Countering Violent Extremism in Prisons Introduction As t he t - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Countering Violent Extremism in Prisons

Introduction

• As t he t hreat of violent ext remism (VE) has grown – prevent ion and

count er st rat egies have focussed on limit ing space and opport unit y for VE recruit ers t o work

• A key element t o such st rat egies is underst anding t he radicalisat ion

process and t he condit ions and drivers t hat facilit at e people becoming violent ext remist s

• Venues for radicalisat ion are many and varied – in person, online, in

schools and places of worship

• Prisons may provide a unique “ safe haven” where ext remist s can

net work, compare and exchange t act ics, recruit and radicalise new members

• Prisons may also provide a unique opport unit y for aut horit ies, drawing on

global best pract ice, t o count er t he effort s of violent ext remist s t o radicalise and recruit new members

Important points

• Programs must be t ailored t o t he local condit ions, cult ures, as well as,

local and int ernat ional law and legal t radit ions

• Programs should t ake int o account t heir impact on fundament al human

right s, including t he right t o freedom of t hought , opinion, conscience and religion, and t he right t o fair t reat ment in accordance wit h t he rule

• f law
• Incarcerat ion is a key element of t he Criminal Just ice S

yst em’s response t o VE.

• The Criminal Just ice S

yst em should also:

• prevent furt her radicalisat ion of prisoners,
• prevent ext remist act ivit ies from being direct ed or support ed from wit hin

prisons and,

• provide for t he de-radicalisat ion and reint egrat ion of prisoners int o societ y

Goals and Objectives of Prison CVE Programmes

Goals and Obj ectives of Prison CVE Programs

• It is import ant t o first clearly define t he program’s goals and obj ect ives

and ident ify indicat ors of success and failure

• Import ant t o define:
• which act ors are involved in t he init iat ive
• what t he desired result s are,
• how progress is measured, and
• which specific out comes are expect ed
• In defining t he goals and obj ect ives for program, first conduct a

comprehensive risk and t hreat assessment .

• Key t o define from t he out set whet her t he goal of t he program is t o

change t he views or merely t he behaviour of t he inmat es (de- radicalisat ion vs. disengagement )

Goals and Obj ectives of Prison CVE Programs - contd

• Not e, disengagement is easier in t he short t erm but may not have t he

desired long t erm impact of reducing VE beyond prison environment

• Import ant t o decide who t he key t arget of t he program is:
• Lower and mid-level ext remist s
• S

enior leadership

• Import ant t o have a specific plan for each group –

generic solut ions seldom work effect ively

• Programmes and plans should be based on a det ailed and t hrough

analysis and underst anding of t he “ t arget group” :

• t heir specific ideology,
• bj ect ives,
• preferred recruit ing/ grooming t echniques,
• preferred t ype of recruit , st anding wit hin t he prison,
• Connect ions out side t he prison

Prison Staff

Prison S taff

• S

t aff are crucial t o t he success of any Prison CVE Programme. Prisons should:

• Ensure sound select ion and recruit ment pract ices for Prison S

t aff

• Ensure proper t raining of personnel, and specialist t raining for t hose dealing

direct ly wit h violent ext remist prisoners

• Have sufficient st aff for t he size and nat ure of t he prison populat ion should

be a priorit y

• S

t aff working wit h violent ext remist prisoners require a good combinat ion of personal qualit ies and t echnical skills.

• They need t o be able t o deal wit h all prisoners in an even-handed,

humane and j ust manner, including t he difficult , dangerous and manipulat ive prisoners.

• Female st aff should be recruit ed and t rained t o work wit h women

violent ext remist prisoners and t o design and deliver gender- appropriat e int ervent ions.

• Prison st aff should also be represent at ive of t he et hnic, racial and

religious profile of t he prison populat ion. Prisons should also have dedicat ed spirit ual leaders available t o minist er t o prisoners.

• In order t o manage VE prisoners effect ively, st aff need t o uphold t he

highest levels of professionalism and et hics.

Risk Assessments

Risk Assessments

• Proper risk assessment (screening) of prisoners enables t he efficient use
• f resources, sent ence management and upholding t he human right s of

prisoners.

