Best Thinkers Needed To Meet Terrorism Threat
Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday February 1, 2007
The federal Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock, has rejected calls to ban the Islamic group Hizb ut-Tahrir (the Party of Liberation). Whether there is enough evidence to outlaw Hizb ut-Tahrir as a terrorist group may be debatable, but the group's extremist propaganda encourages intolerance and radicalisation in Muslim communities.
As Zeyno Baran from the Hudson Institute in the US says, Hizb ut-Tahrir can be thought of as a conveyor belt for terrorists: it indoctrinates individuals with radical ideology, priming them for recruitment by more extreme organisations. While its activities may be less than terrorism we need to be vigilant. Australians or Australian interests have been the target of a terrorist attack or planned attack every year since 2001. As the terrorist threat evolves and adapts to Australian counter-terrorism operations and policies, we need a national institute to provide a focal point for research and policy innovation in the field of terrorism and counter-terrorism. There are a small number of university centres and non-government bodies in Australia with a research interest in this area, although only as part of wider missions. Since 2002 the Government has made national security one of its four research priorities. Unfortunately, much of the research funded in the social sciences and humanities has taken a critical, anti-government approach to understanding the terrorist threat. Policy prescriptions from much of this work don't go much beyond telling our security agencies to be nice to Muslims. There is no Australian research centre focused solely on outcomes designed to strengthen domestic security and help authorities protect the nation against the full spectrum of terrorist activities. In countering terrorism, security and law enforcement agencies should have the most solid research information to work with; timely advice based on rigorous research is critical. We should create an institute that draws together the best information and thinking on terrorism and counter-terrorism from Australian researchers and international bodies to provide policy advice to government, business and the public on how to counter terrorist threats, and how to respond to and recover from a range of attack scenarios. A national institute would have in-house researchers and commission research to improve policy and analyse the future needs of government, the private sector and the public. The institute might focus its research on terrorist organisations that pose a clear danger to Australia, including recruitment, organisation and terrorist group dynamics. It could focus on the pace and trajectory of radicalisation and indoctrination in Melbourne and Sydney and identify effective intervention strategies to mitigate home-grown jihadis developing an operational capacity. The institute could identify vulnerabilities, help establish priorities for countermeasures to terrorism and identify areas where investment is likely to be most effective. The institute could help identify educational and training needs in counter-terrorism. It might focus on responses to and recovery from terrorist attacks in an Australian setting, particularly on how to enhance resilience in the face of the terrorist threat. It could help develop a national capabilities plan for counter-terrorism agencies in the same way the Department of Defence has its military procurement plan. The cost of establishing the institute and operating it for the first five years would be between $15 million and $20 million, small change compared to the $8.5 billion spent on counter-terrorism measures by the Government since September 11, 2001. As the proposed institute would have a national role, initial funding should come from the Commonwealth. Given they would be on the front line in any attack, the states might offer funding or in-kind support. Business is involved in protecting assets and developing innovative products and services for countering terrorism. Thus, private sector stakeholders might support the institute. The institute should be located in Sydney or Melbourne to send a direct message that the largest number of engaged citizens is pivotal to counter-terrorism policies and practices. The institute could make a significant contribution to Australian counter-terrorism policy and capabilities and act as a focal point for innovation in the face of an evolving terrorist threat.
© 2007 Sydney Morning Herald