Editing Freedom fighter

{{Short description|Person who fights for political freedom}}
{{Other uses|Freedom Fighters (disambiguation)}}
[[File:August 1985 Muja.jpg|thumb|[[Afghan mujahideen]] were considered freedom fighters by US president [[Ronald Reagan]] (1985 photo).]]

A '''freedom fighter''' is a person engaged in a struggle to achieve [[political freedom]], particularly against an established government.<ref> {{Cite OED|freedom fighter|5318969452}}</ref><ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|freedom fighter|access-date=2024-12-14}}</ref> The term is typically reserved for those who are actively involved in [[Armed forces|armed]] or otherwise violent [[rebellion]].<ref>{{Cite Collins Dictionary|freedom fighter|access-date=2024-12-14}}</ref>

==Terminology==
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| quote = Well, if crime fighters fight crime and fire fighters fight fire, what do freedom fighters fight? They never mention that part to us, do they?
| source = [[George Carlin]], ''Doin' It Again / Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics '' (1990)<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ucZcCgAAQBAJ&dq=crime+fighters+fight+crime+carlin&pg=PT485 | isbn=978-0-316-39019-4 | title=3 x Carlin: An Orgy of George including Brain Droppings, Napalm and Silly Putty, and When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops? | date=September 2015 | publisher=Hachette Books }}</ref>
| width = 30%
}}

Generally speaking, freedom fighters are people who use physical force to cause a change in the political and or social order. Notable examples include [[uMkhonto we Sizwe]] in South Africa, the [[Sons of Liberty]] in the [[American Revolution]], the [[Irish Republican Army]] in Ireland and [[Northern Ireland]], the [[Eritrean People's Liberation Front]] in Eritrea, the [[Mukti Bahini]] in [[Bangladesh Liberation War]], and the [[National Resistance Army]] in Uganda, which were considered freedom fighters by supporters. However, a person who is campaigning for freedom through peaceful means may still be classed as a freedom fighter, though in common usage they are called [[political activists]], as in the case of the [[Black Consciousness Movement]]. In India, "Freedom fighter" is an officially recognized category by the [[Government of India|Indian government]] covering those who took part in the [[Indian independence movement|country's independence movement]]; people in this category, which can also include dependant family members,<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/pension-of-freedom-fighters-hiked-by-rs-5000/article9003109.ece|title=Pension of freedom fighters hiked by Rs 5,000|last=PTI|date=18 August 2016|newspaper=The Hindu Business Line|access-date=23 February 2017|language=en}}</ref> get pensions and other benefits like special railway counters.<ref name="Mitchell2009">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fBchTO0NS0EC&pg=PA193|title=Language, Emotion, and Politics in South India: The Making of a Mother Tongue|publisher=Indiana University Press|year=2009|isbn=978-0-253-35301-6|page=193|author=Lisa Mitchell}}</ref>

People who are described as "freedom fighters" are often also referenced as [[assassin]]s, [[rebellion|rebel]]s, [[insurgents]], or [[terrorism|terrorists]]. This leads to the [[aphorism]] "One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ganor |first1=Boaz |title=Defining Terrorism: Is One Man's Terrorist another Man's Freedom Fighter? |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/1561426022000032060 |journal=Police Practice and Research |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |access-date=26 July 2024 |pages=287–304 |language=en |doi=10.1080/1561426022000032060 |date=January 2002|volume=3 |issue=4 }}</ref> The degree to which this occurs depends on a variety of factors specific to the struggle in which a given freedom fighter group in engaged. During the [[Cold War]], ''freedom fighter'' was first used with reference to the [[Hungarian Revolution of 1956|Hungarian rebels]] in 1956.<ref name="Garthoff-1994">{{cite book|last1=Garthoff|first1=Raymond L.|title=The Great Transition: American-Soviet Relations and the End of the Cold War|date=1994|publisher=Brookings Institution|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=0-8157-3060-8|pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=yp01AUkrE-gC&pg=PA18 18–19], [https://books.google.com/books?id=yp01AUkrE-gC&pg=PA270 270–271]}}</ref> [[Ronald Reagan]] picked up the term to explain [[Reagan Doctrine|America's support]] of rebels in countries controlled by [[communist state]]s or otherwise perceived to be under the influence of the Soviet Union, including the [[Contras]] in Nicaragua, [[UNITA]] in Angola and the multi-factional [[Afghan mujahideen|mujahideen]] in Afghanistan.<ref name=Garthoff-1994/> 

A freedom fighter is different from a [[mercenary]] as they gain no direct material benefit from being involved in a conflict, though they may have no personal reason for being involved. Thus they are not considered mercenaries under the Geneva Convention and thus may in certain circumstances be protected by it (Mercenaries are not protected under the Geneva Convention and can be tried as criminals).{{Citation needed|date=May 2009}} In the media, the [[BBC]] tries to avoid the phrases "terrorist" or "freedom fighter", except in attributed quotes, in favor of more neutral terms such as "[[Insurgent|militant]]", "[[guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]]", "[[assassin]]", "[[insurgent]]", "[[Rebellion|rebel]]", "[[paramilitary]]", or "[[militia]]".<ref>{{cite web |title=Editorial Guidelines - Section 11: War, Terror and Emergencies: Accuracy and Impartiality |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidelines/war-terror-emergencies/accuracy-and-impartiality |website=BBC Editorial Guidelines and Guidance |publisher=[[BBC]] Editorial Team |access-date=6 July 2018 |archive-date=1 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190701115415/https://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidelines/war-terror-emergencies/accuracy-and-impartiality |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==See also==
{{Wiktionary|freedom fighter}}
*[[Insurrectionary anarchism]]
*[[Irregular military]]
*[[Propaganda of the deed]]
*[[Resistance movement]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Freedom Fighter}}
[[Category:Irregular military]]
[[Category:Political terminology]]
[[Category:Rebels]]
[[Category:Indigenous activists]]
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