• Risks assessed during t he init ial screening should include:
• Pot ent ial harm t o self or ot hers
• Ident ifying pot ent ial violent ext remist s (part icularly where t he reason for

incarcerat ion is not direct ly relat ed t o violent ext remism)

• Threat t o good order in t he prison – pot ent ial for violence
• Likelihood of escape
• Risk of pot ent ial recidivism
• Pot ent ial for inst igat ing offences in t he communit y in cooperat ion wit h
• ut side associat es
• Import ant t o not e VE prisoners are oft en not an homogenous group – it is

necessary t o evaluat e each on t heir own merit s

• It is key t o underst and t he mot ivat ions, personal and cont ext ual

circumst ances cont ribut ing t o t heir violent ext remist views

Assessing VE potential among prisoners

• Undert aking a det ailed risk assessment will enable t he prison

administ rat ion t o ident ify which of t he wide variet y of mot ivat ions and fact ors have “ pulled” and “ pushed” individuals t owards violent ext remism.

• Not all violent ext remist s are mot ivat ed by t he same fact ors, however,

t he following are well est ablished “ push” and “ pull” fact ors t o be considered when evaluat ing individual prisoners:

• Lack of socio-economic opport unit ies
• Marginalisat ion and discriminat ion
• Collect ive grievances and vict imizat ion
• Poor governance, violat ions of human right s and a lack of t he rule of law
• Prolonged and unresolved conflict s
• Dist ort ion and misuse of beliefs, polit ical ideologies and et hnic and cult ural

differences

• Influence of charismat ic leadership and social net works

Accommodation

Accommodation

• Accommodat ing VE prisoners involves decisions whet her t o:
• S

eparat e t hem from t he general prison populat ion (separat ion),

• If separat ed, should t hey be isolat ed from each ot her (isolat ion), or held

t oget her in one unit (concent rat ion), or

• S

hould t hey be dispersed across a small number of prisons (dispersal),

• Int egrat e VE prisoners wit h t he general populat ion (int egrat ion),
• A combinat ion of t hese st rat egies.
• Prison administ rat ions will need t o det ermine t he best approach t o

accommodat ion, based on specific fact ors wit hin t he prison populat ion, as well as, t he overall securit y sit uat ion in t he count ry.

Accommodation contd

Fact ors for considerat ion would include:

• The size of the VE prison population to be segregated or dispersed,
• The state of the prison infrastructure and the administration’s ability to

ensure secure custody of VE prisoners in a dispersed model,

• The capacity, size and skills level of staff to manage challenges posed by

different models,

• The financial resources available to manage the VE prisoner population,
• The cultural, political and social context of the country,
• The risk that an individual presents for being further radicalised, or for

radicalising others to violence

• The modus operandi and organisational structure of the violent extremist

group

Enablers of radicalisation to violence in prison and Identifying VE recruitment efforts

Enablers of radicalisation to violence in prison

• The main fact ors t hat can drive, or creat e opport unit ies for

radicalisat ion t o VE in prison, are as follows:

• Ideology: Exposure to an ideology that sanctions or legitimises violence, often by

providing a compelling but fabricated narrative of contemporary politics and recent history,

• Grievances: A range of grievances, some real and some imagined, to which there

may seem to be no credible and effective non-violent response. This may include attribution of their imprisonment or their treatment in prison to discriminatory policies or efforts by the government to humiliate members of their group,

• Charismat ic leaders: Exposure to people or groups who can directly and

persuasively articulate an extremist ideology and then relate it to aspects of a person’s own background and life history.

• Physical and prot ect ive needs: Prisoners may be mot ivat ed (or forced) t o

j oin a violent ext remist group t o obt ain food, somewhere t o sleep, and prot ect ion, regardless of whet her t hey ident ify wit h t o t he group´s violent ext remist ideology or not ,

• Religion: Imprisonment can lead t o renewal or finding of religious fait h.

New convert s may init ially be less well-informed about t heir fait h and may be vulnerable t o radicalisers who seek t o push a dist ort ed version of t heology on t hem.

Identifying VE recruitment efforts in prisons

• VE recruit ers in prisons t arget or seek out individuals whose at t it udes,

emot ions, preconcept ions and mot ivat ions mat ch t heir own.

• Recruit ers may also seek t o recruit individuals wit h specific skills

(engineers, communicat ions specialist s et c) t hat could be useful t o t heir cause in t he longer t erm.

• A recruit er will assess t he polit ical, social or physical

int erest s/ concerns of t arget s t hat might predispose t hem t o t ake part VE act ivit ies.

• The recruit er may ent ice t he recruit wit h various grat ificat ions or

incent ives, such as food, clot hing and prot ect ion – very similar t o grooming.

• Not e t hat recruit ers may seek t o maint ain a low behavioural profile,

conforming wit h t he overall prison disciplinary regime and carry out t heir work quiet ly or even t hrough surrogat es.

