Following ‘extremism’ designation of Extinction Rebellion by PREVENT, New report outlines the way forward.

London – A CAGE report, released today and entitled, ‘Beyond PREVENT’, provides a comprehensive outline for future discussions to shape a society without PREVENT, and tackles the argument that there is no possibility of safety without it.  The listing of climate activists XR as a terrorist-type group under PREVENT in a leaked document that also outlined how concern for Muslims around the world and “criticism of British military involvements are signs of “extremism”, have accelerated calls for PREVENT to be abolished and for the formulation of a new way forward.    The report calls for a repeal of counter-terrorism laws, an ethical overhaul of British foreign policy, an end to austerity and the decoupling of public service from counter-terrorism entirely. It then suggests an eight-step framework towards building a healthy, safe society.   Dr Asim Qureshi, CAGE Research Director said: “It is clear that PREVENT and counter-extremism in general is used to police the fallout from failing government policies. What is needed is a total overhaul of how the government and public sector relate to different communities. We feel our latest report and our eight-point plan provides a constructive starting point towards this.”   “The news of groups like Extinction Rebellion being targeted by PREVENT, and the recent explosion in people referred under the catch-all category of ‘Mixed, Unclear or Unstable’ shows the deeply concerning extent to which PREVENT has expanded from its initial targeting of Muslims.” “Leaked documents also prove once-and-for-all that PREVENT is rapidly becoming the go-to option for state agencies to clamp down on normative Muslim belief and opinion, as well as on political organising across the spectrum. Rather than wait until they are targeted, other advocacy groups are invited to join us and make the fight against PREVENT a priority.”   Photo by Joël de Vriend on Unsplash