Categorisation of terrorism on the basis of motivation is ‘dangerous’, says India

Source: The post is based on the article “Categorisation of terrorism on the basis of motivation is ‘dangerous’, says India” published in The Hindu on 11th March 2023.

What is the News?

India’s Permanent Representative to the UN has addressed the 8th Review of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy(GCTS).

What is the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy?

The UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy is a unique global instrument to enhance national, regional and international efforts to counter terrorism. 

Through its adoption by consensus in 2006, all UN Member States agreed for the first time to a common strategic and operational approach to fighting terrorism.

Pillars: The strategy is composed of 4 pillars, namely:

– Addressing the conditions conducive to the spread of terrorism.

– Measures to prevent and combat terrorism.

– Measures to build states’ capacity to prevent and combat terrorism and to strengthen the role of the United Nations system in that regard.

– Measures to ensure respect for human rights for all and the rule of law as the fundamental basis for the fight against terrorism.

What are the key highlights from India’s Permanent Representative to the UN’s address?

The tendency to categorize terrorism on the basis of motivations behind terrorist acts is “dangerous” and asserted that all kinds of terror attacks, whether motivated by Islamophobia, anti-Sikh, anti-Buddhist or anti-Hindu prejudices are condemnable.

There is no such thing as a good terrorist or a bad terrorist. This will only take us back to the pre-9/11 era of labelling terrorists as ‘Your Terrorists’ and ‘My Terrorists’ and erase the collective gains the international community has made over the last two decades.

States that provide shelter to terrorists should be called out and held accountable for their deeds, a veiled reference to Pakistan.