Inter-American Committee on Terrorism Gains New Relevance

 
In 1996, a conference on terrorism in Lima, Peru defined terrorism "as a grave manifestation of deliberate and systematic violence intended to create chaos and fear in the population and cause death and destruction, constituting a reprehensible criminal act." Two years later, the Mar del Plata Declaration called terrorist acts "serious common crimes that erode peaceful and civilized coexistence, affect the rule of law and democratic governance, and put in peril the stability of democratically elected constitutional governments and the socioeconomic development of our countries."

Both of these statements, along with the plans of action of the three Summits of the Americas, serve as the foundation for a hemispheric strategy that culminated in 1999 with the creation of the Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism (CICTE). The committee, whose goal is to "prevent, combat and eliminate terrorism," is composed of representatives of all of the OAS member states. It meets annually to share experiences and information about the activities of individuals, groups and movements with ties to terrorism. The members cooperate in investigating terrorist operations and sources of financing and in establishing anti-terrorism training programs.

CICTE has been in existence for two years, but its activities gained new urgency after OAS consultative meetings on September 21 at which the ministers of foreign relations of the various member states expressed their support for the effort to combat terrorism. US Secretary of State Colin Powell used to opportunity to propose strengthening the committee, noting that "we have this tool, we need it and we should use it."

Some countries, Mexico among them, consider CICTE a more appropriate mechanism to coordinate hemispheric anti-terrorism goals and activities than the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, better known as the Rio Treaty. Critics of the Rio Treaty argue that since it was signed more than 50 years ago, before there was an OAS, it has no binding power over the organization's 34 member states.

Up until now, CICTE has worked to implement recommendations to enhance cooperation in judicial, police, legal and intelligence matters. It has advanced various projects intended to strengthen anti-terrorism laws, create a data base on terrorism, and study ways to enhance the effectiveness of international legislation. On October 15, the committee began a series of special sessions to define and identify urgent steps to boost hemispheric cooperation in this area and begin elaboration of an inter-American convention against terrorism.

At CICTE's first meeting, in Miami in 1999, former US Ambassador Michael A. Sheehan pointed out that an effective campaign to combat terrorism and bring to justice those who perpetrate terrorist acts must be multilateral and closely coordinated. He argued that in the medium and long terms, governments should use their resources to enforce the law, with the aim of restricting terrorist plans and operations. Another priority he identified was improving the collection of intelligence data and using it aggressively. "This means taking apart terrorist cells, dissolving movements and prosecuting known terrorists," Sheehan said.

The sad reality is that terrorism is affecting many nations in the hemisphere. According to OAS Secretary General César Gaviria, it represents "the most serious challenge to collective security that we have seen since the foundation of the inter-American system we have invoked to meet today."

The Quebec City Summit of the Americas reiterated the participating nations' commitment to combat terrorism. We can expect no easy or immediate solutions, but we can demand that the countries of the Americas follow up their words with actions. All must work together with unified criteria to respond effectively to acts of terrorist violence, or face uncertain consequences for the future of the hemisphere.

http://www.summit-americas.org/Terrorism/CICTE-GA-REPORT-sp.htm