The findings of a New Zealand inquiry apply broadly: government leadership is needed to combat far-right extremism.
The tragedy of 51 people murdered and many more injured two years ago by an Australian-born far-right extremist was commemorated in Christchurch this week by the New Zealand government along with family and friends of the victims. For the community – in New Zealand most importantly, but also in Australia and elsewhere across the globe – a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the attack on Christchurch mosques on 15 March 2019 offers sobering lessons.
Among the Royal Commission’s recommendations was the need to improve counter-terrorism efforts, promote social cohesion and an urgent call for stronger government leadership and direction in these areas.
As the Royal Commission report outlines, one of the political failures in New Zealand leading up to the massacre was in not adequately recognising the threat of extreme right-wing domestic terrorism, with too much focus on the dangers posed by Islamist extremism:
We have concluded that the counter-terrorism effort had been slow to understand the threat of extreme right-wing domestic terrorism … Improved strategic leadership and greater accountability are required.
Crucially, the report emphasises the importance of “well-informed ministers” who possess a “thorough understanding of the immediate, medium-term and longer-term terrorism risks and threats”. This knowledge is key to a more holistic understanding of how extremism manifests.
Read the article by Hannah Leser in The Interpreter.