2 March 2016 Expert Group Meeting on

2 minute reading time

Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies (ORSAM) together with Statistical, Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Cooperation (SESRIC) and Centre for and Foundation for Political and Social Research (SETA) organised an Expert Group Meeting on “Radicalism and Violent Extremism” on 2 March 2016 at in Ankara.

During the opening session of the workshop, Ambassador Musa Kulaklıkaya, Director General of SESRIC, delivered a speech where he mentioned that terrorism was a major violation of one of the most fundamental human rights, the right to life. Amb. Kulaklıkaya also stated that a holistic approach is needed to tackle radicalisation and Foreign Terrorist Fighters (FTFs) challenges. The President of ORSAM, Assoc. Prof. Şaban Kardaş emphasised key instruments and measures within the context of the fight against radicalization and FTFs and added that while implementing these measures and approaching the issue as a whole, orientalist viewpoint needs to be avoided.

During the meeting, participants from several institutions shared their thoughts followed by discussions about the research questions prepared by researchers from ORSAM, SESRIC, and SETA. Research questions are grouped under several headlines such as security, theology, socio-economic dimension and the root causes of radicalisation. Within the context of radicalisation and violent extremism, importance of approaching to this challenge not only from security perspective but also through a deeper analysis of social, political and economic motivations and the need for providing a counter-narrative were discussed. Moreover, understanding radicalization as a process and countering it in line with this understanding as well as the need for inter-agency coordination and cooperation and for studying necessary legal regulations in order to effectively tackle the question were also mentioned.

National and international researchers and experts from institutions like ORSAM, SETA, Bahçeşehir University, Bilkent University, Ankara University, Balıkesir University, Kilis 7 Aralık University, Ahi Evran University, Libyan Programme for Reintegration and Development (LPRD), Maghrabia Academy for Studies & Training, Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV), Turkish National Police Academy, Republic of Turkey Prime Ministry, Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC), WANA Institute, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), Syrian Forum, Presidency of the Republic of Turkey and Republic of Turkey Secretariat General of the National Security Council attended the Expert Group Meeting at SESRIC Headquarters.