Danmission briefing paper - Preventing Violent Extremism through Interfaith Dialogue

DANMISSION BRIEFING PAPER NOVEMBER 2016

Preventing Violent Extremism through Interfaith Dialogue Danmission and partners’ engagements with focus on preventing violent extremism and strengthening peaceful and resilient societies in MENA

Preventing Violent Extremism through Interfaith Dialogue 

Preventing Violent Extremism through Interfaith Dialogue Religion plays a vital role in the lives and cultures of the majority of the world’s population. Religious values and practices are often deeply entwined in the fabric of daily lives, and the leaders of churches, mosques, temples and other religious communities can potentially play a powerful role in shaping attitudes, opinions and behaviour. They can change lives, communities and countries.

Religion as part of the solution Religion continues to play an important role in the current conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) as a means for instigating hatred, extremism and radicalisation.

However, while religion can be a mobilising factor towards extremism and radicalisation, religion is also a platform for forming constructive personal and group based identities, social understanding political perceptions and diplomacy.

Religious convictions are a major source of motivation for many people to work for peaceful and resilient societies and thus it is important that development agencies realise the potential that cooperation with religious communities offers.

Religious institutions and leaders carry a special responsibility to work on this path, but they need and seek support and inputs. Religion and religious actors are not only a part of the problem of radicalisation and extremism – they are also an essential part of the solution. Hence, to meet current challenges in the MENA region and to prevent violent extremism, a continued dialogue is needed between religious actors, but also between citizens - both people driven by religious motives and secular movers in society.

Danmission’s unique contribution Danmission and partners aim at promoting religion as an integral factor in preventing violent extremism (PVE) and promoting social cohesion within and between European and Arab societies.

We bring people together in safe spaces to 

Create dialogue between people of faith and no-faith and across political and social affiliations to foster greater respect and inclusivity among groups, across countries and regions.

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Empower religious leaders to build trust in their religious institutions, to face religious extremism and to take part in initiatives promoting peace and coexistence.

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Empower women through regional networks of social media activists and professionals that addresses issues of hate speech and hate crime, incl. campaigns targeting recruitment of women to extremist groups.

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Educate young professionals in management of religious diversity and fostering social resilience against religious extremism and radicalisation in their local communities.

During recent years, engagements have delivered significant results in relation to PVE. Danmission is specialised in innovative contributions to complement secular approaches to dialogue and peacebuilding and our activities are continuously developed and streamlined in accordance with lessons learned and the ever-changing dynamics of the MENA region.

Preventing Violent Extremism through Interfaith Dialogue 

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

- article 18, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Actors and activities Danmission has strong and long-lasting partnerships with interfaith institutions as well as civil society organisations in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt. Danmission is moreover engaged in interfaith networks and intercultural platforms across Europe and the MENA region.

Resilient societies with room for religious diversity and minority rights can be a bulwark against increased religious extremism and radicalisation, and religious leaders play a key role. Danmission and partners empower religious leaders to build trust in their religious institutions, to face religious extremism and to take part in initiatives promoting peace and co-existence.

Together we also focus on the important role of women in preventing radicalisation and violent extremism. We are empowering female religious leaders and actors and have established a regional civil society network of social media activists and professionals that addresses the issues of hate speech, hate crime and other manifestations of extremism, incl. campaigns targeting recruitment of women to extremist groups.

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The future role of civil society, World Economic Forum, 2013

Danmission and partners consider youth as pivotal drivers for change when it comes to promoting social cohesion and peace-building within their local communities. Youth’s dignity is at stake and they should be fully recognised as valid and crucial players in society to ensure that youth will be a positive asset for the future MENA - and not a threat. Danmission believes that to create positive changes in MENA, and for this generation to become catalyst for more inclusive and democratic societies, youth should be empowered and included in activities and decision-making processes in all the aspects of public life.

Thus, Danmission is training young professionals in management of religious diversity and fostering social resilience against religious extremism and radicalisation.

Empowering peacemaking According to a study by the World Economic Forum, many people in developing countries have more trust in religious institutions than in secular organisations and government institutions1.

Religious organisations that have been involved in creating peace for decades, if not longer, increasingly have institutionalised and professionalised their work, suggesting ways that religious and secular organisations would benefit from coordinating their efforts more closely. When communal identities, particularly religious identities, are key causal factors in violent conflict, traditional diplomacy may be of little value in seeking peace or conflict management. Two critical elements in religious life that are centrally important to peacemaking are empathy and compassion, which both underline a religion’s fundamental respect for the individual’s value as a human. We believe that religious and interfaith innovative contributions would be a highly valuable complement to traditional diplomacy and secular peacemaking.

Preventing Violent Extremism through Interfaith Dialogue 

Danmission Danmission a 200-year-old Christian organisation sees religion as an integral factor in promoting mutual understanding, social cohesion, sustainable development and peace coexistence. That is why Danmission with partners will continue and further develop interfaith dialogue and peacemaking, in the MENA region, Africa and Asia, including

perspectives on freedom of belief, sustainable development, preventing violent extremism, as well as defense capacities against radicalisation and de-attachment from society. With this work, we also focus on how different religions describe and explain the other religions (also called theology of religion), how this theology develops and the religious narrative that comes out of this. www.danmission.com

Religion and religious actors are not only a part of the problem of radicalisation and extremism – they are also a critical part of the solution.