The Rise of Terrorism in Australia

This article explores the rise of terrorism in Australia, its definition, key concepts, pre-modern terrorism, anarchist terrorism, revolutionary terrorism, religious terrorism, eco-terrorism and left-wing terrorism.

Running head: THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
The Rise of Terrorism in Australia
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1THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
Topic 1: Definition of Terrorism
Terrorism, in the broadest sense of the term, refers to the unlawful as well as the
unjustified use of violence to create fear and terror among the common people1. The act of
terrorism is usually used by the various individuals as well as terrorist organizations to
achieve some political, economic, ideological or religious purposes2. However, it is often
seen that the act of terrorism is used by the individuals or terrorist organizations simply to
create terror and destruction of lives as well as property out of hatred and personal spite.
The interpretation of the concept of terrorism varies from people to people and society
to society3. It is usually seen that the motives which inspire these terrorists as well as terrorist
organizations vary widely and thus in the absence of a proper definition the theorists have
labeled the different terrorist acts on the basis of the ulterior motives of the terrorists or the
terrorist organizations concerned like political terrorism, religious terrorism and others4.
However, the factor which is common among all these acts of terrorism is that they inevitably
cause the destruction of valuable property as well as human lives in addition to causing terror
and suffering.
Topic 2: Key Concepts
The question what is the purpose of terrorism is a very broad one and the answer to it
various from individual to individual as well as terrorist organization to organization.
However, it is generally seen that the primary of the various terrorism is the achievement of
some hidden agenda by creating pressure on the national government of the concerned nation.
1 Schmid, Problem Alex P. "The Response Problem as a Definition." In Western Responses to Terrorism, pp.
17-23. Routledge, 2012.
2 Schmid, Problem Alex P. "The Response Problem as a Definition." In Western Responses to Terrorism, pp.
17-23. Routledge, 2012.
3 Fromkin, David. "The strategy of terrorism." Foreign Affairs 53, no. 4 (1975): 683-698.
4 Fromkin, David. "The strategy of terrorism." Foreign Affairs 53, no. 4 (1975): 683-698.

2THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
Furthermore, in many cases it is seen that the various terrorist activities are motivated by
personal hatred as well as animosity towards the people as well as the national government of
a particular nation. The primary means through which the various terrorists as well as the
terrorist organizations seek to attain their desired results is through the creation of fear as well
as chaos among the general people of the nation5. Thus, many people are of the opinion that
terrorism can be seen as a form of psychological warfare which attains its desired aims
through attacking the psychology of the common people.
There is a very thin line between terrorism and other form of political violence. The
concept of political violence generally refers to the achievement of some political aims
through the use of violence and unfair means whereas terrorism is not always related to the
attainment of some political aims. In the majority of the cases it is seen that personal hatred
as well as animosity overshadows political concerns during the terrorist activities.
Topic 3: Pre-Modern Terrorism
The Assassins group which survived for nearly two centuries (1090-1275) can be said
to be forerunners of the form of terrorism which is being practiced in the present times6. The
primary reason for this is the fact that the violence which was perpetrated by them unlike the
Zealots-Sicariis was not limited to the Jews only7. Rather just the modern form of terrorism
the victims of the attacks and violence committed by them were people from all religious
groups as well as social and economic backgrounds. Furthermore, it was seen that this
particular group was motivated not only by the religious factors but at the same time by
5 "How Terrorism Works". 2018. Mark Manson. https://markmanson.net/terrorism.
6 Rapoport, David C. "Fear and trembling: Terrorism in three religious traditions." American Political Science
Review 78, no. 3 (1984): 658-677.
7 Rapoport, David C. "Fear and trembling: Terrorism in three religious traditions." American Political Science
Review 78, no. 3 (1984): 658-677.

