiage of religion • PKK could not generate enough support for the Communists, so its leadership chose the path of terrorism

20. The PKK and Its Alter Egos • Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley • Efforts to build a terrorist organization increased by moving into Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley in September 1980 • Allies were quickly formed in the Syrian camp, and by 1984, a number of trainees had moved through the camps in Lebanon • PKK moved its bases of support for a campaign against Turkey; Support turned out to be the key factor

21. The PKK and Its Alter Egos • The negative effect of tactics • Although the Kurds were ready to fight for independence, they were not willing to condone massacres and terrorist tactics • The PKK responded in 1990 by redirecting offensive operations by limiting its attacks to security forces and economic targets • The PKK also modified its Marist-Leninist rhetoric and began to speak of nationalism

22. The PKK and Its Alter Egos • The PKK shifts its position • In October 1995, the PKK was willing to settle for a federation instead of complete autonomy • By December, the PKK was using the rhetoric of Islam • The PKK shifted its position to achieve the greatest amount of support

23. The PKK and Its Alter Egos • The pejorative nature of terrorism represented by the PKK • When a terrorist label is applied to a group like the PKK, the whole movement is questioned • The PKK is a terrorist organization, but expressing Kurdish nationalism is not a terrorist act

24. The PKK and Its Alter Egos • The PKK today • Turkish authorities captured Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the PKK, in Kenya in February 1999 • Today, the PKK has thousands of supporters in Turkey and in Europe, but the United States has agreed to crack down on the organization in northern Iraq in late 2003

25. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam

26. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam • The LTTE • The LTTE have been fighting for an independent homeland for nearly 3 million Tamils in northern and eastern Sri Lanka • The basis of ethnic conflict is exacerbated by struggles between Hindus and Muslims

27. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam • The origins of LTTE • At the end of WWII, the Tamil minority in Sri Lanka was concerned about maintaining its ethnic identity • Claiming that the Tamils dominated the Sri Lankan government, the Sinhalese majority forced the government to adopt a “Sinhalese-only” policy • A Tamil assassin killed the Sinhalese leader in 1959, setting the stage for further violence • Buoyed by religious difference and ethnic support, Tamil separatists could begin a guerrilla campaign by waging a terrorist campaign • In 1975, Velupillai Pirabhakaran, a young Tamil militant, took advantage of the situation and formed the LTTE

28. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam • Tactics of the LTTE • In 1988 and 1992, the LTTE sought to control geographic areas, and they moved using standard guerrilla tactics, forming uniformed units • In weaker times, they relied on bank robberies, bombings, and murder • In the weakest times, they have also employed suicide bombers

29. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam • Retreat of the LTTE • By 1987, the LTTE retreated to the jungle, and practiced terrorism from jungle hideaways • In 1990, the LTTE expanded its operations by converting a fishing fleet into a makeshift navy • From 1994 to 1995, the Tamil Tigers waged another bombing and assassination campaign

30. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam • The LTTE’s unique position • The LTTE is in a unique position because it has such a large guerrilla base • The guerrillas are perfectly capable of fighting a protracted war against security forces, and if defeated, the LTTE can revert to terrorism

31. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam • The LTTE today • In December 2001 the LTTE agreed to a cease-fire with the government of Sri Lanka • According to the Tamil Eelam Web homepage, the LTTE is not a terrorist organization; it is the army of the Tamil people

32. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict

33. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • The Vikings in Ireland • Irish culture originated with Celtic invasions • Viking raiders began to invade Ireland around A.D. 800 • Viking rule of Ireland was challenged in 1014

34. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • The Norman invasion • The Normans were successful in Ireland because they used new methods of warfare • By 1172, the Norman king of England had assumed the rule of Ireland • The Normans built castles to control Irish cities, and Irish peasants generally dominated rural areas

35. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • The Protestant Reformation • During the Protestant Reformation of the 1500s, King Henry the VIII of England created an independent Church of England. He also created a similar church in Ireland , but the Irish Catholics rejected this move and began to rebel against the English king • Elizabeth I, Henry’s daughter, carved out the most prosperous agrarian section, the plantation of Ulster, and gave it to her subjects to colonize. English and Scottish Protestants eventually settled there. This created an ethnic division in Ireland fueled by religious differences and animosities

36. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • Ireland in the 1600s • The Plantation of Ulster was expanded, and Irish peasants were systematically displaced • Oliver Cromwell came to Ireland to quell a revolt and stop Catholic attacks on Protestants • From 1689 to 1691, James II, the Catholic pretender to the British throne, used Ireland as a base from which to revolt against William of Orange, the English king

37. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • Thomas Wolfe Tone • From 1796 to 1798, Wolfe Tone led a revolt based on Irish nationalism • Wolfe Tone argued that Irish independence was more important than religious differences • He created a basis for appealing to nationalism over religion

38. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • The Orange Orders • Taking their name from William of Orange, these Protestant organizations vowed to remain unified with Great Britain

39. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • The Act of Union • In 1801, the British Parliament passed the Act of Union, designed to incorporate Ireland into the United Kingdom • Unionists, primarily the Orange Protestants in the north, supported the act, whereas Republicans, who became known as Greens, argued for a constitutional government and an independent Ireland • Daniel O’Connor led the Republican movement • Charles Stewart Parnell, a Protestant, created a democratic Irish party to support the cause in the late 1800s

40. The Origins and Development of the Anglo-Irish Conflict • The Potato Famine • The 1845\-1848 potato famine devastate Ireland • Ireland’s census dropped by 25 percent • In the years following the famine, some members of the British Parliament sought to free Ireland from British control. They introduced a series of Home Rule acts designed to give Ireland independence

41. The Early History of the Irish Republican Army

42. The Early History of the Irish Republican Army • Republican military solution to the Irish conflict • The solution was born in New York City in 1857 • Irish immigrants in New York City created the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) as a financial relief organization for relatives in Ireland • The IRB gradually evolved into a revolutionary organization

43. The Early History of the Irish Republican Army • The Irish Republican Army (IRA) • The IRA began with a campaign of violence sponsored by the IRB in the late 1800s • The primary targets of the IRB were Unionists and British forces supporting the Unionist cause

44. The Early History of the Irish Republican Army • The IRB trump over Unionists • IRB leadership was dominated by men who believed each generation had to produce warriors who would fight for independence • The IRB had an organization

45. The Early History of the Irish Republican Army • Patrick Pearse • Pearse was an inspirational romantic who could move crowds to patriotism and inspire resistance to British policies • He inspired young Irish boys and girls to be militantly proud of being Irish

46. The 1916 Easter Rebellion

47. The 1916 Easter Rebellion • The Rebellion • At Easter in 1916, Patrick Pearse and James Connolly led a revolt in Dublin • The Rebellion enjoyed local success because it surprised everyone • The British also came to Dublin, and the city was engulfed in a week of heavy fighting

48. The 1916 Easter Rebellion • Pearse’s approach to the British • Pearse sent a message to the general in charge of British forces using a new title: commanding general of the Irish Republican Army • Transformations continued in the political arena

49. Independence and Separation

50. Independence and Separation • Sinn Fein • Eamon de Valera emerged as the leader of Sinn Fein, the political party of Republicanism, and Michael Collins came to the forefront of the IRA • Together, de Valera and Collins began to fight for Irish independence in 1919