Preventing Violence: the lessons from Woolwich

Last month Woolwich caught the world’s attention for all the wrong reasons – the horrific murder of Lee Rigby. This was a calculated act of terror, it was meant to shock, provoke fear and divide  communities.

I live in Woolwich close to where the attack happened. Following the  attack many people will have a strange view about the place I call home. It’s a mixed community – like London Woolwich is changing, new  homes and better transport are all helping for the better.

In the aftermath people were clearly trying to understand what happened,  why it happened and how events in other places can impact on their daily lives. There are many issues which need to be reflected on  as we seek to find solutions to minimise this threat in the future.

The reaction to the attack in Woolwich highlights two attitudes, firstly  refusing to ‘walk on by’, and secondly, acting as a spectator. We need  to understand these two very different reactions. I will always be surprised by the parents with  young children who stayed around to watch this grotesque attack, rather  than act in the way the local school did who kept the children away from harm. I cannot be alone in thinking that the natural reaction is to protect and shield your children from such  violence. I don’t seek to condemn those parents, but is this now  ‘normal’ in our society, have we become so desensitised to violence?

There are four immediate issues that need to be raised, I’m sure there will  be more. Firstly, the role of the internet, social media and how they impacted on the reporting of the attack and any implications for subsequent police investigations.  This includes the ready acceptance of the mainstream media to treat uninformed comment as ‘fact’.

Secondly, I welcome the government’s response to review the anti-terrorism Prevent Strategy, if anything this debate can’t be left to politicians alone. We need a wide-ranging open debate on tackling terrorism and violence that seeks to involve  the communities it seeks to protect.

There is also a link between alienation from mainstream society, including  those who perceive they have no future, and violence. Young people can be susceptible to the wrong sort of role models, those who scapegoat and blame others for the world’s problems or local grievances, including a lack of jobs.

Thirdly, grooming by extremists who seek to co-opt people into their twisted and distorted view of the world. As we know, grooming can lead to violence  in various ways, whether through gangs, paedophiles or other sex offenders. We need to develop  some effective strategies that make our young people, who may be  vulnerable, less gullible to those who would seek to influence and  manipulate them for their own evil ends.

The links between those who commit criminal acts and later go on to commit  acts of terrorism have been well-researched.

Fourthly, we desperately need an anti-violence strategy. It is true that crime is going down, but the people we were elected to serve and represent rightly expect us to press ahead and drive it down further.

I don’t want to downplay the threat we face from terrorism, it’s one of  the biggest issues for the police. However, despite what happened in my  area, it is not the biggest issue for my constituents. It is tackling gangs, anti-social and  violent crime in all its forms. This includes domestic violence, which  is still largely hidden. We need to widen the Prevent Strategy so that  it tackles violence in our society more widely, with terrorism being one of many strands.

These are the discussions we need to have and bring people together to  challenge those who want to cause mayhem and misery in our communities –  whether through terrorism, crime or those who want to divide us through blame, hate and prejudice.

The good things that came after the attacks are the good things about  Woolwich and Britain. People weren’t prepared to be divided by terrorism or tempted by the siren voices of the EDL who tried to scapegoat the religion of Islam. People know  there are not simple solutions to the problems we face. It is important  that those in positions of responsibility and power engage with  communities, and work through solutions. We cannot be afraid of having these debates, even though we might like to walk  away from them. Otherwise we are simply waiting for the next tragedy.