International peace and Understanding

In order to develop and sustain relations with each other in a long run, it is essential for nations to promote good shared understanding, friendships and goodwill between them. International understanding is sometimes referred to as internationalism.

Internationalism is the feeling that a person belongs both to his or her own country and to the world as well. This feeling makes individuals hold an international perspective, instead of holding only local or national perspectives. International understanding encourages people to live together peacefully and take adequate measures to eliminate negative differences in religious, racial, social, and national issues. The goal of international understanding is to ensure that peace prevails in the world by preventing the occurrence of world wars, promoting human welfare, promoting a shared understanding and interdependence, and maintaining the sovereignty of an individual.

1. Inequality
2. State collapse
3. Economic decline and shock
4. Natural resource wealth
5. Ethnicity
6. Uneven distribution of development opportunities
7. Corruption
8. Poverty
9. Power mongering

Various institutions have been involved in conflict resolution and management processes in Africa. Such institutions include the UN; the AU; regional organisations; international and local, non-governmental organisations; and governments.

One of the ways of building peace is conflict resolution. Conflict resolution assumes that there are conflicts that need to be resolved. Conflict resolution strategies include competing, collaborating, compromising, avoiding and accommodating.

Historical background of terrorism

The term 'terrorism' was used to refer to state violence against citizens during the French Revolution of 1789–99 and the Reign of Terror of 1793–94. Witnessed the former period of mass killings carried out by the Jacobins under Robespierre's leadership, in which approximately 40,000 suspected enemies of the revolution lost their lives. The first common association of Western societies with terrorism was the upsurge in intimate violence by anarchist groups in the late nineteenth century, which peaked in the 1890s. Amongst its victims were Tsar Alexander II (1881), Empress Elizabeth of Austria (1898), King Umberto of Italy (1900) and Presidents Carnot of France (1894) and McKinley of the USA (1901).

However, after 1945, terrorism generally had a nationalist orientation. During the 1940s and 1950s, it was associated with anti-colonial struggles of the third world countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Later, used by national liberation movements such as the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO). It was also used by dissatisfied national or ethnic minorities in developed Western societies, particularly by the Irish Republic Army (IRA) in Northern Ireland and on the UK mainland, Basque Euskadi la Askatasuna (ETA) in the Basque region of Spain, and the Front du Liberation du Quebec in Quebec (FLQ). The aim of terrorism, in these cases, was narrow and political, since it is focused only on the removal of foreign domination and the establishment of national self-determination. However, the 9/11/2001 attacks on New York and Washington convinced many people that terrorism had regenerated into a new and more dangerous form, leading some to conclude that it had become a significant threat to international peace and security.

Causes of terrorism

1. Violent radicalisation
2. Poverty
3. Globalisation
4. State failure
5. State violence
6. Humiliation
7. The absence of democracy
8. Foreign policies

Effects of terrorism

1. Individual's effects: Terrorism leads to the loss of lives and a lot of social, psychological, and physical problems. Many people suffer from fear and experience an unexpected loss of individual freedom;
2. Economic effects: Terrorism has complex and far-reaching economic effects. For example, after the 11/9/2001 attacks on Washington and New York, many airlines suffered significant financial losses due to the cancellation of flight and high prices of oil. Continued fear of terrorism caused severe financial problems, including bankrupt for some airlines;
3. Effects on governments: Governments generally incur costs in the course of trying to combat terrorism. Due to increase in military spending and other emergency measures to ensure preparedness for terrorist attacks;
4. Effects on foreign relations: Terrorism has affected diplomatic relations between states. For example, following the 11/9/2001 attacks, the United States closed its embassies in several countries for a certain period. The closures meant that America ceased its diplomatic relations with such countries hence, affecting foreign relations; and
5. Democratic effects: In a situation of fear, some governments often violate the rights of individuals in the name of maintaining national security. Torturing suspects of terrorism and unlawful detention happens in many countries