Counter-violent extremism: speakers call for strengthening civil institutions

Speakers at a seminar titled 'counter-violent extremism' called for strengthening civil institutions in the war against terror by devising a coordinated policy to ascertain the factors contributing to and promoting the militancy across the province.
The concluding ceremony of the seminar was arranged by the Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS) at a local hotel here on Friday. The seminar was attended by prominent civil society activists, law enforcers, representatives of government departments, senior journalists and other stakeholders.
The speakers said that Lahore has a long dreadful history of mob lynching which should not be neglected. "If we genuinely want to devise a counter-narrative against the recent wave of militancy then we should first understand the ideology and policy of US President Donald Trump," said a participant.
In their recommendations, the participants opined that cultural activities in schools and colleges should be revived besides fine arts and literary activities.
"The curriculum and courses developed by the Punjab Text Book Board should be minutely scrutinized to identify biases. The writers and poets should consistently use new tools in the battle of ideas to counter extremism. The drama and theater should also utilise new tools, including short videos on social media. The growing number of young social media users across the country should be engaged and harnessed in the counter-extremism enterprises," they recommended.
They said the poets and writers should use their literary powers to emphasize the basic human values in their work and remind the authorities about the importance of ensuring human rights including social justice and equality as anti-dote to violence and alienation in society.
"The counter-extremism efforts of the state should be recognized over the last 40 years when a particular discourse was cultivated through drama, other art forms and curriculum. In order to undo the damage, realistic and relevant short-medium and long-term goals should be developed and implemented in consultation with civil society, writers and intellectuals which could help in developing a counter-narrative," the recommendations read.
The recommendations state the role of physical infrastructure in providing avenues and platforms to the literati as vital. The provincial and local governments 'must' provide infrastructures in districts and tehsils. If the governments merely changed their worldwide attitude and understood that human needs also included cultural activities which could lead to positive outcomes.