South America has been one of the most affected regions when it comes to terrorism. Terrorist groups have been attacking South American countries, and have even been using them as the battlegrounds for their activities (Sullivan, 2011). These countries have also been facing threats from various terrorist groups, which have even attempted to overthrow their governments.
Although the governments in those regions have been trying to improve their counterterrorism efforts and tighten security at the border, progress is usually limited due to weakness in the institution, corruption, weak legislation, and insufficient cooperation (Sullivan, 2011). Some of the countries also lack urgency in their counterterrorism efforts, and they fail to allocate sufficient resources towards the efforts. Moreover, entry into these countries and the easy acquisition of citizenship has made them very prone to terrorist attacks.
These terrorist groups, such as the AUC, have continued to engage in criminal activities such as drug trafficking in new criminal organizations (Sullivan, 2011). Groups such as FARC have continuously campaigned for terrorist attacks, and also carrying out extortions and kidnappings. Moreover, the group has continuously provided funding for cultivation of coca and the production of cocaine. Numerous killings have been reported to have been performed by members of the terrorist groups. Nevertheless, peace talks between the governments and the terrorist groups have failed, making it harder to control the attacks.
The Cuban government has been questioned for its hand in terrorism activities. Although Cuba has been a victim of numerous bombings in the tourism sector, it has been known to legally harbor convicted criminals such as hijackers and murderers from the US, thus enabling them to elude justice (Sullivan, 2011).
From the above facts, it is clear that the South American countries have not been doing enough to handle the terrorism problems presented to them. The governments should therefore stop downplaying the effects of failure to curb terrorism, since the criminal activities have adverse consequences on both the economy and their people. Just like the US has been making efforts to help the countries become better places, so should the countries make more effort on their part. By so doing, terrorism practices will highly reduce, which will translate into more advancements.
References:
Sullivan P. M. (February 23, 2011). Latin America: Terrorism Issues. Retrieved from http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/terror/RS21049.pdf, on May 12, 2011
