HIGH LEVEL CONFERENCE ON INTERFAITH COOPERATION
FOR PEACE
INFORMATION
NOTE
The High-Level Conference on Interfaith
Cooperation for Peace is being organized by the Tripartite Forum on Interfaith
Cooperation for Peace*.
The United Nations
Millennium Declaration highlighted the importance of shared values and
principles such as freedom, equality, solidarity and tolerance, as essential to
international relations in the 21st century. The active promotion of a culture of
peace and dialogue among civilizations, with people respecting one another in
all their diversity of beliefs, cultures and languages, is vital for the achievement
of sustainable peace. There is a growing awareness that a better understanding
of cultural, ethnic and religious differences fosters tolerance, facilitates
harmonious inter-cultural relations and reduces the potential for animosities
and violence.
At the 2005 World Summit the Heads of
State and Government reaffirmed the Declaration and Programme of Action on a
Culture of Peace as well as the Global Agenda for Dialogue among Civilizations
and its Programme of Action adopted by the General Assembly and the value of
different initiatives on dialogue among cultures and civilizations, including
the dialogue on interfaith cooperation. Furthermore the leaders committed to
taking action to promote a culture of peace and dialogue at the local,
national, regional and international levels and requested the Secretary-General
to explore enhancing implementation mechanisms and to follow up on those
initiatives. In this regard, they also welcomed the Alliance of Civilizations
initiative announced by the Secretary-General on 14 July 2005.
The
Conference hopes to generate greater awareness on the role of interfaith
dialogue and cooperation in achieving peace and development and enhancing
human welfare, freedom and progress around the world.
In affirming the role of interfaith and intercultural cooperation in attaining
a just and sustainable peace, the theme of the Conference will be: Interfaith Dialogue and Cooperation for
Peace: Contributing to Peacebuilding and Development.
The conference aims to take stock of (a) the conclusions and recommendations of the Conference on Interfaith Cooperation for Peace held in the UN on 22 June 2005, (b) UN General Assembly resolutions dealing with or related to interreligious dialogue and cooperation for peace, and (c) relevant initiatives, best practices of, and challenges to, interfaith cooperation for peace and development at the national, regional and international levels. The objective of the conference would be to welcome suggestions for future action to highlight and promote interfaith initiatives among Governments, UN system agencies and religious NGOs, particularly those interfaith initiatives contributing to peacebuilding and development.
Format
The Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines, Chair of the Tripartite Forum on Interfaith Cooperation for Peace, will open the conference at 10:00 a.m., followed by remarks from the UN Secretary General, the President of the 61st General Assembly, the Director General of UNESCO and the President of the Committee of Religious NGOs at the UN who have been invited to the Conference. The keynote address will then be delivered by H.E. Mr. Abdoulaye Wade, President of Senegal and recipient of the 2005 UNESCO Ouphouet-Biogny Peace Prize.
A plenary meeting will
follow the opening ceremony with the President of the ECOSOC and the Chairman
of the Peacebuilding Commission as guest speakers. The speakers for the plenary
meeting will focus on the theme of the conference: Interfaith Dialogue and Cooperation
for Peace: Contributing to Peacebuilding and Development.
A tripartite interactive dialogue will follow the plenary session with speakers from governments, UN system agencies and religious NGOs to deliberate on the theme. Speakers are encouraged to consider the aims and objectives of the conference in their presentations.
Moderators will introduce the speakers, guide and facilitate the discussion and make final comments at the end of the Conference.
The Chairman of the Conference will deliver his final remarks at the close of the meeting. The proceedings of the Conference, including all the papers and statements delivered will be published.
Organizational
Aspects
Governments, the UN system and civil society organizations duly accredited with the United Nations will be invited to participate in the Conference.
The Conference will be held on 21 September 2006, to highlight the importance of the UN International Day of Peace, in the United Nations Conference Room 3. It is scheduled to start at 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. with a 2-hour lunch break from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
For more information, visit the website
of the Tripartite Forum at www.tripartiteinterfaithforum.org
or contact the Secretariat of the Conference at: 212-764-1300 (ext. 16) or
212-840-8602 (facsimile).
* The Tripartite Forum on Interfaith Cooperation for Peace (TFICP) is an open-ended consultative partnership of Governments, United Nations system organizations and civil society organizations duly accredited with the United Nations. It was established to provide a forum where issues on interfaith dialogue, cooperation and understanding can be discussed in a setting where the major stakeholders, governments, the United Nations system organizations and civil society organizations can freely exchange views. Its mission is to explore practical measures, utilizing interfaith dialogue and cooperation, to promote respect and advance understanding between diverse peoples, their cultures and religions, thus fostering tolerance and friendship among them. Towards this end, the tripartite partners deliberate, on an open-ended basis, how interfaith dialogue and cooperation can contribute to effectively address opportunities and challenges to peaceful co-existence. For more information on the Tripartite Forum, please visit: www.tripartiteinterfaithforum.org