Lifecycle Initiative Toolkit

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Rehabilitative Measures

Integrating rehabilitative measures within and beyond the criminal justice response will include inter alia training of prison staff in the use of adequate risk assessment tools, psychological and mental health support, and engagement with families and community leaders.

The central GCTF document for such matters is the Rome Memorandum on Good Practices for Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Violent Extremist Offenders, which takes up the Rabat Memorandum’s suggestion that prison systems should “prevent further radicalization of prisoners, prevent terrorist activities from being directed or supported from within the prison system, and provide for the de-radicalization and reintegration of prisoners into society where possible and thereby reduce recidivism.” The document includes sections on defining goals and objectives, the prison context, the role of different actors in prison, and reintegration components.

 

Legal Frameworks

The intention of policymakers and practitioners is to:

  • Ensure that individuals radicalized to violence eventually disengage from violent extremist groups
  • Abandon violence
  • Successfully reintegrate into society

The Addendum to the Rome Memorandum provides additional good practices related to the specific sorts of legal frameworks states may need to allow certain types of rehabilitation and reintegration measures. The IIJ’s Prison Management Recommendations to Counter and Address Prison Radicalization can also be a helpful guide for countries to determine how to handle terrorist suspects incarcerated prior to and during a trial, as well as for persons convicted of terrorist offenses and who are sentenced to prison.

 

Additional Guidance

Building on the general principles outlined in the Rome Memorandum, the UN Inter Regional Crime and Justice Institute (UNICRI) and the Government of Spain held a workshop that produced Additional Guidance on the Role of Religious Scholars and other Ideological Experts in Rehabilitation and Reintegration Programmes.

This additional guidance addresses issues such as:

  • Specialized training and qualifications
  • Classification of inmates
  • Building a relationship of trust
  • Protecting and vetting scholars and material, restorative justice
  • Outreach to families and communities

 

A Tailored Approach

The rehabilitation and reintegration process, which ideally should start at the pre-trial stage, will require a tailored approach at the individual level, once again involving a wide range of actors, depending on the case itself. Depending on the assessed risk, alternatives to imprisonment such as reporting to the authorities, monitoring (e.g., with anklets or other electronic devices), community service, and/or voluntary participation in a reintegration program, could also be considered.

Both the Recommendations on the Effective Use of Appropriate Alternative Measures for Terrorism-Related Offenses and the Neuchatel Memorandum on Juvenile Justice in a Counterterrorism Context may prove useful in helping design such approaches. Given the scale of the FTF phenomenon, it is likely that over time many of the individuals requiring rehabilitation and reintegration will be returning FTFs, including disillusioned defectors.

Practitioners and policy-makers can consult the Addendum to The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum for a More Effective Response to the FTF Phenomenon, which expands significantly upon Good Practice 19 regarding the development of comprehensive reintegration programs for returning FTFs.

Good Practices on Addressing the Challenge of Returning Families of Foreign Terrorist Fighters


Returning and relocating families present complex policy challenges that require comprehensive action addressing the unique circumstances of each returnee. Timely detection and identification of returning FTFs and their family members is complicated by the various travel routes they use, and measures they often take, to avoid detection, which can impede efforts to track and monitor travel. International cooperation and internal integration procedures that could provide early warning of returnees often could be improved.

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Rabat-Washington Good Practices on the Prevention, Detection, Intervention and Response to Homegrown Terrorism


These non-binding good practices are intended to assist policymakers and practitioners as they develop, implement, and evaluate policies and programs to confront the homegrown terrorism phenomenon. This document is intended to be a complementary piece to The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum on Good Practices for a More Effective Response to the FTF Phenomenon (The Hague-Marrakech Memo) and the Addendum to The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum focusing on returning FTFs, in order to ensure a comprehensive response to the current terrorism landscape.

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Abuja Recommendations on the Collection, Use and Sharing of Evidence for Purposes of Criminal Prosecution of Terrorist Suspects


The Abuja Recommendations are geared towards policy makers, law enforcement officials, and prosecutors with the aim of offering recommendations to investigators and prosecutors of terrorism cases to help build a solid case based on strong and admissible evidence.

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Additional Guidance on Aftercare and Reintegration Programmes for Violent Extremist Offenders


Note: This document aims to provide additional guidance to Members States in their efforts to develop rehabilitation and reintegration programmes for violent extremist offenders and to address violent extremism in prison settings. It summarizes the conclusions/findings of an expert workshop convened by UNCCT, UNICRI and the Government of Turkey in Istanbul, on 19-20 May 2014.

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Additional Guidance on the Role of Psychologists/Psychology in Rehabilitation and Reintegration Programs


Note: This document will be submitted to the GCTF and to the UN’s Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute to provide additional guidance to GCTF members and other countries who are attempting to incorporate the Rome Memorandum into their own programs. This document summarizes the conclusions/findings of the expert workshop convened by Hedayah and the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism – The Hague (ICCT) in Abu Dhabi, May 8-9, 2013. The list of participants in that session is below. The participants have not, however, endorsed this document.

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The Hague Memorandum on Good Practices for the Judiciary in Adjudicating Terrorism Offenses


A strong and independent judiciary that fairly and expeditiously adjudicates terrorism and other national security offenses is critical for public confidence in the legitimacy of judicial institutions, is an effective deterrent to terrorism, and minimizes the risk of violations of fundamental human rights.

