Shifting Faces of Terror After 9/11: Framing the Terrorist Threat
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
SHIFTING FACES OF TERROR AFTER 9/11: FRAMING THE TERRORIST THREAT A dissertation submitted to Kent State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Elena Pokalova Dissertation written by Elena Pokalova B.A., Ural State Pedagogical University, 2002 M.A., Kent State University, 2010 Ph.D., Kent State University, 2011 Approved by Andrew Barnes, Ph.D., Co-Chair, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Landon Hancock, Ph.D., Co-Chair, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Steven Hook, Ph.D., Member, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Karl C. Kaltenthaler, Ph.D., Member, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Accepted by Steven Hook, Ph.D., Chair, Department of Political Science John R.D. Stalvey, Ph.D., Dean, College of Arts and Sciences ii TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS...................................................................................................iii LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................ v LIST OF TABLES............................................................................................................. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ................................................................................................ vii Note on Transliteration ....................................................................................................viii List of Frequently Used Abbreviations.............................................................................. ix 1. Introduction..................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Problem Overview .................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Research Question .................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Main Arguments and Hypotheses............................................................................. 6 1.4 Dissertation Structure................................................................................................ 9 2. Framing and Discourse ................................................................................................. 12 2.1 Introduction............................................................................................................. 12 2.2 Social Construction of Reality................................................................................ 14 2.3 Framing................................................................................................................... 16 2.4 Discourse................................................................................................................. 23 2.5 Effects of Framing .................................................................................................. 27 2.6 Data and Methods ................................................................................................... 30 3. September 11 as a Focusing Event: Post-9/11 Counterterrorism and the “War on Terror”............................................................................................................................... 41 3.1 Introduction............................................................................................................. 41 3.2 September 11, 2001 and “New” Terrorism............................................................. 42 3.3 September 11, 2001 and the Changing Response to the “New” Threat ................. 47 3.4 The “War on Terror” and Ethno-Nationalist Separatist Conflicts.......................... 59 3.5 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 70 4. The Chechen Conflict before September 11, 2001....................................................... 72 4.1 Introduction............................................................................................................. 72 4.2 The First Chechen Conflict..................................................................................... 74 4.3.1 The First Chechen Conflict: The Government Account...................................... 81 4.3.2 The First Chechen Conflict: The Opposition Account ........................................ 86 4.3.3 The First Chechen Conflict: The Separatists Speak ............................................ 91 4.4.1 Separatism vs. Terrorism ..................................................................................... 95 4.4.2 Separatism vs. Islamism..................................................................................... 103 4.5.1 Legal Regime of the First Chechen Conflict ..................................................... 105 4.5.2 Frame Acceptance.............................................................................................. 108 4.5.2.1 Domestic Response ..................................................................................... 109 4.5.2.2 International Response ............................................................................... 111 iii 4.6 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 113 5. The Chechen Conflict after September 11, 2001........................................................ 116 5.1 Introduction........................................................................................................... 116 5.2 The Second Chechen Conflict .............................................................................. 117 5.3.1 The Second Chechen Conflict: The Government Account................................ 125 5.3.2 The Second Chechen Conflict: The Opposition Account.................................. 132 5.3.3 The Second Chechen Conflict: The Separatists Speak...................................... 137 5.4.1 Separatism vs. Terrorism ................................................................................... 142 5.4.2 Separatism vs. Islamism..................................................................................... 153 5.5.1 Legal Regime of the Second Chechen Conflict................................................. 158 5.5.2 Frame Acceptance.............................................................................................. 161 5.5.2.1 Domestic ..................................................................................................... 162 5.5.2.2 International ............................................................................................... 165 5.6 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 170 6. Global Implications of the “War on Terror”: China, Turkey, and Sri Lanka ............. 172 6.1 Introduction........................................................................................................... 172 6.2 China vs. the Uyghurs........................................................................................... 175 6.3 Turkey vs. the Kurds............................................................................................. 186 6.4 Sri Lanka vs. the Tamils ....................................................................................... 199 6.5 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 212 7. Military Means and Terrorism: Can the “War on Terror” Fight the “New” Threat? . 215 7.1 Introduction........................................................................................................... 215 7.2 Military Means and Ethno-Nationalist Terrorism................................................. 218 7.3 Is “New” Terrorism Really New?......................................................................... 221 7.4 The “War on Terror” and the Demise of Terrorist Organizations........................ 231 7.5 Policy Implications ............................................................................................... 243 8. Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 247 8.1 Substantive Conclusions ....................................................................................... 247 8.2 Theoretical Conclusions........................................................................................ 253 8.3 Policy Implications ............................................................................................... 257 Appendix A..................................................................................................................... 260 Appendix B ..................................................................................................................... 299 Appendix C ..................................................................................................................... 316 Appendix D..................................................................................................................... 321 WORKS CITED ............................................................................................................. 325 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1. Evolution of framing. ..................................................................................... 27 Figure 5.1. Terrorist acts perpetrated by the Chechen separatists over time. ................. 144 Figure 5.2. Russian opinion on military action in Chechnya as opposed to