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political aspirations as well8. Thus, although the group aimed to spread Islam yet there were
some hidden motives behind the terrorist activities conducted by them.
One of the most commonly accepted definition of terrorist during the 12th and 13th
centuries was that “it was propaganda by deeds”9. Thus, the major purpose for the attainment
of which these groups or organizations resorted to these terrorist or violent activities was not
only for the spread of Islam but to influence the people. The intended target audience of the
group under discussion here was the people belonging to the other religious groups like
Christianity, Buddhism and others.
Topic 4: Anarchist terrorism
Violent anarchism and contemporary terrorist to a large extent are guiding by the
same set of ideologies as well as motifs. For example, both of them prefer action over
ideology, the focus of both of them is on resisting the authority in power, lack of pragmatic
goals, use of violence to attain the end which they want and others10. However, there are
various differences between the two forms of terrorism as well. For example, the Tsarist
government against which the Anarchists revolted was an autocratic and needed to be
stopped for the common good of the people of the nation11. It is true that the means adopted
by the organization was unfair as well as unlawful yet the goal which they sought to attain
was a logical one. However, the contemporary terrorism when taken into consideration will
reveal lack of effective motif and is generally caused by the terrorists to fulfill their own
personal agendas.
8 Rapoport, David C. "Fear and trembling: Terrorism in three religious traditions." American Political Science
Review 78, no. 3 (1984): 658-677.
9 Rapoport, David C. "Fear and trembling: Terrorism in three religious traditions." American Political Science
Review 78, no. 3 (1984): 658-677.
10 Jensen, Richard Bach. "Nineteenth century anarchist terrorism: how comparable to the terrorism of Al-
Qaeda?." Terrorism and Political Violence 20, no. 4 (2008): 589-596.
11 Jensen, Richard Bach. "Nineteenth century anarchist terrorism: how comparable to the terrorism of Al-
Qaeda?." Terrorism and Political Violence 20, no. 4 (2008): 589-596.

4THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
The conditions which lead to the rise of the violent anarchists were the oppression as
well as the dominating nature of the Tsarist government12. The ruling government used all
sorts of coercive measures to attain its own personal agendas. This is generally ascribed as
one of the major reasons for the rise of this particular terrorist organization. The factors
which lead to the decline of the concerned organization were firstly the resistance offered by
the Tsarist government and also the lack of effective planning as well as leadership of the
organization13.
Topic 5: Revolutionary Terrorism and Insurgency
The major difference between a revolutionary terrorism and the contemporary
terrorism is the end motif which the people who are resorting to the violent method are
willing to achieve14. It is true that the use of violence outside the legal framework cannot be
justified in any manner however if the cause is a noble one then the harshness of the incident
can be mitigated to some extent. This is one of the major reasons why some of the
revolutionary movements even though they take the help of violent methods are being able to
get the sympathy of the people whereas other movements which do not take the help of
violent but with less effective causes are not being able to do so15. The methods used in the
process of the attainment of the end result does matter a lot but at the same time the ultimate
goal which they are trying to achieve is more important.
One of the primary reasons why the rebellions after the First World War were being
able to gain success was the fact that they were able to get the necessary amount of
12 Jensen, Richard Bach. "Nineteenth century anarchist terrorism: how comparable to the terrorism of Al-
Qaeda?." Terrorism and Political Violence 20, no. 4 (2008): 589-596.
13 Jensen, Richard Bach. "Nineteenth century anarchist terrorism: how comparable to the terrorism of Al-
Qaeda?." Terrorism and Political Violence 20, no. 4 (2008): 589-596.
14 Dyer, Gwynne. 2018. "Terrorism 101 | Gwynne Dyer". Gwynnedyer.Com.
http://gwynnedyer.com/2014/terrorism-101/.
15 Dyer, Gwynne. 2018. "Terrorism 101 | Gwynne Dyer". Gwynnedyer.Com.
http://gwynnedyer.com/2014/terrorism-101/.

5THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
provocative reaction from the national governments of the concerned nations or from the
parties to which they were directed16. This provocative reaction in turn helped them to gain
the sympathy of the common people which in turn lead to the success of the movement.
Topic 6: The New Left and International Terrorism
The primary reason why the nature of the various rebellions changed in the 1960s was
because of the change of the political landscape of the world. For example, according to an
estimate more than 32 countries of the world had gained their independence during that
decade17. Furthermore, psychologically the people were tired of the long drawn out violent
process by means of which they had achieved their independence18. Thus, there was a natural
repulsion of the people towards the various kinds of violent activities and this made the
rebellions to undergo a change in their nature. Instead it was seen that the people were
revolting for some of the basic rights like gay rights, women empowerment and others.
Terrorism in the sense of the contemporary times was fairly unsuccessful at this
particular period of time since the people were more focussed on the attainment of some of
the basic above mentioned rights. Furthermore, it was generally seen that although there were
few instances of violent outbreaks yet most of the times these rebellions were peacefully
conducted.
Topic 7: Religious Terrorism
One of the primary reasons which lead to the rise as well as the growth of the
religious wave was the fact that the traditional motifs used by the terrorist groups were no
16 Dyer, Gwynne. 2018. "Terrorism 101 | Gwynne Dyer". Gwynnedyer.Com.
http://gwynnedyer.com/2014/terrorism-101/.
17 Hoffman, Bruce. Inside terrorism. Columbia University Press, 2006.
18 Law, R. ‘The Era of Leftist and International Terrorism’, in Terrorism: A History, Cambridge, UK: Polity
Press, (2009): 254-280.

