What_Hawala

Unit 5-Midterm Critical Issues in Terrorism-CJ 513 By Marsha R. Santos Professor Tina Jaeckle August 10, 2010 Describe the “Hawala System.” What makes it successful among its users' Since the September 11, 2001 terrorists attacks on the United States, public interest in informal systems of transferring money around the world, particularly the Hawala System, has increased (Mohammed El-Qorchi, 2010). The reason is the Hawala System’s alleged role in financing illegal and terrorist activities, along with its traditional roles of transferring money between individuals and families, often in different countries. In early times, this system of informal channels for transferring funds from one location to another was created because of the dangers of traveling with gold and other types of payments on routes beset with danger. It was and still is couriered by providers known as Hawaladars. It is a simple system but yet it can be complex at times (Mohammed El-Qorchi, 2010). It can involve many Hawaladars and works from China, East Asia and into the Persian Gulf Region as well as Africa. While it has legitimate transfers of funds, its anonymity and minimal documentation make it vulnerable to abuse by groups and individuals transferring funds to finance illegal activities. Hawala System is less expensive, swifter, reliable, convenient and less bureaucratic than formal financial sectors. Fees are lower than banks. This is due to low overhead and absence of regulatory cost. To encourage continued trade through the system, Hawaladars sometimes exempt fees to expatriates and charge higher fees to those who use the system to avoid exchange, capital or administrative controls. There is minimal documentation and little accounting (Mohammed El-Qorchi, 2002). It is simplicity at its best. Instructions are given to correspondents by phone, facsimile or email and funds are delivered within twenty four hours to even the most remote areas. The system does have direct and indirect economic implications. One aspect is its potential impact on the monetary accounts of countries on either end of the transaction. Because these transactions are not reflected in official statistics, the remittance of funds from one country to another is not recorded as an increase in the recipient country’s foreign assets or that country’s liabilities. Value changes hands, but money is unaltered. Transactions are virtually inaccessible, especially for statistical or balance of payments purpose; remitting and the receiving sides. Anonymity is afforded by this system so it presents risk of money laundering and terrorist financing. (Mohammed El-Qorchi, 2002). Regulations of this system vary. The variety of legal systems and economic circumstances make a uniform approach technically and legally impractical. In a number of countries, the system is prohibited. Any attempts to regulate the system in these countries would, therefore, be at odds with existing laws and regulates and would be seen as legitimizing foreign exchange operations and capital flight. One final reason to use Hawala is trust. Hawala dealers are almost always honest in their dealings with customers and fellow Hawaladars. Breaches of trust are rare (Mohammed El-Qorchi, 2002). Consider this example of a Hawala transaction: Abdul is a Pakistani living in New York. From his job he has saved 5000 dollars to send to his brother Mohammed in Karachi. The bank offers to sell him Pakistani rupees (R’s) at the official rate (4) of 31 to the dollar. With Hawala there is a 5 percent commission for handling the transaction, 35, instead of 31 rupees for a dollar and deliver is included. This arrangement will allow Abdul to send Mohammad R’s 166,250 compared to R’s 154,225 with the bank. (NYTimes, 2010). Describe “Martyrdom.” Does it go hand in hand with being a suicide bomber' Support your answer. Martyrdom is the condition of a martyr; the death of a martyr; the suffering of death on account of adherence to the Christian faith, or to any cause. The essay entitled “The Islamic Ruling on the Permissibility of Martyrdom Operations” is a famous case in point for Martyrdom (ReligiousScope, 2010). This article states that Martyrdom or self-sacrifice operations are those performed by one or more people, against enemies far outstripping them in numbers and equipment, with prior knowledge that the operations will almost inevitably lead to death. (ReligionScope, 2010). The object is to kill as many people as possible in one strike. The martyr will almost certainly die. A Martyr, willing to face death rather than renounce religious or personal belief cannot be reasoned with. (Newkirk,Terri,1995) Many religions include a tradition of martyrdom and martyrs that are often held in esteem since they represent the pinnacle of faithfulness to some people. In Judaism, martyrdom is a very important concept, perhaps because the Jewish people have historically been subject to persecution by many cultures. To become a martyr is to personally affirm the Jewish faith and people; many martyrs also hope that their deaths serve a great cause, perhaps paving the way to a wider acceptance of their