However, alternatives to the dominant military-authoritarian paradigm – in which militarised notions of masculinity are also a prominent feature – are available. In the discussion paper, Dilemmas of Counter-Terror, Stabilisation and Statebuilding, Saferworld provided a review of global evidence on the impacts of existing approaches, and suggested a number of constructive directions for improved policy, including:

• Avoiding defining conflicts narrowly as problems of ‘terror’, ‘extremism’ or ‘radicalisation’, and instead adopting a more impartial, holistic and sustainable approach to resolving them
• Changing international and national policies and approaches that fuel grievances and undermine human rights
• Redoubling efforts for diplomacy, lobbying, advocacy and local-level dialogue to make the case for peace and adherence to international law by conflict actors
• Looking for opportunities to negotiate peace – balancing pragmatic considerations with a determined focus to achieve inclusive and just political settlements in any given context
• Considering the careful use of legal and judicial responses and targeted sanctions as alternatives to the use of force
• Taking greater care when choosing and reviewing relationships with supposed ‘allies’
• Supporting transformative reform efforts to improve governance and state-society relations and uphold human rights
• Choosing not to engage if harm cannot be effectively mitigated and no clear solution is evident.

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