It is agreeable to a large extent that terrorism poses the greatest threat to peace in a multiracial society though there are different challenges that are faced by the society such as managing the perceptions of different religious and racial groups; terrorism still poses the greatest threat to the society.
Terrorism refers to acts of violence which are global in terms of aims organization and impact. These acts can lest social bonds of the people in a multiracial society and can divide the people. Race and religion may be used to create ill feelings among the different ethnic groups and in turn pose threat to the racial and religious harmony which threatens the peace in a multiracial society.
One example of terrorism threat includes threats from the group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI). Members of the JI are involved in fund raising and purchase of materials for making weapons such as bombs. Targets were made to bomb the US embassy and some governmental buildings such as Ministry of Education. Therefore such threats disrupt the peaceful harmony.
The arrest of members of terrorist groups may strain the relationship between racial and religious groups. People of different racial and religious groups might be suspicious of each other especially when the arrested member may be of a certain religious group or race. People may not want to live or work with someone who may be suspicious of being in cahoots with terrorists. Thus there is an urgent need to ensure social cohesion is not affected by JI arrests. The existence of strained relationships can cause peace to be much threatened when such a threat continues to be left attended by authorities.
However, the perception of different racial groups is also a factor that could pose a threat to a multiracial society. The lack of understanding among racial gropes can create suspicion and unhappiness among the people. This could then lead to outbreaks of violence among racial groups; creating the impression of the society being chaotic.
For example, in 1964, Singapore experienced racial riots which resulted in 36 people dead and over 500 others injured simple because there was a different perception of different social groups. The racial riots came about when People's Action Party (what is known as PAP nowadays) participated in the Federal Election in Malaysia calling for a non-communal approach to Malaysian politics and the creation of a Malaysia where everyone would be given equal rights and privileges. As a result, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) felt that their existence was being threatened by such a request and they immediately called for an ‘Anti-PAP' campaign which involved the portrayal of the PAP resettlement and redevelopment programs as ‘Anti-Malay'.
In addition, the Malay newspaper-Utusan Melayu was used by the UMNO to spread anti-PAP messages. Ultimately, the racial riots broke out after a clash between a Chinese policeman and a group of Malay participants of Prophet Muhammad's birthday. However, the different perceptions of different racial could be in turn be used by the terrorists to create a racial riot or to wreck havoc and create chaos in the country.
Also, the differences in religious beliefs and practices are also issues that can be used to create tension among people in Singapore. This can elevate to become and outbreak of violence among religious groups.
One example is the Maria Hertogh riots in the 1950s. In 1940, a Dutch couple was imprisoned by the Japanese Troops. They place their daughter, Maria Hertogh, under the care of a Malay lady, Aminah. Maria was raised as a Muslim and was married to a Muslim teacher at the age of 13.
However, after World War II, her parents demanded Maria to be returned to them, and a court trial followed. The court trial had wide media coverage and this provoked much unhappiness among the Muslim community as the custody was given to the Hertoghs.
The large Muslim crowd outside the court felt that the British legal system had sided with the western and was unfair to the Muslims. This sparked off hatred and anger towards the Eurasian community. Finally when the new about Maria's marriage with the Muslim teacher was annulled ad Maria admitted to the Christian convert, the Muslims felt betrayed and a violent riot broke out.
Thus this shows that the difference in religious beliefs can pose a threat to a multiracial society. If the interests of religious groups are not managed properly, violence would still strike off. However, terrorists groups like the JI are always trying a recreate such violent histories over the time which could then allow them to weaken the government; giving them a chance to completely wreck havoc on the country.
As a result, it is agreeable to a large extent that terrorism poses the greatest threat to peace in a multi-racial society because terrorism is all around us; we can never predict what may be the next course of plans set by these terrorist organizations. In addition, we can never be able to completely crush terrorism since there will always contradicting ideologies which can lead to further seeding of more terrorist groups arising; therefore, though we may have many ways to ethnical problems and counter-terrorism, we can and will never be able stop terrorism from happening all around us.
