Terrorism

Terrorism describes a consistent use of terror in order to create a state of fear that often implies the use of violence and coercion. The United Nations in 1994 defined terrorism as the following:

However, the term has not reached a definitional consent among the international community because its attribution heavily depends on [Page 880]whose point of view is being addressed. In fact, almost all aspects of the word are subject to disputations: terrorism may be considered as a crime or a moral duty, an offensive or a defensive strategy, asymmetric warfare for small organizations or the enterprise of state actors.

One of the reasons that possibly explain the difficulty in providing an analytic definition of terrorism is that its meaning is also discussed differently in overlapping and competing arenas of public discourse. In the academic field, scholars attempt to find a useful operational definition of terrorism for their research; in the context of the state, statements about terrorism are expressed in the forms of laws, judicial rulings, and regulations; in the public discourse, mediated by means of communication, terrorism tends to be dramatized; finally, in the marginal discourse of groups supporting political violence, terrorism is framed as a necessity, a last recourse, or a desirable form of social action.

There are still common traits in the numerous existing definitions: Terrorism is about politics, violence, and fear. However, the three elements seem to always overlap each other because one of the main analytical difficulties consists of not only clearly distinguishing between the political and the criminal dimension of terrorism but also between politics and violence. Politics, understood as an open competition for the acquisition, maintenance, and expansion of state power, may comprise elements such as violence and coercion, allegedly characterizing terrorism. In fact, it could be argued that in contemporary societies both consent and coercion represent a conditio sine qua non for the emergence, establishment, and reproduction of political power. The concept “hegemony,” for example, comprises both aspects.