Kenyan Stakeholders Call for Implementation of Local Action Plans to Stem Youth Radicalisation and Extremism

Posted on 15 January 2021 by Strong Cities Network - SCN News, SCN Programmes

Radicalisation to violent extremism has long been among the major peace and security concerns in East Africa. Al-Shabaab alone has been responsible for the deaths or injuries of at least 3,000 Kenyans in 538 terrorist attacks in just under a decade, according to the Global Terrorism Index (GTI). Based in Somalia, the group has historically targeted Kenya’s diplomatic and tourism sectors in retaliation for the country’s involvement in the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), exploiting the long, porous border between the two countries as well as corruption within security agencies.

Disinformation and Social Media Regulation – The Nigerian Experience

Posted on 15 January 2021 by Strong Cities Network - Guest Article

In August 2014, when the first case of Ebola virus was reported in Nigeria, a lot of people embraced myths and false information in a bid to tackle the deadly disease. Among the false ‘experimental therapies’ that were spreading like wildfire was the belief that drinking and bathing in water saturated with salt would cure the Ebola virus. Consequently, many people were hospitalised with itchy skin, rashes and high blood pressure, and some even lost their lives.

Guest Article: Terrorist Disengagement, Part 1: Some Unresolved Questions

Posted on 15 December 2020 by Strong Cities Network - Guest Article

Bio Hadelin Feront heads the City of Brussels’ Unit for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (P/CVE Unit), a position he has held since 2013. Based within the City of Brussels’ Crime Prevention Agency (BRAVVO), the PreRad Unit relies on the agency’s more than 300 frontline professionals, as well as an extensive network of specialized partners….
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Guest Article – Nigeria’s Borno Governor Must Focus on Economic Development and Education to Battle Boko Haram

Posted on 15 December 2020 by Strong Cities Network - Guest Article

Above: Men gather during a mass burial at Zabarmari, in the Jere local government area of Borno State, in northeast Nigeria, on Nov. 29 after a militant attack. (Credit: Ahmed Kingimi/Reuters) 8 December 2020 The following opinion piece has been written by a guest author. The views expressed in it do not necessarily reflect those…
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Guest Article: Resilience and Vulnerabilities to Local Far-right Dynamics: Proposing a Four-fold Prevention and Intervention Cycle

Posted on 15 December 2020 by Strong Cities Network - Guest Article

Above: the city of Melbourne, in the State of Victoria, Australia. Bio Mario Peucker is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities at Victoria University in Melbourne (Australia) and a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right (CARR). Mario is also an executive member of…
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De-escalating and Uniting: How to Communicate Following a Terrorist Attack

Posted on 6 November 2020 by Strong Cities Network - SCN News

While all eyes across the Atlantic were focused on a historic election on Tuesday, Europe was waking up to another day of mourning. The shooting in Vienna on Monday evening threatens to spread across Europe the tensions that have been rising in France over the past few weeks. Communicating in the aftermath of a (suspected) terrorist attack is an incredibly difficult task, but one that political and community leaders in particular have a duty to get right.

COVID-19 Disinformation: Implications for Polarisation in Kumanovo

Posted on 3 November 2020 by Strong Cities Network - SCN News

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread around the world with profound social and economic consequences, disinformation has increasingly been weaponised in an effort to divide communities and mobilise hate. To understand how disinformation exploits a distrust of media and a restricted news intake to exacerbate existing community tensions, promote conspiracy theories and increase polarisation, the SCN has successfully piloted an initial localised assessment in the Municipality of Kumanovo, North Macedonia.

Is Hindutva here to stay?

Posted on 29 September 2020 by Strong Cities Network - Guest Article

The destruction of the Babri Masjid in 1992 marked a seminal event in India’s post-independence history, setting the stage for the rise of the Hindutva-aligned Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to national prominence. At the time, then chief-minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi cemented a national image defined by two narratives; first as a staunch Hindutva leader who allowed one of the deadliest incidents of anti-Muslim violence in post-independence India, and second as a pro-business reformer. Both catalyzed his rise to Prime Minister in 2014. Modi’s premiership and the BJP’s dominance of national politics has ensured both are able to implement their vision of transforming India into a Hindutva state.

Lockdown has led to an epidemic of online abuse – it’s time for institutions to tackle this

Posted on 28 September 2020 by Strong Cities Network - Guest Article

With bedrooms and kitchens turning into offices over the past six months as Britain and other countries around the world introduce measures to stem virus transmission, we’ve seen a magnitude of unforeseen consequences. Across the country, incidents of domestic violence have rocketed and mental health problems have seen widespread deterioration. A vital and yet tragically overlooked consequence has been the ripple effect playing out on our online spaces, leading to an epidemic of online abuse, especially for women and non-binary people. Now that a new report has exposed that almost half of UK women and non-binary people have experienced online abuse since the lockdown, it’s time institutions deal with this growing problem.