Accusing Pakistan of double standards on terrorism, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee lashed out at the neighbouring country’s attempts to justify its policy of cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir under the garb of jehad.

Inaugurating an international youth conference on terrorism, Vajpayee said terrorists cover their campaign of killings with the cloak of jehad to gain two benefits—one, to seek some kind of popular legitimacy, and two, it helps them to recruit misguided youth and motivate them to suicidal levels.

"Distinctions are sometimes drawn between different acts of terrorism. In some cases, we are told, it is not really terrorism but a freedom struggle. This is how our neighbour has been trying to justify its policy of cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

Stressing that selective condemnation of terror was counter-productive, the Prime Minister said: "Sometimes, double standards are used to justify terrorism. It is asserted that Osama bin Laden’s associates are freedom fighters when they act in one country and terrorists when they act elsewhere. Jehadi groups have been given shelter and support using this dubious logic." The Prime Minister called upon youth organisations to play a supportive role to supplement the Government’s efforts in the fight against international terrorism and to carry out an awareness campaign to expose justification or condoning of terrorism anywhere and under whatever pretext. In recent times, terrorism has emerged as one of the gravest threats to peace and a democratic polity.

Describing the globalisation of terror as an ugly reality of today’s world, he said it took September 11 to dramatically bring the global reach of terrorism into the collective consciousness of the world. What happened later in Bali, Moscow and Mombassa has further reinforced this truth.

Vajpayee observed that globalisation of terror has another dimension today. Increasingly, a common ideological inspiration—that of religious extremism—is exporting it around the world. "Thus, jehadi terrorism has today become the principal form of terrorism all over the world. This is not because Islam justifies terrorism. It does not. No religion preaches hatred or sanctions killing of innocent human beings," he said.

"It is through such misuse of religion that jehadi terrorism is trying to violently impose its own rigid, intolerant social order uniformly around the world. The murderous campaign has not spared even Muslim populations, as was evident from what the Taliban did in Afghanistan," the Prime Minister said, noting that it has not hidden its goals and objectives from anyone and, in pursuit of its objectives, it has given sufficient indication of its readiness to resort to any means and to attack any target.

"The December 13 attack on our Parliament illustrates this. Hence, the international community has to be vigilant against the real possibility of chemical and biological weapons and weapons of mass annihilation falling into the hands of terrorist organisations," Vajpayee emphasised.

He warned against getting frightened by terrorism, asserting that "we should have the conviction that the defeat of terrorism is certain. Human nature cannot bow before intolerance and violence. It also rejects any attempt to cast all humanity in a uniform mould."

Secularism was another prominent theme of Vajpayee’s speech. "As in Nature, mankind likes, nurtures and protects diversity. Which is why freedom of faith and thought is a fundamental human right; and tolerance of others’ religion, customs and political beliefs is a fundamental duty of everyone," said the Prime Minister, adding, "this is the basis of democracy. It is also the basis of secularism."

"It is today a self-evident truth that democratic, secular and multicultural societies are the prime targets of terrorism. These have become most vulnerable to its attacks. Terrorists exploit civil liberties, religious tolerance and cultural diversity in our countries. They seek to destroy our democratic fabric by fomenting sectarian divisions and cultural tensions and ultimately deprive us of that very freedom which they have exploited," said Vajpayee.

The Prime Minister continued: "It is also a fact, often ignored, that the sponsorship, bases and finances for terrorism come from totalitarian military regimes. They nurture and support extremist terrorist groups to further their own political agenda. In turn, these groups make themselves indispensable to these regimes by maintaining the focus on external campaigns and diverting attention from the inadequacies of their internal systems."

According to Vajpayee, "democracies are more vulnerable to terrorism for yet another reason. Our values inhibit effective anti-terrorist action. Intrusive surveillance, curtailment of liberties, restrictions on movement and other such tedious security procedures often become unpopular because they affect the quality of our life. Today, we have to reconcile ourselves to some infringement of our rights and freedoms, so that we can counter the far more destructive threat from terrorism. We have to take decisive, tough and forceful action against terrorists, which is both punitive and deterrent."