Amman, Nov. 15 (Petra) -- The Community Peace Center of the Preventive Security Department held a dialogue seminar in Amman on Sunday, themed: "Countering Extremist Ideology and Hate Speech," as part of Public Security Directorate (PSD) efforts to promote a culture of moderation and tolerance.
The event also aims to raise public awareness of the dangers of extremism and its effects on community security and stability.
Brig. Gen. Falah Majali, PSD assistant director for judicial affairs, and Director of the Prevention and Self-Protection Department, Brig. Gen. Bilal Awamleh attended.
In presence were Sönke Lorenz, deputy head of mission at the German Embassy in Jordan, senior PSD officers, and representatives of official and civil institutions and strategic partners.
Talking at the opening ceremony, Majali said countering extremist ideology and hate speech is a shared national responsibility, which requires security, official, academic and community institutions to work together.
He underscored the need to step up preventive and awareness programs, particularly given the challenges of the digital space and attempts to target young people and influence their ideas through social media and electronic games.
He said this vision requires raising young people's awareness, promoting moderate thought and entrenching the values of tolerance and acceptance of others.
Awamleh said the Community Peace Center is a cornerstone of PSD's preventive efforts, detailing its programs and initiatives carried out with national institutions to protect young people from the dangers of extremism, online recruitment and hate speech.
He highlighted the importance of the "strategic" partnership with Germany in exchanging expertise and building capacity, which strengthens effectiveness of preventive efforts and helps spread the values of moderation and tolerance.
In turn, Lorenz praised the level of cooperation between Jordan and Germany in countering extremism and hate speech.
He commended PSD's efforts to raise public awareness and adopt a preventive approach, calling for continuing to develop joint programs to protect young people from the risks of recruitment and extremism through the digital space.
The seminar featured interactive discussions on the role of the family and national institutions in promoting awareness and the values of citizenship and belonging. The discussions aimed to address emerging intellectual challenges and build an aware, cohesive society based on moderation, tolerance and respect for the law.
The two-day activity discusses the dangers of extremist ideology and hate speech and their effects on community security and peace.
It also covers ways to strengthen cooperation among security, educational, religious and media institutions to counter incitement and intolerance, and ways to protect youth from ideological and online recruitment and entrench a culture of dialogue and respect for differences.
//Petra// NQ
