Responding to the threat of violent extremism
Fri, 15 Mar 2013 13:00:00 GMT
Huddersfield researcher questions the successes of the Prevent initiative
POLICE officers, youth workers and community organisations aiming to prevent violent extremism and terrorism gained a global perspective when they attended a special seminar at the University of Huddersfield.
The day-long event was attended by almost 100 delegates from around the UK. They heard from academic experts based in Europe and North America and took part in discussion sessions.
The seminar was chaired and organised by the University of Huddersfield’s Dr Paul Thomas, who has researched the implementation in the UK of an initiative named Prevent. It is a ‘hearts and minds’ approach, the educational component of the Government’s anti-terrorism strategy named Contest.
Dr Thomas is the author of a new book, Responding to the Threat of Violent Extremism, which analyses and critiques the Prevent strategy. He invited overseas academics to attend the Huddersfield seminar in order to provide their analysis of how Prevent-style educational initiatives have operated in their countries.
Dr Floris Vermeulen and Julia Berczyk of the University of Amsterdam, reported on the Netherlands and Germany. Dr Francesco Ragazzi, of the University of Leiden, provided an analysis of France and Professor Shelia Gruner, of the University of Algoma in Northern Ontario provided a Canadian perspective.
The University of Huddersfield’s Professor Helen Colley led a discussion session, while Dr Thomas introduced and concluded the event.
'The audience was largely invited guests from local authorities and police services in the north of England involved in implementing Prevent, and the international comparisons on offer gave them some valuable insights into differences and similarities in the policy approaches at the local level in different countries'.
'Our international speakers raised important points about the relationship between Prevent and wider policies of community cohesion and equal opportunities, and delegates from local authorities and police services in the north of England will be looking carefully at how to strike that balance as they develop Prevent approaches in the future'.
Britain was the first country to introduce the Prevent strategy, said Dr Thomas, and it had influenced educational approaches to deter violent extremism in many countries.
Prevent could and should have been done differently
In the UK, almost £200 million had been spent on Prevent, but it was inevitably difficult to measure the success of preventative educational strategies, he added.
“I think that Prevent is a problematic policy, but we cannot deny that some good things have come out of it,” said Dr Thomas.
“It led to some very significant developments within Muslim communities, improved the strength of community organisations and has led to educational work with Muslim young people. But my work has argued that it has been very problematic and Prevent could and should have been done differently.
“I support attempts to do educationally-based preventative work. That’s vitally important, because a past approach to domestic terrorism has been just to use the police to crack down on communities and that can be very counter-productive,” continued Dr Thomas.
“But I am very critical that Prevent has only worked with young Muslims, and that can further separate those communities from the mainstream. I am arguing that we build resilience against terrorism by building a stronger sense of common identity and common involvement in democracy.”
Pictured [l-r] at the seminar with the University's Dr Paul Thomas [centre]: Dr Francesco Ragazzi, Assistant Professor in International Relations at Leiden University in France, Dr Floris Vermeulen, Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science at the University of Amsterdam, Dr Sheila Gruner, Professor in the Community Economic and Social Development Program at Algoma University in Canada and Julia Berczyk, doctoral candidate at the Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies (IMES) at the University of Amsterdam.
Dr Thomas’s book Responding to the Threat of Violent Extremism: Failing to Prevent is published by Bloomsbury (http://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/responding-to-the-threat-of-violent-extremism-9781849666008/)
