***46th PGA Annual Forum and 4th Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for the Oceans, 26 - 27 March 2026, Mexico City. *** REGISTER HERE
***46th PGA Annual Forum and 4th Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for the Oceans, 26 - 27 March 2026, Mexico City. *** REGISTER HERE
The PGA Campaign to Prevent and Counter Violent Extremism is part of an advocacy effort to address and eliminate the theoretical/ideological and practical bases of violent extremism. As the largest transnational network of individual parliamentarians committed to human rights, PGA is ideally placed to contribute to the global effort to counter terrorism and violent extremism.
Violent extremism is no longer the element that characterizes a loose global network like Al-Qaeda or a relatively localized armed movement like the “Taliban”, but has become the ideological source of inspiration of multiple groups that have emerged in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), alongside other groups from the Horn of Africa and Sahel regions.
Terrorism and armed conflict caused by violent extremism have been on the rise across the globe over the last two decades. Given the urgent need to respond to this dramatic threat to human civilization through the Rule of Law, rather than violent retaliation, the PGA Board decided that this new area of work should fall under the International Law & Human Rights Program of PGA.
It was PGA Members from the MENA region (i.e. Iraq, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia and Lebanon), together with European MPs, who proposed the creation of this campaign in the months that followed the unexpected spillover of the Syrian conflict into Iraq, with the occupation of Mosul in June 2014 and the emergence of an entity that resembles a state (the self-described 'Islamic State', also known as ISIL/ISIS/Da’esh).
Parliamentarians are in a crucial position as they have law-making and policy-making prerogatives and are engaged in law-making and policy-making, including resource-allocation, implementation and accountability across the spectrum of preventive response and sanctioning mechanisms. Their empowerment and sensitization can also lead to a transformational shift towards democratic governance, which can address some of the grievances feeding violent extremism. Through parliamentary motions, statements, resolutions, demarches to the executive and judicial branches, public debates and legislative initiatives, Parliamentarians from around can help achieve the objectives of this campaign.
The work of Parliamentarians can bring about a critical mass of concrete political actions proving the existence of a global parliamentary constituency in support of efforts preventing and countering violent extremism, including stabilization programming, strategic counter-messaging, preventing the recruitment of foreign fighters, stopping the financing of those violent extremist groups and, as required and permitted under International Law, taking proportionate military action.
With our network of 1,300+ MPs, PGA will work to foster political and legislative action through field missions, consultations, and parliamentary events, high level conferences, and strategy sessions. In a manner fully inclusive of gender, race, and religion, PGA supports the following activities:
A set of legislative and political strategies that parliamentarians can take to prevent mass atrocity crimes and combat violent extremism.
At a time when extremism and mass atrocity crimes appear to be on the rise, national governments, international and regional organizations are struggling to protect populations from grave human rights abuses. Motivated by the need to address these challenges, Parliamentarians for Global Action, in partnership with the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies at Concordia University and the Stanley Foundation, organized the Milan Forum for Parliamentary Action in Preventing Violent Extremism and mass Atrocities on 27-28 November 2017 in Milan Italy. Author: Phil Gurski Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies, Concordia University Parliamentarians for Global Actions Robert Bosch Stiftung The Stanley Foundation
Video | 25 January 2017: PGA Members proposed and intervened in the Hearing of the European Parliament Human Rights Sub-Committee on “The fight against impunity and non-state actors' accountability for human rights violations” held in the Altiero Spinelli Building (Room 1G-3), European Parliament, Brussels.
The first speaker who addressed the Sub-Committee was Ms. Laura Passoni, a former ‘Daesh’ recruit. One of most renowned international legal experts in this area, Prof. Andrew Clapham (Geneva), was heard upon suggestion of a prominent PGA Member. Prof. Mark Kersten, a dynamic Canadian academic, was also heard by Parliament via Skype connection. The hearing can be viewed here, [starting from minute 32:45].