Problems of rehabilitation of radical youth in Northern Caucasus discussed at roundtable in Moscow

On the final day of the roundtable "Problems and best practices to counteract the radicalization of young people in Northern Caucasus", participants discussed the problems of Islamic education and rehabilitation of radical young people.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported the event was organized in Moscow by the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" and the newspaper "Novaya Gazeta" with the expert support of the International Crisis Group (ICC).

Khamzat Chumakov, Imam of the Nasyr-Kort mosque in Ingushetia, delivered an emotional speech on the final day of the roundtable.

"When some people say that Caucasian young people are radical, I ask them of what kind the young people should be? Radical actions of the law enforcement agencies result in radicalism of young people," stated the Imam.

According to Akhmed Chililov, a member of the Public Chamber of Dagestan, the oppression of the imams who did not actually preach violent actions and even fought the views of the "Islamic State" (IS, banned in Russia by the court's decision and recognized as a terrorist organization) generates distrust of the state.

In his turn, Idris Yusupov, a reporter of the Dagestani weekly newspaper "Novoe Delo", has proposed to discuss the possibility to create a kind of informal centres for de-radicalization and rehabilitation of people who quit their involvement in illegal activities.

The proposal has been met enthusiastically by the participants of the meeting. However, they have expressed their doubts concerning the purity of the experiment in case if the initiative is of interest for law enforcers.

"However, initially, we provide assistance to two or three persons, through authorized representatives. Then, for example, in Dagestan, if the experiment succeeds, crowds will appeal for such assistance, and the authorities will have nothing to say against the initiative," Idris Yusupov believes.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.