Countering terrorist use of Internet focus of OSCE seminar in Kazakhstan

ASTANA, 26 March 2014 – A two-day OSCE-supported workshop on countering the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes began today in Astana. The workshop is co-organized by the OSCE Transnational Threats Department, the Anti-Terrorism Centre of Kazakhstan and the OSCE Centre in Astana with support from the government of Spain.

The event brings together some 60 participants, including experts from five countries and representatives of state agencies and civil society. It focuses on countering terrorist use of the Internet, terrorist threats against critical infrastructure and using public-private partnerships to effectively prevent and combat terrorism. Towards the end of the seminar, participants will prepare a list of recommendations on the next steps Kazakhstan can take to enhance security in these areas.

“In order to effectively counter terrorism and extremism on the Internet, it is necessary to actively unify and harmonize the national legislation of governments in this area, and thus provide for a more effective correlation of anti-terrorism measures taken on the national, regional and international arenas,” said Head of the Anti-terrorism Centre of Kazakhstan, Colonel Kendebay Adambekov.

Manuel Larrotcha Parada, Spain’s Ambassador to Kazakhstan, said: “Countering terrorist use of the Internet is not easy because the Internet has developed into one of the most advantageous means for nourishing fundamental values, such as democracy and freedom of expression.” He stressed that when governments act on this arena they must respect these values while protecting the public from acts of terrorism.

“Previous experiences have illustrated that key words in effectively countering the use of the Internet for terrorist purposes include: awareness, willingness, capacity and multi-stakeholder partnership,” said Head of the OSCE Centre in Astana, Ambassador Natalia Zarudna. “Therefore close co-operation between government and civil society is absolutely crucial.”

The event is part of the OSCE’s comprehensive contribution to the global efforts against terrorism.