Twin Towers Attack Needs a Sober Response

Written by Vincent Cable MP and published in Informer on Fri 14th Sep 2001

I was on a family visit to India when terrorists hit the US. The TV images have evoked a powerful and sympathetic response amongst ordinary people far away.

India is also a fitting place to reflect on terrorist atrocities in a democratic society. In 1993, in an event largely ignored in the west, commercial Bombay was devastated by 12 simultaneous bombs killing hundreds of innocent civilians. The culprits are known but are harboured in a neighbouring country. Indians bitterly recall that they had no help in securing the extradition of these people to face trial. One lesson then, as now, is that unless governments bury their differences and cooperate, terrorism will flourish and the guilty will escape justice.

India also has some harsh lessons about the danger of democratic politicians flirting with fanatical terrorists to secure short-term advantage. Mrs Gandhi once sought to use a militant Sikh leader to achieve her political goals. He got out of control unleashing havoc: civil strife in India which killed thousands including Mrs Gandhi herself and international terrorism including a jumbo jet destroyed off Ireland. The Americans did the same in Afghanistan mobilising and arming religious zealots to fight the Russians.

These zealots are now in power as the Taliban harbouring anti-US terrorists including Bin Laden himself a US protege. The lessons of this atrocity for the UK will sink in slowly. I have some foreboding. Copycat attacks are possible which means stringent security.

Air travel will probably become slower, more cumbersome and less frequent.

There may well be a damaging economic fall-out if shock waves from the US and higher oil prices precipitate recession. Parliament will hopefully address these issues in a more sober and less partisan mood than has often been the case before.