Berghof Foundation: 50 years of conflict transformation

Preventing
extremism
in prisons
Interview
Mohamed
Abdel
Wahab
Rafiqi
Founder and
President of
Al-Mizane
platform
What is your background, and how did you end up
doing peacebuilding work?
My involvement in peacebuilding comes
from a very personal experience. Having grown up in
a religious, Salafi environment and having received
a typical religious education in Morocco, I became
one of the prominent sheikhs in the Moroccan Salafi
movement. Due to this background, I have extensive
experience regarding the contributory factors behind
violent extremism — psychological, socioeconomic
and political — and their religious references. I am
determined to raise awareness about the dangers of
extremism, to ensure that others do not go through
the suffering I experienced while I was in prison.
Can you tell us more about your work with Berghof?
My work with the Berghof Foundation can
be divided into two strands. Firstly, I am part of the
regional network of experts that Berghof set up to
enhance religious tolerance and address violent
extremism in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and
Morocco. The network is made up of Middle East
experts who meet either online or in person. Since
the beginning of my involvement in 2018, the network
has helped me be part of a regional exchange of
diverse opinions, experiences and points of view, as
well as knowledge-sharing among fellow members
of the network.
Secondly, I have created a manual for
preventing violent extremism in prisons, which
was used in a local training event on “Extremism in
Prisons between De-radicalisation Programmes and
Re-integration.” I met with the network working group
on prisons and preventing violent extremism. I talked
to interlocutors in Tripoli and Beirut and shared best
practices, lessons learned and prevention strategies
used in Morocco.
What do you think was the most important
achievement of the project/process you were
working on with Berghof?
The most important achievement was the
manual, as well as being able to discuss it during
the local initiative training workshops in Lebanon,
thereby combining the theoretical with the practical.
I believe that these workshops were insightful and
enriching, because I was able to learn more about
the Lebanese experience when it comes to Islamist
prisoners and could adapt the manual accordingly.
What was the greatest challenge or difficulty
you encountered?
Convincing imprisoned Islamists of the
theoretical, practical and psychological factors
behind radicalisation. Also, such projects require
a great deal of support from official institutions,
otherwise their chance of success is much lower.
The connections and rapports that the Berghof
Foundation has built over time helped a lot in that
regard. I was able to address key decision-makers
such as Members of Parliament, lawyers from the
Lebanese Bar Association, Muftis and prominent
Muslim scholars during my visit to Lebanon.
Looking at the situation today, what do you
personally take away from this work?
My work in Lebanon opened my eyes
to different factors that contribute to violent
extremism. I felt as if I was discovering a different
phenomenon, all while rediscovering nuances to the
issue as a whole. This led me to new perceptions of
violent extremism in the Arab world. Today, I am still
in contact with the working group on prisons and
preventing violent extremism in Lebanon.
How are you planning to continue your work with
Berghof in the future?
Regarding the manual, I am hoping that
the regional network of experts will be able to
provide me with feedback. That feedback will then
be incorporated into the manual, further refining
insights into the causes and signs of violent
extremism. I will take part in a number of projects and
hope that I will be able to combine all my efforts into
one unified campaign to prevent violent extremism.
I also hope that my manual will eventually be the
official and approved manual used in prisons.
62
63