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Approved For Release 2000/08/07 : CIA-RDP96-00788R000100330001-5 SPECIAL EDITION -- NEW YORK TRIBUNE 17 May 1984 Pe. Bl L JAMES T. HACKETT U.S. acts to combat terrorism aimed at Olympics, here is a new fear in the nation’s capital — the fear of terrorism in America. The question nagging gov- ernment officials is whether the fear will become reality in 1984, when four major events present - prime targets: the national polit- ical conventions in Dallas and San Francisco, the Los Angeles Olym- pics and the New Orleans World’s Fair. According to the FBI, much has been done in recent years to bring the problem of terrorism in the United States under control. The FBI has focused on those extremist _groups that have been active in the United States, such as the Weather Undergrdund and its various suc- cessor groups, pro-independence Puerto Ricans, anti-Turkish Arme- nians, Croatian nationalists, anti- Russian Jewish groups and anti-Castro Cubans. Thus far, the problem has been far more serious abroad, There FBI Director William Webster says the FBI and local police forces are getting terrorism under control. James T. Hackett, a former For- eign Service officer and acting director of the U.S. Arms Control ‘and Disarmament Agency early in the Reagan administration, is edi- tor of the Heritage Foundation’s National Security Record. This article is excerpted from the publi- cation’s April issue. big events have been no incidents here with a large loss of life, and most domes- tic terrorist activities have been manageable. Testifying before a’ subcommittee of the House Judi- ciary Committee on Feb. 8, FBI Director William Webster said the FBI and local police forces--are getting terrorism under control. He said the number of terrorist attacks was down from 51 in 1982 to only 31 in 1983, and he reported a drop in the activity of Armenian, Croatian and Puerto Rican groups, coinciding with a rise in convic- tions for terrorism. Efficiency claimed Webster likes to present a pic- ture of FBI efficiency. He proclaims a reduction of terrorist activities in the United States, the readiness of the FBI’s new 50- member Hostage-Rescue Team and the operation of a_ Terrorist Research and _ Analytical Center that tracks and assesses terrorist activities by computer. But Capitol Hill sources claim that the FBI always reports everything under ‘control, while local police say the sharing of information is often a one-way street, with the FBI taking their information while providing them with little useful intelligence. The local police also contest the FBI's rosy description of declining terrorism. They claim. that- FBI. statistics do not include a number of explosions or other events that cannot clearly be classified as ter- rorism, but which the local police believe should be included in that category. The FBI considers such criticism’inaccurate and unfair. Critics claim that the FBI and CIA were emasculated by a series of demoralizing actions during the Ford and Carter presidencies, from which they have never fully recovered. The main criticism is directed against the so-called Levi TERRORISM -- 26 JUNE 1984 guidelines, issued in 1976 by Pres- ident Ford’s attorney general to establish procedures for the FBI to follow when conducting domestic security investigations. This was followed by the arrival in office of the Carter administration, which gave a higher priority to the protec- tion of civil liberties than to the protection of the public from for- eign subversive activities. All behind them But now the FBI and CIA claim that. their difficult time after Watergate and during the Carter years is behind them. The Levi guidelines were clarified early last year by the issuance of new guidelines by Attorney General William French Smith. Under the new guidelines, the FBI says its Counter-intelligence Division is actively conducting broad-scale investigations and that the bureau is doing its job effectively. There is still concern among FBI agents about the precedent set when the government prosecuted its own law enforcement officers. But President Reagan acted early in his administration to pardon the convicted officials, and this went a long way toward relieving that con- cern. The FBI now contends that its agents have nothing to fear if they The Reagan administration is actively encouraging officers to investigate and pursue terrorists and subversives. follow the current guidelines. Important though these actions have been, more significant for U.S. police and intelligence services is the change in official atmosphere. One senior intelligence officer says it is clear to agents in the field that: the Reagan administration is actively encouraging them to investigate and pursue terrorists and subversives, while the pre- vious administration was so preoc- cupied with civil liberties that it acutally sought to constrain police activities. Both the FBI and CIA CONTINUED NEXT PAGE Approved For Release 2000/08/07 : CRR-RDP96-00788R000100330001-5