Citation

Reinares F. Aust. J. Polit. Hist. 1998; 44(3): 351-371.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/1467-8497.00026

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Since terrorism poses a serious threat to the processes of liberal democracy governments should act decisively to curb terrorist groups. This article examines the range of political, judicial and enforcement measures available, assesses the problems associated with them and the conditions for their success. Political measures include reforms in response to popular unrest, negotiations with terrorist groups and amnesties to encourage an end to violence. Since terrorists seek to influence domestic and international public opinion, the authorities need to counter that propaganda and in particular to explain and justify the political, judicial and enforcement measures they adopt. Governments have to choose between treating terrorism like other forms of criminal behaviour or setting up special courts and passing emergency legislation, with the attendant dangers to civil liberties. Enforcement of anti-terrorist measures has quite often been inept. Coordination is required to prevent police anti-terrorist units and other security agencies from engaging in institutional rivalry. But if these agencies are efficient in their intelligence gathering, and politically supervised to ensure that they act within the law, they can be decisive in the reduction of terrorism, as in Western Europe at the end of the 1970s.