Paul Wilkinson

Professor Paul Wilkinson, Terrorologist and pro-Western Propagandist

Professor Paul Wilkinson (born 9 May 1937) is chairman of the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence at St Andrews University. He is one of the foremost academic terrorologists in the UK and a has served as an active propagandist for Western state interests throughout his long career. He retired from academia in October 2007 but continues to be involved in terrorology.

Biographical information

Early life

Born on 9 May 1937 to Walter and Joan Wilkinson, Paul Wilkinson attended John Lyons School, a private school in Harrow loosely affiliated with the more prestigious Harrow School. He studied History and Politics at University College in Swansea - now Swansea University but which was then part of the University of Wales. After graduating in 1959 he joined the RAF as an education officer where he served for six years until 1965 when he retired at the rank of Flight Lieutenant.

In Cardiff

In 1966 Wilkinson embarked on his academic career. He returned to the University of Wales, this time to Cardiff, where he became assistant lecturer in Politics. He spent 14 years based in Cardiff, and was promoted to lecturer in 1968, senior lecturing in 1975 and then Reader in 1978. Whilst at Cardiff he published his first book, Social Movement (1971) and three years later produced his first book on terrorism entitled Political Terrorism (1974). The book, according to one reviewer, built “on three best previous treatments, by Brian Crozier (1960), Thomas Thronton (1964), and E. V. Walter (1969).” In the book, that reviewer noted, Wilkinson “candidly tells us one of his aims is identifying counter-measures to terrorist attacks on liberal democracies” He urged liberal democracies to “never surrender to blackmail or extortion” because if acts of terrorism “are seen to pay, then inevitably…the terrorists’ demands will escalate.” Alex Schmid later recalled that one chapter “addressed the issue of ‘Terror against liberal democracies’ - a theme that would occupy [Wilkinson] for the rest of his life.” Indeed Wilkinson’s Manichaean portrayal of a struggle between extremist terrorists and liberal democracies became a common thread in his writings, and naturally made him appealing Western elites. The theme was more explicitly developed two years later in Terrorism versus Liberal Democracy published by the Institute for the Study of Conflict; a pseudo-academic outfit established by a group of right-wing ideologues with connections to the secret services. In 1977 Wilkinson followed up Terrorism versus Liberal Democracy with Terrorism and the Liberal State, a more influential book which would be revised and republished in the ‘80s and ‘90s. Reviewing the book on its original release, The Economist wrote:

[One] main concern of the book, as the title suggests, is to persuade liberals to take up tougher weapons in defence of their system. Mr Wilkinson, in the most interesting chapter of his book, believes that terrorism in Ulster could have been defeated if the government had gone on with the policy of internment, thorough intelligence gathering and freedom for the army to shoot as it saw fit and on sight.

In Aberdeen

In 1979 Wilkinson moved to Aberdeen University where he was appointed the first Chair in International Relations. In 1985 he was made head of the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University. After the Lockerbie Bombing in December 1988, Wilkinson – along with other terrorologists – developed an interest in aviation security. Following the bombing he advised the British Department of Transport and assisted the American Federal Aviation Administration. He published Lessons of Lockerbie in 1989. Several years later he would co-author Aviation Terrorism and Security with Brian Jenkins, another key figure in the early years of terrorism studies.

At St. Andrews

In 1989 Wilkinson left Aberdeen to join the University of St. Andrews as Professor of International Relations. That year he also became a director of the Research Institute for the Study of Conflict and Terrorism, the successor body to the Institute for the Study of Conflict which had published Terrorism versus Liberal Democracy. By the 1990s Wilkinson had become prominent enough to be targeted by terrorists. In 1991 the IRA placed a bomb under Wilkinson’s speaker’s desk. It was discovered by a sound technician checking the microphone Wilkinson was due to speak into.

In 1994 Wilkinson resigned from the board of the Research Institute for the Study of Conflict and Terrorism and was appointed head of the School of History and International Relations (a post he held until 1996). 1994 was also the year Wilkinson founded the Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence with RAND analyst Bruce Hoffman. Wilkinson was appointed a director of CSTPV in 1999 and a Chairman in 2002.

Into retirement

In October 2007 Wilkinson officially retired from St. Andrews but he remains Chairman of the Advisory Board of CSTPV.

