A threat of both international and domestic terrorism has been a constant in our world for decades now.  Radicalization of individuals to practice  such terrorism has been identified as one of the key reasons behind these attacks forcing governments around the world to focus on countering terrorism through deradicalization.  On this PEACE TALKS RADIO episode, correspondent Priyanka Shankar talks to our guests about what drives people into joining terrorist groups and how counter-terrorism efforts are trying to flip extremists to bolster peace.  Why should we care about these efforts, and what role, if any, can WE play in such efforts?

We will hear from Pieter Van Ostaeyen, a Belgium-based independent analyst on jihadist groups worldwide. Also, Elizabeth Pearson, a Lecturer in Criminology with the Conflict, Violence and Terrorism Research Centre at Royal Holloway, University of London. And Mubin Shaikh, a former extremist, who will help us understand how he helps young people get deradicalized.

Every time a group of people line up along the external borders of a country, debates heat up among government leaders with respect to migration and asylum procedures.

Over the past few years many people from countries like Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Eritrea, the DRC, Ukraine and others, have fled conflict in their regions in search of refuge. Taking treacherous journeys, many of them aim to apply for asylum and live in Europe. But for leaders of the European Union, ghosts of the 2015 European refugee crisis, continues to haunt them, making them delay proactive responses on asylum for people seeking refuge.

Despite having a common asylum system, according to human rights and migration experts, the EU has been externalizing migration management by depending on third countries like Turkey and Libya. Migrants have also become victims of violent pushbacks with the EU fortifying its borders through border patrols and funding the construction of walls.

Such border surveillance has also become common in the US with the country delaying asylum to people from Central America.

In February 2022 when the Russian Federation’s invaded Ukraine and displaced millions of people, migration policies in many European countries transformed. Leaders who had previously embraced an anti-refugee narrative, now began displaying solidarity and embraced open borders for people from Ukraine. While migration experts were critical about how this war displayed Europe’s two-tier migration policies—open arms for one group of people and all sorts of borders and surveillance for another—they also highlighted how this war had exposed how countries can make peace with migration and asylum.

While politics around the world continues to play an integral role in migration and asylum procedures, how could world leaders find sustainable solutions to help displaced people equally, irrespective of their backgrounds?

On this episode correspondent Priyanka Shankar explores why migration and asylum are contentious and how a country can make peace with migration and asylum. Focusing on how the European Union has been dealing with migration and asylum, we talk to Petra Molnar, a lawyer and anthropologist, trying to understand the impact of surveillance technologies on people on the move. Petra also gives the gist of how European countries have been handling the migration crisis induced by the war in Ukraine.

We will also talk to Bram Frouws, . He has been analyzing migration movements around the world.  He’s also been critical of how the language used to discuss the movement of people in the media and amidst political groups, often fuels war-like narratives.

Lastly, we hear from Vasco Malta, the head of the UN’s migration agency (IOM) in Portugal, to understand how Portugal is helping people seeking asylum and helping them integrate in their new home and getting better marks on their immigration systems from human rights watchdogs.  Mr. Malta also explains how countries might better tackle the polarizing aspects of migration along borders.