Introduction
This paper discusses the media reaction over the world on the death and subsequent announcement of Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. It highlights the views of the media across the world which faults the immigration policies in Pakistan. This forced the United States of America (USA) to forcibly fly in, kill a foreigner in a foreign nation without the host nation’s knowledge, hence contravening the international law. The paper then summarizes the effect of these developments on the economy of the USA in view that even though the killing was done so many miles away, its execution is seen by many as having been done in America.
The brief history of Al Qaeda and its terrorist activities
The military death and announcement of the Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden by the president of the United States of America have raised eyebrows on the immigration policies of Pakistan as a sovereign nation. This can well be understood by tracking the history of the self declared leader of the Al Qaeda movement. On September 11th of 2001, there was a deadly terrorist attack on the twin towers of the World Trade Centre claiming close to 3,000 lives. In 1998, there were attacks in East Africa: Kenya and Tanzania; where the two nations lost close to 1000 people and left many with lifetime injuries and stories to tell. The two were associated with terrorism attacks against nations deemed close friends and allies to the United States of America. The mastermind behind these barbaric attacks was identified as Osama Bin Laden a Saudi Arabian national who has had enough exposure through his experience in living in a number of nations across the world. The United States since then announced war against terrorism and identified Osama Bin Laden as a wanted man to face justice over these crimes against humanity. Nearly a decade now, the United States of America has pursued Osama Bin Laden initially believed to be hiding in Tora Bora, a mountainous desert in Afghanistan but until 2nd May 2011 when Osama was pursued and killed by American soldiers in his home in Pakistan.
The media reaction over the killing
The killing of the leader of Al Qaeda brought about a series of celebrations, lamentations and accusations among many nations in the world, with the media divided on a number of issues. Many applaud the United States of America for their efforts to fight terrorism while others put the fault to Pakistan on how such a figure could be living comfortably in such a posh environment without the government knowledge. This has evidently compromised the immigration policies of Pakistan especially on how Osama Bin Laden landed into the nation without their detection. Their general law on housing especially settling immigrants has sharply been criticized for allowing settlement of foreigners without any surveillance.
Looking at the reports and news across the world especially on the contribution of Pakistan to the many years that Osama has been dodging justice, one wonders and thus notes that if is not their failed immigration laws maybe it might be its unwillingness to have pursued the arrest of Osama Bin Laden. Although there is a lot of caution in making such an allegation, one is left to wonder how such a high profile individual could be living in a posh guarded environment provided with a nation’s security without the host country’s knowledge. Again, the entrance of Osama to Pakistan and his subsequent ability to acquire such an area for residence bearing in mind that he was not a Pakistan national only leaves the country vulnerable to the attacks it has received across the world. By all standards and measures, the media was justified and its reporting objectively presented to bring to light either the lack of immigration laws in Pakistan, which is still not seen as true, but maybe its reluctance in pursuing justice to the many who have fallen victims of terrorism.
The perception of the people on the coverage
For the first time in American history, the death and announcement of Osama by the USA president was done with the much needed caution. Although the reaction in the media across the world moved the focus a way from the United States of America’s efforts in bringing Osama to justice, the American media can be faulted for presenting the death as a win specifically for the United States of America. Even after Mr. Obama announced death as a welcome idea for all who love peace, media reporting in America such as Obama 1 Osama 0 meant the focus should be on the USA and not the war against terrorism. This, though not loudly seen, is interpreted to mean the USA against terrorists yet it is known that for the war against terrorism to be won then all the people in the world should be involved (Kurt & Michele, 2001).
The effect of Osama’s death on the economy of the United States of America
The death of Osama Bin Laden is likely going to affect the economy and labor force of the United State of America. There are already reports that the fight against Osama Bin Laden has cost the United States at least $3 trillion over the past 15 years. This is in form of the disruptions he has caused on the USA domestic economy, the wars and improved security as a result of the terrorist attacks he organized and led, and the direct efforts to have him brought to justice. Since the war against terrorism is widely known to be fought tirelessly with the USA, this trend is poised to continue. The war has always put the nation at loggerhead with many Muslim nations and Muslims (Carr, 2001). The announcement clearly stating that the president tirelessly fought to bring Osama to justice using American soldiers means the focus by the remaining Al Qaeda is on the USA and not Pakistan. Recent developments have shown them (Al Qaeda) are contemplating attacking the United States of America as an avenge program against its fallen leader. This means things cannot go on as planned as people get to be more vigilant as their security is not guaranteed fully. Exports and imports that majorly depend on flights cannot go on swiftly as there is a need for more surveillance. These measures will automatically lower the economic returns to the USA government for a period not less than three weeks.
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it can be noted that the law on immigration in Pakistan is faulty, or as many have reported, the country is not ready to fully participate in the war against terrorism. The US president Mr. Barrack Obama is given credit across the world for how he presented the news by moving the attention from America to the fight against terrorism. The killing of Al Qaeda by the American navy squad means attention by the leaders’ sympathizers, and Al Qaeda members pose a threat to the USA and its citizens. This will automatically affect its economic returns as there is a lot of fear among the investors, and workers at different working places.
References
Carr, Caleb. The Lessons of Terror. New York: Random House, 2002.
Kurt, Campbell & Michele, Flournoy. An American Strategy for the Campaign against Terrorism. Washington, DC: Center for Strategic and International Studies Press, 2001.