New Decade - More Terrorism? :: Wessex Scene Online

New Decade - More Terrorism?

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21st February 2010
Jazmin Sherman

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Terror threats, new airport security, hidden bombs, immigration laws, high risk travel, and alert systems.

UK University Heads Tackle Extremism

Malcolm Grant of University College of London has begun setting up a working group of university heads to tackle extremism, in attempt to battle extremism without disrupting students’ rights to academic freedom.

This new plan is in response to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab’s, a former student of UCL, attempt to bomb a plane flying from the UK to the US on Christmas Day. Universities UK president, Steve Smith, has announced that,

"It is essential that as a society we respond rationally to the issue of extremism".

The group will be made up of university vice-chancellors and other academics in order to discuss how they can achieve preventing campus extremism without undermining the right for students and staff to hold free debates.

However, the group feels it is important to look further into how Abdulmutallab had become so radicalised while studying at UCL as an undergraduate between 2005 and 2008, where studying engineering and business finance.

Professor Grant has rejected claims that this radicalisation took place at the university - and has warned that there is a "narrow line" to be walked between tackling extremism and protecting a free exchange of views.

While universities can act to stop illegal speeches - such as those that could incite racial hatred - it can be more difficult for universities to decide whether to allow opinions to be aired which might offend, without breaking the law.

Critics are also concerned with the right that academics and students have to discussion about controversial topics, such as terrorism, and groups holding extreme views.

The government published a guide encouraging staff to be vigilant against violent extremism, unacceptable literature or guest speakers. However, university staff are rejecting the idea made by the working group as they feel it is a ‘request to spy on their students’ and believes it ‘unacceptable’.

Universities Secretary, John Denham, says students should help stand up to extremist ‘intimidation’. He continues to state universities should help students build bridges towards a more ‘cohesive society’. In response to Mr. Denham’s comments, a union spokesperson said, "campus harmony is achieved by openness tolerance and dialogue and not focusing on any particular group of students".

Professor Anthony Glees stated extremists were operating on campuses. He said that the problem must not be ignored and explained that "a significant number of people, either convicted of terrorist offences of who have admitted a guilt or who’ve been murdered or killed in the carrying out of their terrorist offences, have been students at British universities and colleges".

Tories Propose a Student Visa Crackdown

Foreign students interested in studying at universities in the UK will be subjected to paying the tuition fees in advance, only to get some refunded after they have returned to their home country, to guarantee that they leave the country.

Some 1.5 million student visas have been handed out in the last eight years, including 236,470 in 2008/09.

Other proposals to deter foreign students from staying after universities includes a ban on most foreign students switching to other courses or on to work permits once they have arrived and, a new category system for universities and colleges who want to sponsor migrants.

The Conservatives are trying to tackle growing concerns over the student visa route, an increase in illegal immigrants and the flow of potential terrorists who use the system to gain easy entry to the country.

The crackdown is due to a warning by the security services in November that warned al-Qaeda terrorists could have arrived in Britain by posing as students.

An example of this is Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who tried to blow up a plane carrying 280 passengers travelling to the US from London on Christmas Day, had attended University College London between 2005 and 2008.

Under the Conservatives plans, there will be three categories of educational institutions from universities and established, recognised colleges at the top and new institutions or those requiring closer scrutiny at the bottom.

The proposed bond scheme will see students attending a centre in category C having to pay a guarantee of Ł2,000 for every year of their course – so a three year degree course would require a bond in advance of Ł6,000.

Other Tory proposals include making foreign graduate students return to their country of origin and then reapplying for another visa to come back to the UK. This is one of the solutions the Tories feel would prevent international students from staying in the UK after their visas expire. Through this new system students [and their respective visas] would be subjected to reassessment which would help regulate the immigration system.

Chris Grayling, the shadow Home Secretary, said "The student visa system is a huge loophole in our border controls and that not only allowed large numbers of people to enter the country who would not have been able to do so otherwise but is now a genuine security risk for us. In the current climate we cannot possibly go on like this."

Grayling continues to state that, "Our proposals will transform the system, making it much more difficult for those who want to abuse it, whilst encouraging genuine students to come to our colleges and universities."

In The Face Of Heightened Airport Security Measures Is Our Privacy Being Sacrificed?

Gordon Brown has ordered a review of the UK’s airport security measures in response to the failed Detroit plane attack. The review includes looking at the possibility of having full body scanners in all airports.

A 23-year-old attempted to ignite explosives stored in his underwear on a flight from Lagos to Amsterdam before changing planes to Detroit. After the failed attempt Gordon Brown released a statement saying the attack had been:

"another wake-up call for the ongoing battles we must wage, not just for security against terror but for the hearts and minds of a generation".

Brown insists that the government "will examine a range of new techniques to enhance airport security systems beyond the traditional measures, such as pat-down searches and sniffer dogs." US President Barack Obama has also ordered a review of air security, which the UK will work alongside in order to "move things forward quickly".

Sally Lievsy of NewRisk, which advises companies and governments on how to deal with terrorist threats, said that there are other solutions solely based on technology. Airports could use sniffer dogs to detect explosives and "new procedures for hand searching may actually be quite effective".

The editor of the Aviation Security International, Paul Baum, also stated the scanners are not the only solution and that profiling passengers was the best way to prevent terrorist acts. However, racial profiling is often highly criticised as people believe it is too stereotypical and is simply ‘unjust’.

The heightened airport security revision could also include the use of explosive trace technology, full body scanners and advanced X-ray technology. New body scanners that produce "naked" images of passengers are being tested at Manchester Airport, however they have had a controversial introduction.

Critics and the public alike have slammed the body scanners as invasive. Some believe it is a violation of personal rights and could lead to perversion if the photos got into the wrong hands.

The concerns surrounding traveling are at an all time high and they do not seem to be going anywhere, anytime soon. Now it comes down to what you are willing to sacrifice for your travel plans; invasive scanners, racial profiling, extra security, and the ever growing terror risks.