Inclusive Security: A Statement on the Terrorist Attacks
by Swanee Hunt

Terrorist attacks on major US targets have been anticipated for years. Still, no forewarning could brace Americans for scenes of New Yorkers running for their lives as the World Trade Center towers came crashing down, and of the Pentagon burning from early morning until well past sundown, bringing our nation's capitol to a sudden halt. As the initial reports came in, I was, ironically, sitting at my desk, writing captions for a book on Bosnia--putting words on pictures of demolished buildings, illustrating an account of 26 women who are reconstructing their country across the conflict lines.

Now Americans are experiencing the same feelings that millions in Sudan, Macedonia, Sri Lanka, and elsewhere have been living with for years, or decades. After offering support for women waging peace in war zones around the world, I find myself on the receiving end of such sentiments. How do I--how do we--respond, now that this violence has punctured the American bubble? Various pundits and political leaders have suggested that whoever has perpetrated these terrorist acts has essentially declared war on the United States, that we need to hold responsible the countries who harbored these terrorists, and that these attacks were clear violations of the "just war" tradition, both Western and Islamic.

As many advocate immediate retaliation that will clearly manifest America's strategic superiority, we must bear in mind the long-term implications of our response. Even as the President is right to say he will defend America's freedom, we must reaffirm our commitment to values fundamental to that freedom--free speech, rule of law, and presumed innocence.

A Boeing 767 banking into the twin towers is an act of evil that cannot be ignored. But we need voices of reason at the table as we plan our response. One of those is Jessica Stern, formerly of the National Security Council, and author of a book on Muslim terrorists, who warns that we must not jump to certitude regarding the responsibility for these attacks and target a scapegoat. Our overreacting will cause the current sympathy of world opinion to dissipate.

At the macro-level, we are part of a global community, in which terror and loss is often part of everyday life; and the US response, military or otherwise, needs the full support of the international community to be optimally effective. Additionally, at the micro level, each individual has a role to play in shaping our world for decades to come. Margaret Mead's words ring truer than ever, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, nothing else ever has."

As we Americans reassess the defense of our country, we must do more than increase our military might and tighten security measures. Terrorists will always develop innovative strategies that target the Achilles' heel of even the most sophisticated weapons systems. Nor can technical intelligence gathering make us ultimately safe. We need to increase our capacity for human intelligence --"humint," in the policy world.

Humint is built on the idea that personal relationships provide the most reliable information on which to base our security actions, whether domestic or foreign. Even as American "community policing" brings police officers into close relations with neighbors who, in turn, inform the vice squad, on foreign soil we need to build our grassroots contacts. From South Africa to Northern Ireland, Colombia to Cambodia, women who reach across political divides can provide to outsiders an insider's perspective on their communities--but only if the outsiders care to see.

In the face of a new type of threat, we need a new type of defense system--one that fosters strategic personal relationships among people throughout the world. Building relationships is a skill in which women have excelled. Defying political stereotypes, in the Balkans, Bosnian and Serb women are coordinating their pro-democracy political campaigns. In Rwanda, Hutu and Tutsi women have created micro-enterprise partnerships. Out of the depths of this tragedy, policy makers would do well to reassess the untapped resources of women throughout the peace building process, thus formulating a new paradigm of inclusive security.

return to top