Responses to recruitment efforts in prisons

Responses to recruitment efforts in prisons

• Informat ion and int elligence sharing should be st andard, including wit h

ext ernal law enforcement part ners, t o underst and VE issue in t he prison and t o ident ify and manage any behaviours of concern,

• Int elligence sharing should also be nat ionally coordinat ed among prisons

and prison aut horit ies,

• S

t aff working direct ly wit h prisoners should be empowered t o react swift ly and appropriat ely t o signs of radicalisat ion and be given t ools procedures assess such risks prompt ly and professionally,

• Where t here is evidence of effort at radicalisat ion t o violence VE

prisoner/ recruit er prompt and decisive act ion should be t aken - May involve moving t he individual t o anot her part of t he prison or t o a different prison complet ely,

• Prisoners ident ified as recruit ers t o VE should be prevent ed from

engaging wit h ot her vulnerable prisoners,

Responses to recruitment efforts in prisons - contd

• Highly mot ivat ed / educat ed VE prisoners may present a great er

management challenge t han prison st aff can handle – t hese should be referred t o specialist response st aff including psychologist s and conflict mediat ors,

• Prisoners who are t he t arget of VE recruit ers should be counselled and

where possible divert ed from VE relat ed act ivit ies and engagement s. Diversion programmes should be designed and could include:

• Counselling, fait h guidance, civic engagement and working wit h support

net works

• Involvement in t he prison regime; life skills; ment oring support
• Cognit ive/ behavioural t herapies; general work on at t it udes and behaviours
• Healt h awareness and assessing and addressing any physical or ment al
• healt h issues.
• In some cases, removing t he t arget ed prisoner from t he environment

could be warrant ed,

• Target ed prisoners receiving counselling should be regularly reassessed

t o ensure t hat diversion act ivit ies are effect ive at an individual level

Reintergration

Reintegration of VE Prisoners into Communities

• S

upport ing t he reint egrat ion of VE prisoners int o communit ies should be a key element in any st rat egy for prevent ing and count ering violent ext remism,

• Individual release plans should ident ify t he VE prisoner’s reint egrat ion

needs and circumst ances, and det ermine t he specific int ervent ions t hat t he prisoner should access in order t o maximize t heir chances for successful reint egrat ion,

• The release plan should evaluat e t he VE prisoners progress t owards

more accept able behaviours, and based on regular individual risk assessment s, should move t hem t o progressively less rest rict ive set t ings,

• S
• cial reint egrat ion of VE prisoners must be based on a holist ic and

mult idisciplinary approach requiring coordinat ion all st akeholders, including t he family and communit y, civil societ y organisat ions and NGO’s, public and privat e inst it ut ions such as service providers and pot ent ial employers,

Reintegration of VE Prisoners into Communities - contd

• The role of t he prisoners family is essent ial is successful reint egrat ion

and t hey should be included in all st eps of t he release/ reint egrat ion plan,

• Communit y educat ion and involvement , focussing on (at least ) neut ral

public opinion can ease t he reint egrat ion process by ensuring t hat st igmat isat ion is minimised t o t he great est ext ent possible,

• It may be necessary in t he init ial phase t o provide t he newly released

prisoner and t heir family wit h addit ional prot ect ion, part icularly if public opinion in negat ive,

• Post release monit oring is an essent ial element in ensuring successful

reint egrat ion and in early det ect ion of recidivism,

Conclusions

Conclusions

• The broad principles of effect ive prisoner management of non VE

prisoners is also applicable t o VE prisoner management ,

• However, some dist inct challenges, issues, and feat ures associat ed wit h

VE prisoners, and not ed above, require such principles t o be nuanced for t his part icular group of prisoners,

• Prison aut horit ies should use t he principles t o inform t heir ongoing

design, development , delivery, and evaluat ion of programs int ended t o prevent VE recruit ment in prisons,

• In each count ry and prison t hese principles need t o be examined,

t est ed, and refined t o enable prison aut horit ies t o underst and what works in t heir environment and how successful st rat egies and programmes can be enhanced t o reduce t he possibilit y of VE recruit ment in prisons t o a minimum.

Presented by: Patricia Crosby Email: p.crosby@ commonwealth.int Tel: +44 20 7747 6278 Presented by: Assan Ali Email: assan.ali@ commonwealth.int Tel: +44 20 7747 6539

Head of Unit: Mark Albon Email: m.albon@ commonwealth.int Tel: +44 20 7747 6540