EDITORIAL - Terrorized

The principal objective of terrorists is exactly what the word means: to sow terror, with the fear disrupting normal life. So terrorists lose when people refuse to be held hostage to their fears and go on with business as usual.

In certain cases this is, of course, impossible. The 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States using commercial jets prompted new and permanent security measures worldwide. Advances in surveillance technology now threaten privacy rights. Security concerns have altered screening for employment in many countries.

Still, it’s possible to go on with normal life amid terrorist threats. Except perhaps in the polar areas, no place in this planet is safe from extremist violence. The world’s top tourist destinations and several of the busiest capitals are also prime targets for headline-grabbing terrorist attacks.

The Philippines has suffered from extremist violence for decades now, from Mindanao to Metro Manila. Near-simultaneous bomb attacks staged by Jemaah Islamiyah and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front on Dec. 30, 2000 killed 22 people in Manila and Makati. The Abu Sayyaf set off a bomb that sank the SuperFerry 14 at the mouth of Manila Bay in February 2004, killing 116.

Terrorists keep evolving as they try to advance their twisted, violent aims, and the world remains a dangerous place. What sets off nations is how they deal with the persistent threat. The best responses are those that manage to keep life as normal as possible, with minimal changes to daily routines, even while the state tightens security. Sowing panic is the worst response.

Panic tends to be the effect of repeated warnings from the government about a supposedly heightened but vague terrorist threat. The warnings from top government officials are scaring away travelers and stoking fears, not of a terrorist attack but, because of recent developments, the possible suspension of civil liberties and suppression of political dissent.

Having suffered through terrorist attacks in the past, Filipinos already know the drill and need only gentle reminders about the benefits of eternal vigilance. The government can rely on public cooperation in the face of genuine threats. Anything beyond such reminders is unnecessary and, if the threat is real, already a victory for the apostles of terror.