Activists call for mobilising int'l resources to counter violent extremism

MADABA — There is an urgent need to mobilise international resources to better address and counter violent extremism, with young people being the main targets of extremist groups, experts said Saturday.

Violent extremism is among the major challenges facing the entire world, said Mohammad Shah, representative of the UN Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, adding that extremist groups have control over large swathes of land and have followers from several countries.

Speaking at a panel held on the second day of the Global Forum on Youth, Peace and Security, Shah noted that young people are a vulnerable target for such groups that seek to deprive them of the opportunity to receive education to improve their lives and the lives of their families.

Most policies that deal with violent extremism, he added, are not comprehensive and do not take into consideration how to prevent conflict, ignoring the fact that deprivation of education and development lead to violent extremist acts.

Addressing violent extremism requires identifying the push and pull factors leading to the issue, said Jeanne Abdullah, co-founder and programme director of the Human Security Collective institution.

Youth must be at the heart of this process, she said at the panel discussion, underscoring the need to engage young people in policy making and generate safe spaces for them to express themselves freely.

Scott Atran — director of research in anthropology at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut Jean Nicod-Ecole Normale Supérieure, and senior research fellow at Harris Manchester College in Oxford University — said young people are usually lured into joining violent extremist groups to feel they are part of a larger group.

He cited the Deash terrorist group as one of the most dynamic and effective fighting forces since World War II, because its followers are spiritually committed to its religious narrative, not lured by financial incentives.

However, the group may be hindered or defeated by a spiritual counter narrative that is of an equal force to theirs, Atran argued.

The two-day forum, which concluded on Saturday, was held in Madaba's King's Academy and brought together around 500 participants from around the world.

It stemmed “from the thematic debate organised by... Jordan during its presidency of the Security Council in April 2015” to discuss the role of young people in making peace and resolving conflicts, according to its website (www.youth4peace.info).

The event was co-organised — on behalf of the UN Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development — by the Office of the Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth, the UN Peace Building Support Office, the UN Population Fund, and the UN Development Programme, in addition to Search for Common Ground and the United Network of Young Peace Builders.