Influence on policy makers

The Lloyd Inquiry and the Terrorism Act 2000

In December 1995 the Conservative Government set up an inquiry into anti-terrorism legislation in the UK. At that stage British anti-terrorism legislation was limited to a series of temporary emergency powers designed specifically to targeting the IRA and other militant groups in Northern Ireland. The inquiry set up to review the existing legislation was headed by Lord Lloyd of Berwick and published its report in October 1996. Wilkinson was not only an advisor to Lord Lloyd, he even authored the second part of the report. The main report, which Lord Lloyd admitted had “drawn heavily” on Wilkinson’s research, essentially recommended the indefinite extension of the Draconian powers until then limited to Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK and concluded that there was “a continuing need for permanent United Kingdom-wide legislation.” It recommended the use of state prescription of terrorist organisations - a key mechanism used by states to condemn acts of terrorism committed by enemies whilst exonerating allies. The report was part of a legislative process which led to the Labour Government's Terrorism Act 2000.

Not only was Wilkinson connected with the inquiry which led to the Terrorism Act 2000, but he is also connected to Lord Carlile, the supposedly independent reviewer of the United Kingdom’s anti-terrorism legislation. In November 2005 Lord Carlile told the House of Lords he considered Wilkinson “the greatest non-lawyer expert in this country… on terrorist organisations around the world.” He also commented offhand that he had “sat in Professor Paul Wilkinson's interesting attic office in the University of St Andrew's Centre for the Study of Terrorism.”

Consultant to Parliamentary Committees

After September 11th Wilkinson appeared at numerous parliamentary committees offering his wisdom on terrorism and security. In October 2001 he was appointed a special advisor to the Select Committee on Defence, and in January 2002 he made the first of several appearances before he Foreign Affairs Select Committee as part of its series of reports on ‘Foreign Policy Aspects of the War against Terrorism’. Evidently the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee was already a fan. Donald Anderson who chaired the Committee from X until X recommended Wilkinson’s book "Terrorism versus democracy" to the House of Commons three days after September 11th. It was, he told, “an excellent work”. The day before, Anderson and Wilkinson had both appeared on the BBC current affairs programme World At One but their connection probably goes back much further than that; both men studied Politics and History at the Swansea College and graduated only a year apart from each other.

In addition to his appearances before the Defence and Foreign Affairs Committees, Wilkinson has also given evidence on terrorism related reports compiled by the European Union Select Committee, and the Transport Committee

Views on definitions of Terrorism

Thus Paul Wilkinson, the 'doyen' of British terrorism studies, has suggested that debate about the meaning and use of the term 'terrorism' may simply be a device to obstruct 'anti-terrorist' policies:

The problems of establishing a degree of common understanding of the concept of terrorism have been vastly exaggerated. Indeed, I suspect that some have tried to deny that any common usage exists as a device for obstructing co-operation in policies to combat terrorism.

For such writers the only worthwhile argument concerns how to increase the effectiveness of 'anti-terrorist' policies. Should we choose to question the assumptions in such an approach, the ideological policing of the counterinsurgents will label us as fellow travellers of the 'terrorists'. But in truth there is no universal agreement on the causes of the Northern Ireland conflict and the term 'terrorism' is not unambiguous in it's meaning and use.

Resources

Spinprofiles Resources

• Paul Wilkinson, extract from The "Terrorism" Industry

External Resources

• "Terror expert" promotes "clash of civilisations" at Edinburgh media conference, 1 June 2006.

Publications

• Wilkinson, Paul (1977) Terrorism and the Liberal State, London:Macmillan.
• Wilkinson, Paul and Stewart, Alasdair (eds) (1987) Contemporary Research on Terrorism. Aberdeen : Aberdeen University Press.
• Wilkinson, Paul (1987) Kidnap and Ransom in P Wilkinson and A Stewart, Contemporary Research on Terrorism. Aberdeen : Aberdeen University Press.
• Wilkinson, Paul (1987) 'Can a State be Terrorist?', International Affairs. 57 : 467-472.
• Wilkinson, Paul (1988) 'The Future of Terrorism', Futures. Vol 20 No 5, October : 493-504.
• Wilkinson, Paul (1990) 'Terrorism and Propaganda' in Y. Alexander R. and Latter (eds) Terrorism and the Media: Dilemmas for Government, Journalists and the Public, Washington:Brassey's
• Paul Wilkinson (2005) 'Terrorism: Implications for World Peace' in Preparing for Peace The website of the Westmorland General Meeting 'Preparing for Peace' initiative, accessed 16 January 2008.