War on Terror and Migration Trends: Rethinking Open Borders

Abstract

This paper reviews the growing global popularity of the notion of, “War on Terror,” and explores how the immigrant is implicated in the complex web of connections between terrorism and transnational crime, and how a rethinking of open borders policies may serve to limit the incessant occurrence of transborder terrorism. This paper posits that the success of unilateral actions against global terrorism will remain an illusion unless measures are initiated to build multilateral and institutional capacities to combat this global menace. The paper is a contribution to the discourse on how non-military policies and responses to terrorism can be employed to deal with actors who are influenced to use extreme violence against civilians in bid to achieve their selfish goals. The author’s analysis moves beyond use of military might and strategy to winning the war on terror to exploring possible options of constructive engagement with the enemy including tight border controls. Of key importance in winning the war on terror is addressing conditions that terrorists exploit with a view to providing alternative options to mass struggles by transforming violent confrontations to non-violent interventions through peace education. In this regard, making conflict transformation a global strategy under the auspices of the UN, instead of the usual military actions by a collection of allies whose agenda are often suspect will address moral questions associated with such military engagement and also map the root causes of conflicts as the beginning of a transformation process to global peace.