Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1995

Abstract

This volume provides a multidisciplinary study of terrorism. The editor notes at the outset the difficulty of definition: "Terrorism is not a one-dimensional problem; it transcends many frontiers: political, jurisdictional, institutional, disciplinary and methodological. So approaching the problem from only one perspective may lead to only partial understanding and an incomplete strategy for developing constructive responses” (p. 3). Note the tendency of even this careful statement to assume that terrorism is always committed by others, Also, although legal definition and consideration may be implied by the terms polical, jurisdictional, institutional and disciplinary, which are indicated as various dimensions of the problem, law is given short shift in the study. The disciplines amply represented are criminology, history, international relations and political office. Each includes law as a component, but only on the periphery. Oftimes, indeed, there appears to be antipathy to or distaste for law and lawyers in the discussions.

While law is not a panacea, it is obviously a requirement for any attempt to prosecute perpetrators or even to impose sanctions on groups or nations. Thus, although legal analysis should not be the only type presented, this study would have been well served by fuller legal analysis.' Nevertheless, for lawyers and readers from disciplines other than that of the particular chapter's author, the studies are most interesting and helpful.

Publication Citation

89 Am. J. Int'l L. 858 (1995).

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