Delhi Serial Bomb Blasts

COMMENT:
Terror in Delhi: international ramifications

 - Ishtiaq Ahmed 

The last time the Muslims were expelled from Europe it was because religious extremism received the patronage of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. If such a process gets underway now, it will be because of a handful of extremist Muslims provoking very tolerant and liberal societies to turn them into aggressive and intolerant majorities

On October 29, 2005 terrorists exploded three bombs in the shopping markets of Delhi killing more than 65 people. It was the eve of the Diwali festival, which is of the same dignity for Hindus as Eid ul Fitr for Muslims since it has a lot to do with lights and sweets and family reunion. Shoppers had therefore come to markets in large numbers. Eid ul Fitr is also due in a few days and it would not be surprising if a good number of Muslims were also shopping at that time.

Considering that only a few weeks earlier the Pakistani and Indian Kashmirs had been mauled by a massive earthquake causing thousands of deaths, it is the ultimate debasement of human values and empathy to inflict more agony on innocent people in the same region.

If, now, it is established that the group which carried it out was a Muslim outfit called the Inquilab group, irrespective of whether or not it had a link with similar groups in Pakistan, then indeed we are once again confronted with the shame that a group of people acting in the name of Islam carried out a crime against humanity. It is very good that Pakistan has condemned the outrages in very strong and clear language.

The TV images of old men and women from lower middle class families, hysterically crying for their dear ones lost in the terrible blasts is indictment enough from a moral and humanist point of view. We learn once again that the evil men are still at large and that the whole world must cooperate to bring them to book.

To believe that such dastardly acts will make the Indians pack up and leave Kashmir can be no more than a delusion of some deranged minds. States rarely, if ever, cave in to terror, and there is no question of terrifying into retreat a major player with ambitions to make a mark on world politics.

The only successful application of terror in the creation of a state was that by various Zionist organisations that hastened the end of the British mandate over Palestine. It succeeded because the British were thoroughly exhausted from the ravages of World War II. The succeeding Israeli state has shown no inclination to give in to Palestinian militancy. Therefore trying to change the world through terror is a bad bet even in terms of cold-blooded calculations.

What I regret most is that the peace process can again be put on hold or be derailed altogether. But even more dreadful is the thought that vigilante groups may start targeting Muslim minorities all over India. Such a possibility cannot be overruled, although I am quite confident that the Indian political institutions are strong enough to prevent things from getting out of hand. Indeed without the connivance of the state collective reprisals are not possible. But harassing some local Muslim minorities on a small scale is no big deal. There is always a limit to how long societies can tolerate threats to security. The groups that benefit from such situations try to cash in on the popular sentiment and surely India has no dearth of fanatical hordes.

Considering that both India and Pakistan had begun to cooperate on the Line of Control and Indian assistance to Pakistan was growing, not only at the level of state but also in terms of civil society contribution - everyday one saw popular TV personalities come forward to request for donations for both Pakistan and India. There was a feeling that the goodwill generated at this time would pay rich dividends in terms of peace and friendship. But as always, cold-blooded killers see such things in another light. To them any idea of friendship between Hindus and Muslims is anathema.

Whenever I am in India and meet Muslims they tell me that their lives were ruined first in 1947 when they were 'abandoned'. They were advised to become good Indian citizens. Whenever India and Pakistan are in bellicose postures or the Kashmiris bring their terrorism to India, their lives are again menaced. I sometimes wonder if the Kashmiri militants ever consider how seriously they jeopardise the lives of their co-religionists by their killing sprees in India.

Terrorism is no longer seen as a local or regional menace. The Delhi carnage is likely once again to make experts on terrorism and politicians all over the world wonder whether Islam is particularly amenable to acts of barbarity or such activities are the evil doing of small, secretive groups of fanatics. Thus far the saner elements are emphasising that extremists are a tiny minority among Muslims. I would also like to believe that it is them and not Islam that is to blame. But I wonder for how long the world will find it important to make such distinctions.

There is no historical parallel on which to base reactions to international terrorism but as a student of history I know that it does not take long for peaceful societies to transform into intolerant and extremist ones if they feel vulnerable and threatened. God forbid, but in such circumstances genocide of minorities does takes place sooner or later.

Only recently the Danish authorities have arrested five Muslim youths, born and brought up in Scandinavia, on charges of planning terrorist actions in Europe. Already the Danish mass media has been whipping up anti-Muslim feelings and the Muslims in Denmark feel beleaguered. More than 70 percent of Swedes think that Islamic and Swedish values are not compatible. The anti-Muslim sentiment is also growing in the Netherlands and Belgium. We already know that in France, Germany, Spain and UK the public opinion is increasingly apprehensive of the Muslim presence.

The last time the Muslims were expelled from Europe it was because religious extremism received the patronage of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. If such a process gets underway now, it will be because of a handful of extremist Muslims provoking very tolerant and liberal societies to turn them into aggressive and intolerant majorities directing their ire against hundreds of thousands of Muslim immigrants who have nothing to do with extremism.

The author is an associate professor of political science at Stockholm University. He is the author of two books. His email address is [email protected]