The Madrid Agenda
Michael Stohl
University of California, Santa Barbara
ANU Terrorism Workshop
March 31-April 1, 2005
Club de Madrid
International Summit on Democracy,
Terrorism and Security
March 8-11, 2005
200 experts in 16 working groups
across four areas
The expert groups met in cyber space from
November through March
Prepared papers and summary findings and
recommendations March 8-9
Program
Plenary: Expert Working Group
Conclusions
Public Panels and Political
Speeches
Closing Plenary: Kofi Annan: A
Global Strategy for fighting
Terrorism
The Announcement of the Madrid
Agenda 11 March 2005
Working Group Groupings
Root Causes
Confronting Terrorism
Democratic Responses
Civil Society
Root Causes
Louise Richardson, Harvard
1. Psychological-Jerrold Post formerly
CIA
2. Political-Martha Crenshaw, Wesleyan
3. Economic-Ted Robert Gurr, Maryland
4. Religious- Mark Juergensmeyer,
UCSB
5. Cultural- Jessica Stern, Harvard
Root Causes implications
First, terrorism is a complex
phenomenon and requires a
multifaceted response.
Second, in responding to terrorism,
democracies must never abandon the
democratic principles they are designed
to uphold. And
Third, governments must ensure that
their short counter terrorist actions do
not undermine their long term goal of
undermining the terrorism threat.
Summary of Root Causes Working
Groups
Remarkable congruence across the
groups
Regrettably, all agreed that there were
no overarching explanations
All agree that terrorism must be
understood in the unique cultural,
historical, political context
All agree that democracies must
confront and counter terrorism within
the rule of law with no curtailment of
civil liberties
Root Causes Recommendations
Confronting terrorists
Inhibit joining
Provoke dissension
Encourage moderates
Find accommodative opportunities
Promote backlash
Reduce support within the population
Facilitate exit
Countering Terrorism
Raymond Kendall, formerly
Interpol
6. Police- Jurgen Storbeck, formerly
Europol
7. Intelligence- Brian Jenkins, Rand
8. Military-Lawrence Freedman, Kings
College
9. Finance-Loretta Napoleoni
10. Legal- Hans Corell, formerly United
Nations
Police
Rule of law
Cooperation across domestic and
international jurisdictions, timely
sharing of intelligence
Particularly important to build
cooperation across the democratic
nations
Intelligence
Develop better mechanisms for
sharing intelligence
Rule of law
Democracies must ensure
adequate controls
Military
Terrorism should always be
confronted within the legal
institutional systems first
Military option should be a last
resort
Financial
A special center should be
established under chapter 7
authority within the United Nations
Legal
Calling for a war against terrorism
plays into the hands of the
perpetrators
Legal instruments should be
employed
Democratic Responses
Philip Bobbitt, Texas
11. Human Rights- Asma Jahangir,
Pakistan
12. Promoting Democracy and
Accountable Government, Ghia
Nodia, Georgia
13. International Institutions
Democratic Responses:
Conclusions
Democratic quality
Local Ownership
Harness security cooperation to the
democratic agenda
Encourage freedom of information
Eliminate impunity
Promote civil society
Promote Transparency
Civil Society, Mary Kaldor LSE and
Miguel Darcy, Civicus
14. Citizens as Actors, Abdullayeva Arzu,
Helsinki Citizen’s Assembly
15. Civil Society and political Violence
Kayode Fayemi, Centre for Democracy
and Development, London
16. Civil Society Strategies, Mient Jan
Faber, Secretary General of the
Interchurch Peace Council
Civil Society: Recommendations
Recognize the role of soft power
Strengthening civil society against
extremists and violent ideologies,
as well as mobilising citizens in
favour of democracy, are an
essential part of the long-term
response to terrorism
Civil Society Groups Findings
although terrorism is a global phenomenon,
root causes are usually found at the local level;
terrorism is born both in conflict zones and
under authoritarian regimes, proving that both
non state terrorism and a terrorism that is
paramilitary exist.
third finding is that democratic order, although
it is necessary to establish stability, cannot be
implemented with force.
Madrid is an example of an appropriate
answer to terrorism, and an example that
should be followed.
Kofi Annan
A Comprehensive Strategy
first, to dissuade disaffected groups from
choosing terrorism as a tactic to achieve their
goals;
second, to deny terrorists the means to carry
out their attacks;
third, to deter states from supporting
terrorists;
fourth, to develop state capacity to
prevent terrorism;
and fifth, to defend human rights in the
struggle against terrorism
The Madrid Agenda
The Madrid Principles
The Madrid Recommendations
A Comprehensive Response
International Cooperation
Citizens and Democracy
The Madrid Principles
Terrorism is a crime against all humanity. It
endangers the lives of innocent people. It
creates a climate of hate and fear, it fuels
global divisions along ethnic and religious
lines. Terrorism constitutes one of the most
serious violations of peace, international law
and the values of human dignity.
Terrorism is an attack on democracy and
human rights. No cause justifies the targeting
of civilians and non-combatants through
intimidation and deadly acts of violence.
The Madrid Recommendations
the adoption of the definition proposed by the
United Nations High-Level Panel on Threats,
Challenges and Change in December 2004.
the ratification and implementation of all
terrorism-related conventions by those states
which have not yet done so.
the speedy conclusion of the Comprehensive
Convention on International Terrorism.
the exploration of the possibility of creating
high commissioners for victims both at the
international and the national level
International Cooperation
the establishment of regular, informal forums
for law enforcement and intelligence officials,
which may grow from bilateral consultations
into a formalised structure for multilateral cooperation.
the strengthening of regional organisations, so
that measures to combat terrorism are tailored
to local needs and benefit from local
knowledge and networks.
the effective co-ordination of these
mechanisms at the global level.
International Cooperation
the establishment of an international
mechanism – including states, nongovernmental organisations and the private
sector – to help link states that are in need of
resources with those that can provide
assistance.
the creation of a trust fund for the purpose of
assisting governments that lack the financial
resources to implement their obligations, as
proposed by the United Nations High-Level
Panel.
The Future
The Club of Madrid will continue to
lobby for the Madrid Agenda
Plan to convene another meeting
to commemorate 9-11 in New York
in 2006
For further information
http://english.safedemocracy.org/index.html
Root Causes - Psychological
No overarching explanation
Explanations at the level of individual
psychology are insufficient.
The concepts of abnormality or
psychopathology are not useful
Important to distinguish leaders from
followers
Terrorist life cycle is important
Root Causes - Political
Terrorism is rooted in political
discontent
Root Causes discussions
Economic
Root Causes discussions
Religious
Root Causes discussions
No single religion or religious tradition may be
seen as a root cause of terrorism, but it is
important to recognize the role of religion in
providing identity, dignity and meaning and
thus its potential in providing recruitment
opportunities
Recognition of the importance of prisons as
breeding grounds