Seeing that Gerry Adams is asking Sinn Fein to scrap its arsenal, is rebellion over? Will even more brutal techniques be applied to stop revolutionary groups, in the name of stopping terrorism?
Mind you, I have no love for the IRA or the Palestinian militants, who have mixed terrorism in with their more straightforward clashes w/ soldiers. That news announcement was just what sparked the question. Now I’m curious if any govt. will be less than brutal in future crackdowns.
If those revolutionary groups use methods like bombing civilians to achieve their goals, then yes, I hope governments do crack down on them hard.
Please tell me you understand the diference between Chinese revolutionaries occupying Tienemen Square vs the IRA or Palestinians blowing up a shopping mall in the name of freedom.
I think that is his concern.
We may be able to see the difference, but will totalitarian governments hide behind claims that it is fighting terrorists while it stifles dissent.
More importantly, will they be able to demand international coopertion in stopping the legitimate movements.
“Crackdowns” are in the eye of the beholder. The English have been cracking down in Northern Ireland for some time. They also cracked down on the Punjab, when they controlled it, and in Egypt and Palestine. Somehow, the crackdowns are now the footnotes of history.
Precisely my point, as Freedom noted.
I guess it’s really a matter of restraint and degree. I could be wrong, but I look at Northern Ireland or the West Bank and see crackdowns, but not–in the grand scheme of things–severe ones. To wit: Will the IDF now, when faced by a crowd of 100 rock-throwing Palestinians, fire their guns a bit and kill two of them (which seems to be the usual result), or will they kill every single person in that crowd?
Sorry to be pedantic, but Sinn Féin doesn’t have an arsenal. They’re a political party.