International leaders attend cultural diversity conference in Tunisia

2009-06-04

Political leaders and academics gathered in the Tunisian city of Kairouan to address how cross-cultural communication can curb global conflicts.

By Jamel Arfaoui for Magharebia in Tunis – 04/06/09

[Getty Images] Tunisian President Ben Ali tells Kairouan conference that the need for global partnerships and dialogue is more urgent than ever before.

Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali opened an international conference Tuesday (June 2nd) in Kairouan by warning that "profound changes and substantial challenges" face the global community unless nations overcome cultural, economic, and scientific differences.

"The seriousness and danger of the existing problems call for urgently joining our efforts on all levels; local, regional, international, and continental," Ben Ali told attendees at the "Dialogue of Civilisations and Cultural Diversity" forum.

"The objective," he added, "is to launch a new era of co-operation that acknowledges the universality of the proposed human issues without prioritising one over the other. We are now, more than ever, in need of establishing a global partnership for dialogue, co-operation, peace, and development; one that upholds communication among all nations all over the world, regardless of colour, race, religion, or language."

The four-day conference was organised by the Tunisian ministry of culture in co-operation with the International Organization of the Francophone (OIF), the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), and Saudi Minister of Culture and Information Abdul Aziz Khoja.

Officials, intellectuals, and experts from Tunisia and many other countries are attending the event, like former Iranian President Mohamed Khatami, Secretary General of the International Organization of the Francophonie (OIF) Abdou Diouf, as well as Secretary General of the Arab League Amr Moussa.

Participants are discussing three major themes during the conference. The first is to reassess the dialogue among civilisations and cultural diversity. The second is to lay down the preconditions for such dialogue, and the third focuses on establishing international co-operation and sound mechanisms for a sustained dialogue favouring respect for cultural diversity.

"The conference is a result of the shared conviction that dialogue among civilisations and the actual acknowledgement of cultural diversity is sufficient enough to curb conflicts and crystallize a joint vision for the solidarity of all human communities," Tunisian Minister of Culture Abderraouf El-Basti said in a news conference on June 1st.

The conference coincides with US President Barack Obama's visit to the Middle East and his speech to the Muslim world. Thus, said Secretary General of ISESCO Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri, one of the main messages of the conference will be directed to the people of the United States.

"Our message to the USA is that the Islamic world is not in a state of war with America," said Altwaijri. "Rather, we seek relations that are based on tolerance and mutual interest within the framework of international law, and bringing justice to the oppressed to establish justice and annihilate oppression."

Syrian Vice President Najah al-Attar emphasized that civilisations must be open and interactive in order to affect and be affected by each other. "In the end," he said, "civilisations belong to all mankind."

"There are signs indicating the desire of nations and new leaders to establish solidarity and justice," said the consultant to the Moroccan monarch and president of the Anna Lindh Foundation, Andre Azoulay.

"The goal is to boost cultural diversity and lay down international relations that are characterized by solidarity, cooperation, and respect among nations of the world," said Clément Duhaime of the OIF.

And that is just what the world needs at this time, said former Iranian President Mohamed Khatami. He called on world leaders and intellectuals to pioneer "a new system that upholds justice and freedoms, and condemns aggression and oppression".

"The first step on that road," Khatami said, "lies in understanding the true essence of religions through what is inside, no what's on the outside. The second step is to launch dialogue, away from fanaticism and preconceived judgments."