What is Canada doing to deradicalize convicted terrorists?

OTTAWA – Is Canada doing enough to “de-radicalise” convicted terrorists?

In the absence of targeted deradicalisation programs for terrorist offenders in prisons, experts say Canada cannot guarantee they will not reoffend.

Momin Khawaja, the first person charged under Canada’s anti-terrorism law after 9/11, was released on full parole last month for posing a threat to society. He spent 19 years behind bars.

“The nature of these offenses suggests that you have the potential to cause serious harm to many people if you return to your offense cycle and commit another offense,” the Parole Board of Canada’s decision reads.

Khawaja, now 44, was arrested in March 2004 for his role in an Al Qaeda-inspired plot to plant fertilizer bombs in the UK.

An Ottawa resident of Canada and Pakistan, Khawaja worked as a software engineer for a company contracted by Global Affairs at the time of the crimes. According to the parole board summary, Khawaja designed a device for remotely arming explosives called a “Hi-Fi digi-monster” and agreed to make 30 of these devices. According to the records, he planned to smuggle the devices into the UK and train members in their use. The plot was never carried out.

At his hearing, Khawaja admitted for the first time to the board that the purpose of building the device was to eventually be able to activate a detonator bomb and said that while he was not aware of any specific plans, he was contributing to terrorism. .

The board called this a turning point, but said the overall risks of parole were still too high, and it was not convinced he had given up extremist views. It also mentioned concerns about Khawaja’s mental health during his sentence.

Some other terrorist offenders have previously been released and charged again, in Canada and abroad. But the bigger question is, what is Canada doing to deradicalize these people?

Experts say the main problem is that Canada’s correctional facilities do not have targeted de-radicalisation programs for convicted terrorists or violent religious extremists.

Inmates can receive regular spiritual guidance from chaplains, including imams and representatives of other religions, who provide spiritual guidance as part of the CSC’s Faith Community Reintegration Project. If they qualify, they can also access other rehabilitation programs, such as vocational training and anger management. There are currently seven Muslim chaplains listed for the Ontario region.

Experts say those counseling sessions — which don’t necessarily address terrorism or religiously motivated crimes — are generally not enough to deradicalize religious extremists, particularly those who follow a distorted interpretation of Islam.

“I warned about the importance of having a de-radicalisation program, after the Toronto 18 terrorist (arrests in 2006), but to no avail,” says Wagdy Loza, former chief psychologist at Corrections Canada and adjunct assistant professor at Queen’s University . . Loza left the CSC in 2009, but continued to review violators through a contractor until about two years ago.

Loza said the prison system is not currently equipped to rehabilitate terrorists, but offering prison staff training on extremist ideologies could help.

Designing and implementing rehabilitation programs requires expertise in specific issues related to religious extremism, such as Middle Eastern ideologies promoting jihad, as well as religious counseling, Loza said.

“There must be appropriate intervention for offenders convicted of Islamist extremism, targeting extremist beliefs and ideologies, attributions, behaviors, with follow-up/maintenance programs.”

Corrections Canada said the agency is up to the challenges.

“Canada’s Correctional Service is well positioned to address the unique challenges of radicalized offenders through its existing safeguards,” Kevin Antonucci, CSC’s acting senior communications advisor, said in an email.

When entering federal custody, radicalized offenders and convicted terrorists, like all offenders, are assessed to determine risks and needs. Consistent with evidence-based practices, according to CSC, offenders are referred to correctional programs at an intensity appropriate to their level of risk.

“During their incarceration, the progress of all offenders, including radicalized offenders, is assessed for eligibility for statutory or parole. In every decision regarding prisoners, including release, CSC considers the protection of society, including any victims, as the most important thing.”

Mubin Shaikh, a former Taliban supporter and former counterterrorism operative for CSIS and the RCMP, said “more resources are needed to program while in custody, to better prepare them while serving their time.”

“Leaving them alone only reinforces their antisocial thinking,” he said.

“Chaplain Imams are seen as part of the system and thus have limited effect to influence some of the more ideologically driven convicts,” Shaikh said.

Shaikh knew Khawaja as a young boy from a Toronto Quran school and played Hot Wheels with his older brother. He was recruited by CSIS after contacting the agency about possibly being a character reference for Khawaja, only to find that his childhood friend had changed.

The probation committee assesses whether the offender should be released, part of which is determining whether the person is likely to reoffend. But no one can “make sure” the person won’t reoffend, according to Michael King, director of research at the Organization for the Prevention of Violence.

King served as a senior research advisor at the Canada Center for Community Engagement and the Prevention of Violence, part of Public Safety Canada, where he helped develop Canada’s National Strategy for Countering Violent Extremism.

“Then the national security apparatus kicks in,” he explained. “The person will probably be examined and observed for a while after release.”

CBC reported this in 2020 Kevin Omar Mohamed, an Ontario man convicted of supporting an al-Qaeda-affiliated terror group had been re-arrested shortly after his release. A national security official received information suggesting he “could pose a threat to public safety”.

One measure that all four experts who spoke to the Star reiterated is the need to create a “correction plan” for terrorist offenders before their imprisonment and after their release.

“Not every imam or psychologist will be able to provide the necessary guidance,” Loza argued. “New programs are needed, with a large portion of these programs focusing on psychological intervention.”

“We’ve seen some individuals benefit greatly from talking to trained religious leaders while in prison,” said Amarnath Amarasingam, an assistant professor in the School of Religion at Queen’s University. “Others may want nothing to do with the system at all.”

While none of this is an exact science, what the government has built over the past decade (by working with outside groups) is a big step ahead of where we were, according to Amarasingam. Today’s infrastructure is much better than a few years ago.

“Ideology is important,” he said, “but research shows that a whole range of other things are also essential to the reintegration process, from psychological well-being to meaningful work.”

King said rehabilitation “could be a requirement for them to participate in countering violent extremism.

“Participation in such a program, as well as other psychosocial support programs, can help reintegrate the person and reduce the potential risk they may pose to society while allowing CSIS and/or the RCMP to monitor them.”

Lorne Dawson of the University of Waterloo said people convicted of terrorism are different from other prisoners.

“Canada’s in-house investigation showed — I’ve read the reports — that the young men convicted of jihadist terrorism offenses were very different from most other prisoners,” said Dawson, a sociology professor with expertise in terrorism, religion and violent extremism.

“They had no mental health or substance abuse problems, or a history of crime and abuse, and they were not eligible for the prison’s existing programs. Alternatively, for the first 10 years or so of their incarceration, they were kept apart from the general prison population and in the equivalent of solitary confinement. When they appeared before a parole board, they could not satisfactorily prove that they had changed because they had not participated in programs that could provide evaluations or evidence of their rehabilitation.”

In Khawaja’s case, the parole board acknowledged that he engaged in extensive religious studies with his imams, and completed Arabic language studies and a bachelor’s degree in sociology.

Multiple studies of recidivism rates for terrorist offenders released from prison have shown that recidivism rates are much lower than for the rest of the prison population, Dawson said.

Dates from a 2021 US study for example, the recidivism rate between 2001 and 2020 was 3.1 percent. Of the 354 offenders who were released, 11 were repeat offenders.

“Ultimately, it will be difficult to change people’s minds and it will probably go nowhere,” Amarasingam argued.

“If we expect everyone who goes through these programs to come out as Liberal Democrats, we are setting ourselves up for failure. We need to be mature about where people end up ideologically. It’s just important that they engage in nonviolent, pro-social activities.”

Irem Koca is an Ottawa general assignment reporter for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @iremreports

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