This training was focused more on presenting and discussing the current situation with the implementation of the state strategy for preventing and countering terrorism, as well as on strengthening local capacities to address issues and concerns in this field. The session was delivered by Labinot Leposhtica, Legal Officer and Monitoring Coordinator at BIRN Kosovo, and a member of the Working Group for the National Strategy for Preventing and Countering Terrorism, together with Milot Sfishta, Senior Officer for Prevention and Reintegration of Radicalized Persons at the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Leposhtica presented the main pillars of the Strategy and emphasized the crucial role of local communities in early risk identification and grassroots initiatives. Milot Sfishta informed participants about recent developments and central-level institutional efforts to address various forms of extremism.
Participants used the training to get equiped with appropriate information about the Strategy and highlighted the urgency for both levels to do more, especially regarding youth involvement and the influence of the online world, including online gaming and online radicalization. They shared personal experiences with well-known cases in Kosovo and demanded that, besides serving the prison time, repatriated terrorist fighters must be included in programs of rehabilitation and thus be under the scope of the state when it comes to their day-to-day activities, and see if state efforts are being effective and serving the reintegration phase, meaning disengagement from radical ideologies.
This training was attended by 10 municipal officials, of whom six were women.
The training was part of the Resilient and Inclusive Community Program funded by Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF), through Advocacy Training and Resource Center (ATRC), and implemented by BIRN Kosovo.