This is a sad blog to write. But if those haunting images of terror attacks, being beamed almost on a daily basis now, is getting you increasingly worried about travelling, you need to know a few things.
Firstly, some stats. As per the US State Department statistics, there were close to 12,000 incidences of terrorism globally in 2015. Over 28,000 people were killed and another 35,000 people injured in these attacks. In 2014, over 93 countries experienced some sort of terrorist incident with 67 countries experiencing one or more deaths from terror activities. Clearly, the world is not a safe place and our fears have enough fodder.
Secondly, some perspective (or perverse logic). Much of the terrorism is highly concentrated to these five countries: Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria. One is 100 times more likely to meet with a fatal road accident. Overall, the chances of you getting caught in a terrorist attack are 1 in 20 million, according to this article. And, if you are a resident of India, statistically, your probability of facing a terrorist event would drop if you are visiting any country apart from those mentioned above. Grim, but true.
Citation: National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START). (2016). Global Terrorism Database [Data file]. Retrieved from https://www.start.umd.edu/gtd
The fact also is, when a place is only ever mentioned by the media in the context of terrorism, it gets associated with violence and fear. However, the ground reality is often very different.
To Go or Not to Go
Here are some things that will help you analyse your risks better and decide on whether a destination is safe for travel:
In the end, incidents of terrorism are meant to propagate fear and intolerance, which is exactly what travelling counters and therefore, travel is a small but sure way of battling this global problem. We live in an increasingly unsafe world and just like our everyday activities don’t halt at the behest of global tragedies, nor should our will to experience new places, people and cultures. Travelling is like an open defiance to bow down to the environment of fear that such acts intend to propagate. We all have been affected, in one way or another, by terrorism but it’s important to keep sight of the reality of the situation rather than get bogged down by the insecurity and fear.
Would love to hear your comments and suggestions on we can all Travel Safe and Travel Equipped!
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