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longer effective with the general mass and thus these organisations decided to use to religious
sentiments of the people19. In addition to this, the two great wars as well as the Cold war left a
void in the lives of the people and the people filled this particular void with the machinery of
religions20. Thus, it seemed more profitable to these terrorist groups to use this particular
sentiments of the people to further their personal agendas. Religion apart from shaping the
identity of the people plays a great role in deciding the psychology of a particular person and
to a large extent even determines the actions of a particular person21. It is a reflection of this
particular that a group of people following a particular religion tend to have a similar kind of
psychology and perform similar kind of actions.
Yes religious terrorism poses a greater amount of danger to the people of the world on
the score that it directly appeals not only to the religious views which are being held by a
particular person but at the same time his or her psychology as well. Thus, this form of
terrorism not only poses physical danger to the people but at the same time psychological as
well as spiritual danger as well.
Topic 8: Eco-Terrorism and Left Wing Terrorism
The general opinion which is being held about the concept of terrorism is the fact that
the various terrorist actions cause destruction of physical property as well as lives in a
significant manner22. Thus it is generally seen that direct sort of action is generally considered
19 Hoffman, B. ‘Religious Terrorism’ and ‘Suicide Terrorism’ in Inside Terrorism (Revised and Expanded Ed.),
New York: Columbia University Press, (2006): 81-171
20 Roberts, Mark. "The Terrorism Lectures: A Comprehensive Collection for Students of Terrorism,
Counterterrorism, and National Security. By Dr. James JF Forest. Santa Ana, CA: Nortia Press, 2012." Journal
of Strategic Security 6, no. 1 (2013): 2.
21 Roberts, Mark. "The Terrorism Lectures: A Comprehensive Collection for Students of Terrorism,
Counterterrorism, and National Security. By Dr. James JF Forest. Santa Ana, CA: Nortia Press, 2012." Journal
of Strategic Security 6, no. 1 (2013): 2.
22 Liddick, Don. Eco-terrorism: Radical environmental and animal liberation movements. Greenwood
Publishing Group, 2006.

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to a prerequisite of terrorism. However, it is generally seen that the various terrorist groups or
terrorists often resort to the use of indirect action or put pressure on the government of the
ruling nation to get their demands or objectives fulfilled by them23. Furthermore, the demands
which are being made by them the attainment of which they seek through indirect means
without causing any harm of lives or property can cause more amount of harm than the direct
terrorist actions24. Thus, it would be apt to say that it is not always necessary that direct action
has to be associated with a particular terrorist act.
In a way it can be said that this form of terrorism causes a significant lesser amount of
loss of property as well as lives and in a way reduces human harm. Yet at the same time it
needs to be said the motives which these terrorist groups seek to attain are sometimes more
dangerous and can cause more amount of harm than the traditional methods.
Topic 9: Right Wing Terrorism
Right Wing Terrorism was one of the most popular forms of terrorism in the 1970s
and the places which were most affected by this particular form of terrorism were the Eastern
and Western Europe and several parts of Soviet Union25. The primary motif of this particular
form of terrorism were motivated with various diverse kinds of ideologies and some of the
most popular ones among them were the “Islamophobia, anti-communism, neo-fascism and
neo-Nazism, and a mindset against abortion”26. Thus, the primary idea of these kinds of
terrorist groups and individuals was to overthrown the traditional oppressive forms of
23 Likar, Lawrence E. Eco-warriors, nihilistic terrorists, and the environment. ABC-CLIO, 2011.
24 Likar, Lawrence E. Eco-warriors, nihilistic terrorists, and the environment. ABC-CLIO, 2011.
25 Southern Poverty Law Center. ‘Terror from the Right: Plots, Conspiracies, and Racist Rampages Since
Oklahoma City’, Special Report from the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Intelligence Project, Montgomery,
AL: Southern Poverty Law Center, 2012
26 Kaplan, Jeffrey. "Leaderless resistance." Terrorism and Political Violence 9, no. 3 (1997): 80-95.

8THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
governmental organisations and authorities and replace them with the kind of governmental
authorities which believed in nationalism or the ideologies of Nazism and fascism27.
It was generally seen that the majority of these terrorist groups as well as individuals
resorted to the active use of violence for the overthrown of the governmental authorities of
the various nations. Thus, it was seen that in the nation of the Soviet Union these groups
sought to overthrow the Communist government. However, this particular form of terrorism
soon fizzled out as they did not have the active support of the people because of the nature of
ideologies which they followed.
Topic 10: Leaderless resistance
In the present times one of the most important trends which is being seen in the world
of terrorism is the fact that the terrorist actions in addition to being group oriented have
became isolated as well. For example in the recent times the number of terrorists operating on
their own has increased in a significant and this is one of the primary reasons for the
increased in the number of terrorist activities which the world is witnessing at the current
moment28. Generally it is seen that these individuals are motivated by personal reasons like
the injustices which they have received at the hands of the society or the justice system of the
concerned nation to which they belong29. Thus, it would be apt to say that these individual
terrorists are more motivated by the personal hatred as well as personal animosity rather than
the achievement of any political, religious and other agendas which the major terrorist
organisations seek to attain through the large scale destruction which they cause30. In a way it
27 Kaplan, Jeffrey. "Leaderless resistance." Terrorism and Political Violence 9, no. 3 (1997): 80-95.
28 Joosse, Paul. "Leaderless resistance and ideological inclusion: The case of the Earth Liberation
Front." Terrorism and Political Violence 19, no. 3 (2007): 351-368.
29 Joosse, Paul. "Leaderless resistance and ideological inclusion: The case of the Earth Liberation
Front." Terrorism and Political Violence 19, no. 3 (2007): 351-368.
30 Joosse, Paul. "Leaderless resistance and ideological inclusion: The case of the Earth Liberation
Front." Terrorism and Political Violence 19, no. 3 (2007): 351-368.

9THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
can be said that these actions of violence committed by these individuals can be as regional
forms of terrorism. The primary difference between these personal acts of terrorism and the
large-scale terrorist actions conducted by the terrorism groups does lies in the motif factor.

10THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
References
"How Terrorism Works". 2018. Mark Manson. https://markmanson.net/terrorism.
Dyer, Gwynne. 2018. "Terrorism 101 | Gwynne Dyer". Gwynnedyer.Com.
http://gwynnedyer.com/2014/terrorism-101/
Fromkin, David. "The strategy of terrorism." Foreign Affairs 53, no. 4 (1975): 683-698.
Hoffman, B. ‘Religious Terrorism’ and ‘Suicide Terrorism’ in Inside Terrorism (Revised
and Expanded Ed.), New York: Columbia University Press, (2006): 81-171
Hoffman, Bruce. Inside terrorism. Columbia University Press, 2006.
Jensen, Richard Bach. "Nineteenth century anarchist terrorism: how comparable to the
terrorism of Al-Qaeda?." Terrorism and Political Violence 20, no. 4 (2008): 589-596.
Joosse, Paul. "Leaderless resistance and ideological inclusion: The case of the Earth
Liberation Front." Terrorism and Political Violence 19, no. 3 (2007): 351-368.
Kaplan, Jeffrey. "Leaderless resistance." Terrorism and Political Violence 9, no. 3 (1997):
80-95.
Law, R. ‘The Era of Leftist and International Terrorism’, in Terrorism: A History,
Cambridge, UK: Polity Press, (2009): 254-280.
Liddick, Don. Eco-terrorism: Radical environmental and animal liberation movements.
Greenwood Publishing Group, 2006.
Likar, Lawrence E. Eco-warriors, nihilistic terrorists, and the environment. ABC-CLIO,
2011.

11THE RISE OF TERRORISM IN AUSTRALIA
Rapoport, David C. "Fear and trembling: Terrorism in three religious traditions." American
Political Science Review 78, no. 3 (1984): 658-677.
Roberts, Mark. "The Terrorism Lectures: A Comprehensive Collection for Students of
Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and National Security. By Dr. James JF Forest. Santa Ana, CA:
Nortia Press, 2012." Journal of Strategic Security 6, no. 1 (2013): 2.
Schmid, Problem Alex P. "The Response Problem as a Definition." In Western Responses to
Terrorism, pp. 17-23. Routledge, 2012.
Southern Poverty Law Center. ‘Terror from the Right: Plots, Conspiracies, and Racist
Rampages Since Oklahoma City’, Special Report from the Southern Poverty Law Center’s
Intelligence Project, Montgomery, AL: Southern Poverty Law Center, 2012