The Real Terror Network: Terrorism in Fact and Propaganda

268 Pages·1982·10.131 MB·English

by  Edward S. Herman

THE REAL
TERROR
NETWORK
Terrorism in Faa and Propaganda
by Edward Herman
S.
In country after country in the ready highly skewed income dis-
U.S. sphere ofinfluence "domi- tributions to become still more
noes" have been falling, with unequal, and have caused a large
military regimes and other de- fraction oftheir populations to
pendent tyrannies coming into be kept in a state of extreme
power in virtually all ofCentral deprivation....
and South America, and Thai- The broad purpose of this
land, Indonesia, the Philippines, book is to show the nature, roots
Zaire, and elsewhere. These re- and vast scope ofthe real terror
—
gimes have almost uniformly network the U.S.-sponsored
—
displayed the followingcharac- "authoritarian" states and to
teristics: (1 ) they represent a examine the ways in which the
small elite interest, including the magnificent propaganda mach-
multinational corporation, inery of the west has covered
which they treat kindly; (2) they this over and substituted in its
all use terror, including modern place a lesser, and frequently
forms of torture, to keep the concocted,networkthatincludes
—
majority unorganized, power- byca—reful definition and selec-
less, and as means to local elite tivity only those terrorists
and multinational corporate who are challenging important
ends;(3)the leadershipsofthese western interests orwho can be
states are almost invariably ve- plausibly linked to its enemies.
nal; (4) they have allowed al-

The Real Terror Network
TWE UBRARY
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The Real Terror Network
Terrorism in Fact and Propaganda
Edward Herman
S.
SOUTH END PRESS BOSTON
Copyright © 1982 by Edward S. Herman
First Edition
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Library ofCongress Card Number 82-80687
ISBN 0-89608-134-6 paper
ISBN 0-89608-135-4 cloth
Cover design by Lydia Sargent
Typesetting, design and layout were
done by the collective at
South End Press
116St. BotolphSt.
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Printed In The U.S.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements vii
Preface 1
The Semantics and Role of Terrorism 21
1
2 Contemporary Terrorism (1):
The Lesser and Mythical Terror Networks 47
3 Contemporary Terrorism (2):
The Real Terror Network 83
4 Contemporary Terrorism
(3):
The Role of the Mass Media 139
5 Remedies for Terrorism 201
Footnotes 221
Index 247
Table 2-1 Terrorist Attacks Against Cuba 67
Table 3-1 Income Size, Growth and Distribution for
Four Socialist and Six U.S. Client States 94
Table 3-2 Human Needs Performance for Four
Socialist and Six U.S. Client States 100-101
Table 3-3 Origin and Spread ofthe Death Squad
in Latin America 116
Table 3-4 U.S. Military, Police and Economic
Aid to Countries Using Torture on an
Administrative Basis in the 1970s 129
Table 3-5 Forms of Subversion Engaged in by the
United States in Eight Countries in Latin
America and the Caribbean, 1950-1980 134
Table 4-1 Press Coverage of Abused Persons in the
Soviet Sphere and in Eight U.S. Client States 197
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Edward S. Herman is professor of finance at the Wharton
School, University of Pennslyvania. In addition to co-authoring
The Political Economy ofHuman Rights with Noam Chomsky
hehaswrittenthehighlyacclaimed CorporateControl, Corporate
Power.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Paul Getman, Joseph Lim and
Michael Marchino, graduate students at the University of
Pennsylvania, fortheirassistanceinthe preparationofthis book.
Amongthemanyotherswho provided valuablecommentsonthe
manuscript, or other forms of aid, Philip Agee, Benedict
Anderson, Richard Arens, Lawrence Birns, Jan Black, Noam
Chomksy, Richard DuBoff, David Felix, Michael Klare,Jack Ma-
linowski, Elizabeth Petrasand Ellen Raydeservespecialmention.
John Schall and Michael Albert of South End Press also made
many useful suggestions and extended otherforms ofhelp in all
phases of the production of this volume. The responsibility for
thecontentsofthiswork, however, restsentirelywiththeauthor.
I would also like to express my great debt to the numerous
authorsand publicationsthatdealwithThird Worldconditions,
oftenwithgreatcompetenceand humanity, but withouteffective
access to the populations ofthe west, and, most particularly, the
United States. It is one of the themes of this book that
information is selected and rejected by the U.S. mass media on
thebasis ofprinciplesrelatedtopowerand interest, nottruthand
vu
THE REALTERROR NETWORK
Vlll
human relevance. Every Latin American country has produced
dissident and refugee groups that issue a steady stream of
"samizdats," full ofinformation and passion concerning serious
violations of human rights. For all practical purposes these
messages are "blacked out" in this country. For a taste of the
scope of these unheard voices, the interested reader should
consult the Human Rights Internet Reporter, an annotated
bibliography published five times a year in Washington, D.C.
(1502 Ogden Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20010) and
running to several hundred pages of references per issue.
Relatively accessible sources and publications that I have
found valuable in studying the "real terror network" of Latin
America, and which describe a world far removed from that
portrayed in the U.S. mass media, would include the following:
American Friends ServiceCommittee, numerousshortreports
(most recently, "Militarizing Central America"), slideshows and
activity information (1501 Cherry Street, Philadelphia, PA
19102).
Amnesty International, many publications, including news-
papers {Labor News, Matchbox, both useful). Annual Reports,
and important countrystudiesand specialreports, manycited in
the text (304 West 58th St., New York, NY 10019).
Anthropology ResourceCenter, ARCNewsletter, fourtimesa
MA
year (59 Temple Place, Suite 444, Boston, 021 1 1).
Center for International Policy (CIP), International Policy
Report, periodic (120 Maryland Ave., N.E., Washington, D.C.
20002).
Counterspy, five times a year (P.O. Box 647, Ben Franklin
Station, Washington, D.C. 20004).
Covert Action Information Bulletin, 5-7 times a year, (P.O.
Box 50272, Washington, D.C. 20004).
Council on Hemispheric Affairs, Washington Report on the
Hemisphere, biweeklyand invaluable 900 LStreet, N.W., Suite
(1
201, Washington, D.C. 20036).
Ecumenical Programfor Inter-AmericanCommunicationand
Action(EPICA),valuablespecialreports, includingmostrecent-
ly Philip Wheaton, TheIron Triangle, The Honduran Connection
(1470 Irving St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20010).
Guatemala Information Center, BetweentheLines, bimonthly
(P.O. Box 59027, Los Angeles, CA 90057).