religion (Plekon, Fr. Michael, 2009). Consider this reading: Were it not for Allah's repelling some people by means of others, the earth would surely have become corrupt." [Quran]; the choicest peace and blessings be on the Chief of the Prophets, who has said, “By [Allah] in Whose Hand is my soul! I have surely wished to be killed in the path of Allah, then brought to life, then killed [again], then brought to life, then killed!" [Bukhari, Muslim and others]; and who has also said, "Act, and each will be eased to that for which he was created." [Bukhara, Muslim and others] (QuranExplorer, 2010). These readings are an oath to the suicide bomber and the martyr. The Koran originally forbids the taking of one’s own life. But after the U.S. stationed Marines in Beirut things changed. This became the weapon of choice for the Islamic Resistance Movement. Religious authorities gave their blessing and a wave of bombers emerged. The first strike killed sixty embassy workers and two hundred and forty marines in the Marine Compound in Beirut (Neff, Donald, 1995). There were no longer lingering religious concerns over dying by suicide. But the question is why they become suicide bombers or martyrs' In fact, these two near antithetic words — on the one hand, broken, desperate suicides, on the other, heroic martyrs — intrinsically demonstrate the radically different ideas the average Westerner and Muslim will articulate their answer through (Ibrahim, Raymond, 2005). In other words, that Westerners consider them suicides while Muslims consider them martyrs in and of itself speaks volumes on motivation (Ibrahim, Raymond, 2005). There are certain aspects that are similar between Martyrdom and Suicide Bombers. Both acts are based on religious views. Both inflict death and terror on its victims; both can cause war and unrest and both come from a deep rooted belief in something powerful to that person. Both are intoxicated by the power present in the title they possess. Both acts unleash the worst in any human being and the deepest and most addictive human passions-the thirst for vengeance, the desire for religious purity and the longing for earthly glory and salvation. Suicide bombing and martyrdom isn’t just tactics in a larger war; it overwhelms the political goals it is meant to serve. It creates its own logic and transforms the culture of those who employ it. Martyrdom and suicide have a life of their own and transforms a person into something far beyond normal. Lives are taken and praise is given, even in the deaths of the persons committing the acts. Both individuals are a small part in a bigger picture; most likely a picture they will not live to see. The point of the bombers or the Martyr really isn’t suicide but to kill and if he dies in the process, so be it. The bomber does not think that those he kills are innocent and the martyr just sees casualties as part of the cause. In one case someone orders it to happen and in the other he is completely of his own free will, but in the end with the same results. Not every martyrdom operation is legitimate nor is every one prohibited. The verdict differs based on factors such as conditions, situation of the issues, personal circumstances and elements of the operation. When the bomber puts on his bomb vest and the martyr flies a plane into a tower, the end result is the same. People die and this is the ultimate goal for both people. Nothing else matters. Even their deaths are not a deterrent. They both have the same goal and that is what makes them so much alike. References: El-Qorchi, Mohammed, “Informal funds Transfer System,” 2010, http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/nft/op/222/index.htm. El-Qorchi, Mohammed, “The Hawala System” 2002, http://www.gdrc.org/icm/hawala.html. Gur Media, “Global Jihad”, (2009), http://www.globaljihad.net/view_page.asp'id=1171 Ibrahim, Raymond, “Jihad, Martyrdom, and the Torments of the Grave”(2009). http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/jihad-martyrdom-and-the-torments-of-the-grave/. Jost, Patrick M., “The Hawala alternative remittance system and its role in money laundering,”(2000) http://www.interpol.int/public/financialcrime/moneylaundering/hawala/default.asp#2. Neff, Donald, “If Americans Knew,”, (1995), http://www.ifamericansknew.org/us_ints/p-neff.html. Newkirk, Terri, “The Mantle of Eljah,”(1995), http://www.ourgardenofcarmel.org/martyrs.html. Plekon Friar, Michael, “Alexander Men: A Modern Martyr, Free in the Faith, Open to the World,”(2009). http://www.alexandermen.com/Alexander_Men:_A_Modern_Martyr,_Free_in_the_Faith. Salafi Manhaj , “Martyrdom in Islam Verses Suicide Bombers”(2007). http://www.scribd.com/doc/3989813/Martyrdom-in-Islam-Versus-Suicide-bombing Schall, James F., “Martyrs and Suicide Bombers”, (2009), http://www.ignatiusinsight.com/features2005/schall_martyrsbombers_aug05.asp. Schinider, Bruce,”Suicide Bombing in Halo 3” (2009) http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/11/suicide_bombing.html. Smith, S. E., “What is a Martyr”, (2010) http:www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-martyr.htm. http://www.quranexplorer.com/.