Permanent Monitoring Panel -
Motivations for Terrorism
Members of the Panel:
Chairman:
John, Lord Alderdice (U.K)
Members and Associate Members:
Khurshid Ahmad (Pakistan); Scott Atran (USA); Richard Davis; Baruch Fischhoff (USA);
Bertil Galland (Switzerland); Munther J. Haddadin (Jordan); Pervez Hoodbhoy (Pakistan);
Ariel Merari (Israel); Mohiaddin Mesbahi (Iran); Marc Sageman (USA); Carlo Strenger (Israel);
Busso von Alvensleben (Germany)
(Associate Panel Members are a community of scientists who provide support and expertise
for the working of the Permanent Monitoring Panel.)
Summary of the Emergency
While the history of terrorist acts goes back many centuries, 'terrorism' as we
understand it developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The latter
half of the 20th century saw increasing effectiveness and sophistication, not
least during the Cold War period when various conflicts were given tacit or direct
support by the USA and USSR as they sought to gain advantage in their conflict
with each other. Some of these terrorist campaigns continued or found new
focus in the post-communist era, but the events of 11 September 2001 and subsequent
developments focused the attention of the contemporary world on this issue in a
very particular way, not least because of the response of the USA and the resultant
impact of its so-called 'War on Terror' on the structure and functioning of global
society.
Priorities in dealing with the Emergency
The World Federation of Scientists immediately reacted to '9/11' as it became known
by beginning its consideration of the subject, first in its Annual Session in 2002,
and then by establishing a Permanent Monitoring Panel on Terrorism at its next Annual
Session in August 2003. The Permanent Monitoring Panel on Terrorism was established
with the objective of identifying scientific and 'do-able' solutions to contain and
possibly eliminate the growing scourge and its impact.
The PMPT brought together a group of eminent scientists and scholars in regular
sessions in Erice each May, and it quickly became clear that while the technical
aspects of mitigating terrorist attacks particularly benefited from the expertise
and research of the applied physical sciences, addressing the motivations of those
who engaged in terrorism required especial input from the applied social sciences,
and two sub-groups emerged dealing with Mitigation and Motivations. These two groups
view the problem from different angles, but the two approaches are entirely
complementary, and neither can succeed in resolving the problem alone.
By 2007 however the work had evolved to the point with these two strands of work -
the Mitigation of Terrorism and the Motivations for Terrorism - that it was decided
with the approval of the President of WFS to have two PMPT's addressing these different
elements, but cooperating closely.
The Permanent Monitoring Panel on the Motivations for Terrorism continues with the
same objectives as before, monitoring research that is being conducted, organising
scientific workshops to channel research efforts and reconcile conflicting views on
scientific and related ethical issues, helping disseminate relevant scientific data
and information, developing recommendations for use by governments and international
agencies, elaborating project proposals to conduct research in collaboration with
scientists and others from relevant countries, and seeking to operationalize the
results of scientific research in the cause of deeper understanding and for the
purposes of cause of peace rather than war.
Latest Statements, Papers and Reports
Papers and Publications
- World Scientific Publications -the International Seminars on Nuclear War and Planetary
Emergencies Series - The 29th Session - Erice May 2003 - The Cultural Emergency:
Focus on Terrorism
- World Scientific Publications - the International Seminars on Nuclear War and Planetary
Emergencies Series - The 31st Session - Erice May 2005 - The Cultural Emergency:
Focus on Terrorism
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