01 December 2015 - Ambassador Elizabeth P. Buensuceso, Permanent Representative of the Philippines to ASEAN, led a panel discussion on the root causes of violent extremism and their viable solutions at the ASEAN Institute for Peace and Reconciliation (AIPR) Symposium on Repercussion of Violent Extremism Towards Moderates in Yogyakarta, Indonesia on 27 November 2015.
Ambassador Buensuceso, who is also the Philippine Representative to the AIPR Governing Council, said that “the symposium could not have come at a more appropriate time even as we are witnesses today to the various horrible manifestations of violent extremisms around the globe that have left world leaders in a quandary, desperately looking for the appropriate responses to senseless incidents of violence arising from extremism and misplaced religious fervor.”
“Last week in the Kuala Lumpur Summits, the Leaders of ASEAN and its Dialogue Partners condemned in the strongest terms the horrific violent attacks in Paris, Beirut, Turkey, Mali, and other parts of the world. Colleagues in the AIPR Governing Council and Advisory Board pondered on the seeming hopelessness of the world in looking for the right approach to address the ISIS scourge, given the geo-political, ideological and economic dynamics that complicate this issue. In the end, we all agreed that this cannot be. There has got to be a right response to terrorism and violent extremism. We need to put our heads together, gather our joint resources and apply earnestly the tools of peace and cooperation to combat this common scourge,” Ambassador Buensuceso, who served as moderator of the panel discussion, emphasized.
The panel discussion, which included scholars from Indonesia and Singapore as speakers, recommended transforming ideas and proposals into specific action-oriented community-based projects to complement counter-terrorism efforts and suppress violent extremism narratives. They also agreed that enhancing engagement between the government and relevant stakeholders and combating islamophobia are essentials in the fight against violent extremism.
Ambassador Buensuceso recommended using available resources and funding mechanisms in ASEAN, including those from ASEAN Dialogue Partners and external partners, to develop concrete projects to counter violent extremism and help promote tolerance and moderation by engaging stakeholders, such as communities and civil society organizations.
The symposium, which was attended by representatives of all ASEAN Member States, members of the AIPR Governing Council and Advisory Board, officials from the UN, Embassies of Sweden, the Netherlands and Switzerland in Jakarta, members of civil society organizations and scholars, was held back-to-back with the 5th Meeting of the AIPR Governing Council and the 3rd Meeting of AIPR Advisory Board, which were convened on 26 November 2015. END.
