The Terrorist Attacks in
New York and Washington

FFW condemns the terroristic attacks on New York and Washington and their perpetrators. As the wanton destruction of the World Trade Center and its aftermath show, the attacks have global roots and repercussions. Terrorism is not merely physical destruction and mass murder. On any scale that it is carried out, terrorism debases the human dignity both of the victims and its perpetrators.

The terrorists must be brought to justice and made to answer for their acts. Their coddlers, backers and accomplices must be punished equally. Because of the global character and outreach of present day terrorism, the United Nations has the responsibility to combat and eliminate terrorism in the affairs of nations and governments as well as on the lives of peoples.

FFW agrees that war must be waged against terrorism. But this war is vastly different from conventional. Targeting specific groups of persons, governments or nations is neither enough nor is it productive in the end. Terrorism is rooted more permanently in human values that have been corrupted by poverty and social exclusion. It cannot alone be waged on the military, political or diplomatic fronts. It must involve the economic, social and moral planes as well.

The main roots of terrorism is lodged in poverty and social exclusion, in the dynamics of power and powerlessness. Power tends to corrupt. Powerlessness equally so. In this sense, terrorism is a product of powerlessness, of fear in a changing world that the poor and powerless cannot understand and which marginalized them.

The dynamics of power and powerlessness is like the Dance of the Vampire. It terrorizes people. In the end, both protagonists and antagonists become vampires and suck the bloods of peoples. Uprooting terrorism requires global efforts to move peoples out of poverty through measures that will mainstream them in social life at levels that befit human dignity and that is better achieved through social dialogue than military warfare.

National interest cannot alone be the defining principle in the war against terrorism. It is too narrow a view about a problem that involves global dimensions and the too human tendency for greed and the lust for power any place on earth. Beyond national interest there are common human values now under attack that must be defended by all nations, races, creeds and political beliefs: freedom, liberty, solidarity, democracy and the right to live with dignity and decency. This is why we must advocate for common and global efforts to eliminate the scourge of terrorism and its causes in human affairs.

FFW urges caution in efforts to wage war on terrorism. Too easily, the implements of military warfare having been emplaced, xenophobia, racism, religious intolerance, greed, mass murder and a host of other human scourge can rear their ugly heads or take over reason, which can deepen and broaden other global problems already at hand.

Our government and people must contribute to a global effort to root out terrorism and its causes. This is our responsibility in the community of nations. What capabilities and capacities we have in the global front, we must lend to the international community.

But our own efforts to keep the world safe from terrorists activities should start and should be continued in our own land. The war against poverty in our country must be escalated and sustained; the efforts to empower the marginalized sectors so that they can effectively participate in social life must be pursued relentlessly. This way, we rid global terrorism of their recruiting and breeding ground. FFW is committed to do its part in these efforts.

Another World War has been officially declared. We can only pray the human race will survive this one.

September 21, 2001.

In behalf of the FFW Governing Board,

Ramon J. Jabar
FFW National President

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