The Federal Government will spend $64 million on measures to stop young Australians from being radicalised and heading overseas to join extremist groups in the Middle East.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced the package, which is part of the Coalition’s renewed efforts to fight terrorism, saying it didn’t target any specific religion or community group.
Some 60 Australians are fighting in Iraq and Syria with groups like Islamic State, also known as ISIS, while another 100 are providing support from Australia.
“We need to understand that this is a very, very significant issue and it is more of an issue today than it was a couple of years ago because of the unfolding disaster in northern Iraq and eastern Syria,” Abbott told reporters in Melbourne on Tuesday.
“This is a movement – as we’ve seen on our TV screens and front pages of our newspapers – of utter ferocity, medieval barbarism allied to modern technology – that’s how serious and dangerous this movement it.
“Because of the Australians who are involved with this movement, what might otherwise be a problem in a far away country is a problem for us.”
The package includes $13.4 million boost to community engagement programs, with an emphasis on preventing young Australians from becoming involved with extremist groups, and $6.2 million to establish a new Australian Federal Police Community Diversion and Monitoring Team to target returning foreign fighters and their supporters.
Some $32.7 million will go toward a multi-agency national disruption group to investigate and disrupt foreign fighters and their supporters, and a further $11.8 million for new local and regional AFP liaison officers.
Abbott said the best defence against radicalisation was “well informed and well equipped” families and communities.
“We want to stop radicalised youngsters from leaving this country to join terrorist groups overseas, we want to work with our allies and partners to try to monitor them while they are overseas,” Abbott said.
“We want to be able to charge them and jail them where they have been working with terrorist groups overseas.”