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The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum on Good Practices for a More Effective Response to the FTF Phenomenon


The threat posed by “Foreign Terrorist Fighters” (FTFs) – individuals who travel abroad to a State other than their States of residence or nationality to engage in, undertake, plan, prepare, carry out or otherwise support terrorist activity or to provide or receive training to do so (often labeled as “terrorist training”) – is a major issue for international and national security. Governments continue to grapple with how to address the complex set of challenges posed by this threat. Many countries are concerned that the rising number of people, especially youth, radicalized to violence and traveling to fight or train alongside terrorist groups in conflict and non-conflict areas will become further radicalized and pose a new terrorist threat to their home or third countries, including transit countries.

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Additional Guidance on the Role of Religious Scholars and other Ideological Experts in Rehabilitation and Reintegration Programmes


Note: This document will be submitted to the GCTF to provide additional guidance to GCTF Members States and other countries in their efforts to incorporate the Rome Memorandum into their own programmes to address violent extremism in prison settings. This document summarizes the conclusions/findings of the expert workshop convened by the Spanish Government and UNICRI in Madrid, on 29-30 October 2013.

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GCTF Lifecycle Initiative Annotated Guide


The world today is facing an increasingly sophisticated terrorist threat that is transnational, decentralized, and dynamic. Terrorists in one country are now able to inspire, recruit, and radicalize individuals in other countries to commit terrorist acts either where they live, or to travel abroad to become foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs). These same FTFs can then travel home or to a third country to commit further acts of terrorism. Meanwhile, domestic terrorists and home-grown violent extremists continue to constitute threats in their own right, with some adopting techniques used by transnational terrorists or even seeking to affiliate with them. While criminal justice and security methods aimed at imprisoning convicted terrorists will continue to feature uppermost in counterterrorism efforts, there is a growing recognition that a broader approach is needed to address these complex challenges of radicalization and recruitment, one involving a wider range of interventions to address these issues. This more expansive approach is one that can be applied across the full life-cycle of radicalization to violence, from preventing susceptible individuals from being attracted to the ideologies promoted by terrorist groups, to intervening with individuals who are on the path to radicalization to violence, to the rehabilitation and reintegration back into society of some of those already radicalized individuals

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Madrid Memorandum on Good Practices for Assistance to Victims of Terrorism Immediately after the Attack and in Criminal Proceedings


A terrorist attack is traumatic for a wide range of individuals and institutions, but it most directly affects the victims and their families. How well the victims’ physical and emotional needs are met can have a significant impact on how well the victims are able to cope with the trauma. Prompt and efficient assistance and support to terrorism victims from the moment of the attack through normalization and beyond can have a positive effect on victims’ mental health and ability to cope. Providing for practical needs in a compassionate way is a tangible expression of the care and concern for citizens who are victims of terrorism. Particular attention should be paid to the needs of children.

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Neuchâtel Memorandum on Juvenile Justice


A guide for those who must develop and execute programs and policies regarding the specific circumstances surrounding children who are in the criminal justice system charged with committing acts of terrorism or violent extremism.

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The Rabat Memorandum on Good Practices for Effective Counterterrorism Practice in the Criminal Justice Sector


Good practices for addressing terrorism must be built on a functional criminal justice system that is capable of handling ordinary criminal offenses while protecting the human rights of the accused.

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Rome Memorandum on Good Practices for Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Violent Extremist Offenders


Successful in-prison rehabilitation does not have a one-size-fits-all approach. It begins with clearly defined objectives and metrics for success and failure.

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Addendum to the Rome Memorandum on Legal Frameworks for Rehabilitation and Reintegration


The growing emphasis on prison-based rehabilitation programs in governments’ efforts to counter violent extremism results from three factors: first, prisons may become ‘safe havens’ for terrorists carrying on their operations, including radicalizing new members; second, some imprisoned extremists will eventually be released and thus must be disengaged; third, prison settings can be a setting where positive change can occur, as violent extremists are cut off from their old networks and influences.

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Recommendations for Using and Protecting Intelligence Information In Rule of Law-Based, Criminal Justice Sector-Led Investigations and Prosecutions


In implementing effective counterterrorism (CT) strategies, many States have recognized the benefits of a collaborative and cooperative relationship between law enforcement and intelligence agencies. Underscoring the critical role that intelligence and sensitive law enforcement information can play in the prevention of terrorism, Good Practice 6 of the GCTF Rabat Memorandum on Good Practices for Effective Counterterrorism Practice in the Criminal Justice Sector (Rabat Memorandum) encourages States to enact rule of law-based measures to protect the sources and collection methods of such information in terrorism cases. Once developed, these legal safeguards may allow investigators and prosecutors to use intelligence and sensitive law enforcement information as evidence, as appropriate, in a manner that both protects the sources and collection methods and maintains the accused person’s right to fair trial as recognized under national and international law, including human rights law.

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Addendum to The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum on Good Practices for a More Effective Response to the FTF Phenomenon, with a focus on Returning FTFs


Addendum relating to elements of Good Practice of the GCTF’s The Hague-Marrakech Memorandum on Good Practices for a More Effective Response to the FTF Phenomenon and other relevant issues pertaining to RFTFs.

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