Wednesday, 2nd December, 14:00-15:30

H23 (Nursing Building), DCU

With the recent attacks in Paris, ‘radicalisation’ has again appeared in the spotlight as a component of contemporary acts of terrorism and political violence. Preventing ‘radicalisation’ has become enshrined as a cornerstone of UK counterterrorism strategy, while countries across Europe, and beyond, are increasingly moving to monitor and pre-empt expressions of ‘radical’ ideologies as a means to prevent terrorism at its source.

Yet, how much is known about ‘radicalisation’?  What are the processes by which a person becomes ‘radicalised’? What can be done to prevent ‘radicalisation’ without exacerbating underlying problems, which may give rise to political violence?

This roundtable event brings together a number of experts on ‘radicalisation’ in an open forum for debate and discussion, designed to both provoke and inform. Topics for discussion include:

• The genesis of ‘radicalisation’ in the history of political violence
• The role of the internet with regard to ‘online radicalisation’
• The (in)effectiveness of UK counter-extremism policies in tackling ‘radicalisation’
• The significance of the current conflicts in Syria and Iraq
• The rise of ISIS and its power to attract ‘foreign fighters’
• Reflections from practitioners on how they attempt to fight ‘radicalisation’

Chair

Dr James Fitzgerald (Lecturer in Terrorism Studies, School of Law and Government, Co-Convenor of BISA Critical Studies on Terrorism Working Group)

Participants

Dr Maura Conway (Senior Lecturer in International Security, School of Law and Government and Coordinator of VOX-Pol, an EU-funded project on the contours and functions of violent online extremist content.)

Mr Alyas Karmani (Co-Director of STREET UK [Strategy to reach, educate and empower teenagers], a specialist violence prevention intervention provider working with young people from mainly Muslim backgrounds who are at risk of criminality, gang involvement, sexual violence, social exclusion and violent extremism.)

Ms Orla Lehane (PhD Candidate, School of Law and Government, researching contemporary counter violent extremism practices amongst grassroots practitioners across the ideological spectrum.)

Dr Azra Nazeem (Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, School of Law and Government, former journalist, and Maldivian democracy activist.)

All are welcome.