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‘Best remedy for bad speech is more speech’

US counterterrorism specialist on combating radicalisation
Mohammad Jamil Khan
John T Godfrey, deputy coordinator for regional and multilateral affairs, Bureau of Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism under the US Department of State was in Dhaka on a two-day (August 18, 19) visit.
During the visit, Godfrey -- who is responsible for the Bureau’s Office of South and Central Asia and the Near East; Office of Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas; and the Office of Multilateral Affairs -- attended a roundtable on ‘counterterrorism and countering violent extremism’ at the US embassy with academics, journalists and experts from other relevant sectors. In an interview, he shared his views on the subject with The Daily Star.
Are you partnering with Bangladesh in countering violent extremism?
Godfrey: Yes, we are. The [US] embassy has a range of programmes in partnership with the government of Bangladesh. These are implemented in different parts of the country and target different groups who are considered to be at risk.
What is your take on violent extremism in Bangladesh?
Godfrey: Bangladesh obviously has had the unfortunate experience of acts of terrorism committed here, some of them recently. I think the one that grabbed everyone’s attention was the terrible attack at Holey Artisan Bakery in 2016, and following the incident, the government took a number of steps to dismantle the network that had conducted that attack.
There has been some success in dealing with that particular threat. I think there’s concern regarding Bangladesh being located in a region where Islamic State (IS) and other terrorist groups have shown interest in trying to develop capacity and perhaps even establish a presence. Going forward, a high level of attention on efforts to mitigate that threat is needed.
Bangladesh has decided that it will not allow foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs) to return to the country. Do you think this will help in addressing the issue?
Godfrey: Our policy is that FTFs’ countries of origin should repatriate those individuals and prosecute them where appropriate, but there should certainly be programmes in place that provide for the appropriate monitoring, deradicalisation and reintegration of those individuals. One of our concerns is that leaving them where they are in north-eastern Syria might be feasible in the short term, but in the long run this could create problems -- both for Bangladesh and other places those individuals might travel to.
FTFs have started moving to different countries, especially in South Asia after the IS was dismantled.How alarming is it?
Godfrey: Some of those individuals [FTFs] are very dangerous people and there is concern that if they are able to move to other countries, they will re-establish their networks and develop capabilities -- posing threats to those countries.
Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) has been silent for a long time. Do you think they pose a threat to Bangladesh?
Godfrey: The world’s attention for the past several years has understandably been focused on IS, because of the events in Syria, Iraq and elsewhere.
Al-Qaeda, being an opportunistic organisation, has quietly taken advantage of this to rebuild its capacity and expand its network. We are quite concerned that they are poised to do something to reassert their position.
I would say AQIS very much fits in that broader trend.
Self-radicalisation through online content has became a major threat. What would be your suggestion to stop the “lone-wolf” or “wolf pack” attacks and home-grown radicalisation?
Godfrey: It is not possible to give a simple answer to this. It’s a complex challenge that involves a range of efforts running in parallel to and complementing each other to help change the mentality of individuals who are self-radicalised and also the environment.
It’s important to understand that often people go through traumatic events or challenges that leave them vulnerable to radicalisation. Having systems, programmes in place that allow people to understand what those signs of radicalisation look like -- when someone is going through that kind of experience -- provide for effective intervention to steer people off the path of radicalisation.
It’s a challenging task but it’s something really important -- particularly in societies where there are people who feel marginalised for a number of reasons.
Will shutting down websites be enough for combating radicalisation?
Godfrey: Unfortunately, again this is an issue where there is no single solution. Shutting down websites or removing content from the internet is not sufficient to really address those issues. The techniques that have proven to work better over time are alternative narratives or so-called counter narratives.
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