University of Twente Student Theses

Login

Vergelijkend onderzoek van het Terrorismebeleid in Nederland en België

Roor, Janneke (2009) Vergelijkend onderzoek van het Terrorismebeleid in Nederland en België.

[img] PDF
461kB
Abstract:This thesis aims to make a comparison between the terrorism policy of The Netherlands and Belgium in the period 2001-2004 and is trying to figure out if the kind of terrorism related problems both countries have, are of influence on that policy. It is a relevant research because these two neighbouring countries can possibly learn from each other and cooperate more in the near future. As terrorism, and especially Jihadi terrorism, is still a prominent aspect on the political agenda these days, this research can contribute to the understanding of this phenomenon. The main question that is being asked in this research is: “Is there convergence or divergence in the changing terrorism policy in the period 2001-2004 between The Netherlands and Belgium and can this be explained by the difference in problems?”. This question is answered with the help of the convergence theory by Knill and Holzinger. The theory has five causal mechanisms; independent problem solving, coercive isomorphism, international harmonisation, regulated competition and transnational communication. There are also two facilitating factors, similarity in countries and type of policy, but these factors are not a big part of this research. To make sure that the question is being answered correctly, an analysis has been made between the difference in terrorism problems in The Netherlands and Belgium. What we see, is that Belgium has been dealing far longer with Jihadi terrorism and that Islamic groups were formed in Belgium before the attacks in the United States. In The Netherlands this happens after 9/11. What we also see is that a terrorist attack really happened in The Netherlands in the period 2001-2004 and this did not happen in Belgium. In The Netherlands there was the murder on Theo van Gogh. Something like that did not happen in Belgium. On the other hand, a lot of plans were made in Belgium to perform a terrorist act outside of Belgium. The latter happened on a smaller scale in The Netherlands. Another analysis has been made to answer the main question and that is a comparison of terrorism policy of The Netherlands and Belgium in the period 2001-2004. What we see here is that the term ‘terrorism’ is being used more early in time by Belgium than in The Netherlands. In The Netherlands, the term ‘political violent activism’ was used prior to the 9/11 attacks. Anti terrorism units were present in Belgium before 2001, in The Netherlands after 2001. Terrorism had also a spot on the Belgium political agenda before 2001, in The Netherlands after 2001. All these points can be seen as convergence points, because at the end of the research period, 2004, the situation changed and The Netherlands and Belgium had the 4 same kind of policy if you look at the mentioned points. A final difference in terrorism policy is that The Netherlands focused on integration after 9/11, Belgium did not do that. This can be seen as a divergence point because at the end of the research period, the situation did not change and The Netherlands and Belgium had still different kind of policy when you look at integration. The convergence and divergence points are being compared with the causal mechanisms of Knill and Holzinger. The aim is to see if the convergence and divergence points can be found back in aspects of these causal mechanisms. It can be said that the convergence points are found back in the following causal mechanisms; independent problem solving, international harmonisation and transnational communication. The conclusion out if the latter is that the theory of Knill and Holzinger can be used in looking for convergence in the terrorism realm. The divergence points are also found in the causal mechanisms, or better said, in the absence of certain causal mechanisms. It can also be concluded that the causal mechanisms that are not found back in the convergence of terrorism policy between The Netherlands and Belgium, Coercive isomorpishm and regulated competition, have got nothing to do with the problems in a country. The other mechanisms are presents and these are related to problems. That’s why it can be said that there is convergence in terrorism policy between The Netherlands and Belgium and this can not be explained by the differences in problems. For the development of research about terrorism and terrorism policy in The Netherlands and Belgium it is advised that the in 2005 established Flemish-Dutch network of terrorism researchers will expand their research. Another aspect that is recommended is the fact that there are established contacts that provided information for this research. These contacts can be valuable for further research and it is recommended that the personal details of these contacts will be stored in a database. As terrorism is a topic that has a certain secrecy aspect, it can be handy for researchers to have contacts that can help with the research.
Item Type:Essay (Master)
Faculty:BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:88 social and public administration
Programme:Public Administration MSc (60020)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/60224
Export this item as:BibTeX
EndNote
HTML Citation
Reference Manager

 

Repository Staff Only: item control page