Counter-terrorism in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom: a comparative literature review study

Abstract

What characterizes the Dutch and British policy on terrorism? Are there any differences? This article reviews the relevant literature that addresses these questions. Several competing visions have been deduced from the literature and are compared in this article on counter-terrorism. Terrorist attacks, particularly those of 9/11, led to a demand for severe counter-terrorism measures. This can be characterized as a trend toward a more "instrumentalist" policy: in the name of security, more civil rights are sacrificed. For the sake of prevention, governments intervene more in the private lives of citizens. Muslims have especially drawn attention in this regard. The UK and the Netherlands are nations with distinct histories, though since 9/11 their policies became more similar because of the internationalization of counter-terrorism. The UK's counter-terrorism policy, however, is more radically instrumentalist. Most literature strongly emphasizes the importance of respecting civil rights, domestic and global social measures, and de-stigmatizing approaches that encourages a debate of the issues.