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Terrorists or Freedom Fighters?

27 0
30.01.2026

The individual or even a group may be called a terrorist in one state and a hero in another. It demonstrates that these labels are dependent on the person and the state’s history to shape the narrative. Examples of both colonial and contemporary demonstrate that legitimacy is not in-built to an act of violence but is created through the mechanisms of political demonstrations and international acceptance. In many cases, the powerful countries will impose an interpretation of terrorism that will be favorable to their own strategic needs, and the violence of weaker actors will be delegitimized in most cases. 

The historical context and political power determine the meaning of terrorism and freedom fighters; Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad are examples of what is labeled as terrorism and heroism. The colonial British government referred to these revolutionaries as the terrorists. The central legislative assembly bombing in 1929 by Bhagat Singh purposely avoided any kind of civilian killing, unlike the September 11, 2001, attacks in the US. The reaction of British........

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