Promoting Peaceful Coexistence and Common Citizenship

[ 17 ] — OPENING CEREMONY — pathway to peace, and as a reminder to all of us of the vital and indispensable role that religious leaders play in the shap- ing of our world. Faith is, and will always be, central to hope and resilience, yet around the world we see how religion is being hijacked by radical groups and twisted by intolerant ideologies to justify incitement to violence, discrimination, xenophobia, and acts of terrorism. These ideologies seek to divide humanity, based on false versions and interpretation of religious, cultural and social values. No one can deny the short- and long-term damage caused by these factors on international peace and security, as well as on development. Together, we must counter such narratives. Allow me to recall the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 59/23 of 11 November 2004, which affirmed that mutual understanding and interreligious dialogue constitute important dimensions of the dialogue among civilizations and of the culture of peace. In order to achieve sustainable peace — one that truly lasts and endures — it must be based, not only on nurtur- ing a culture of tolerance, dialogue, solidarity, and mutual understanding, but also on a culture of prevention. Sustain- able peace requires not only political will from all sides but also the collective efforts of the international community, civil society and, fundamentally, religious leaders. We need to expand this peace in order that dialogue can be used effectively by local and regional leaders and other actors who have a voice of influence within their respective communities. As such, all of the world’s major religions have reaffirmed their commitment to building peace and have emphasized the oneness of humanity in standing on the side of the marginalized and in working to resolve conflict. In this context, the UNAOC is one of the UN’s leading entities for the promotion of interfaith and intercultural dialogue. We recognize that peace cannot be attained through the endeavours of politicians alone. For this reason we value the partnership and engagement of various players such as civil society groups, including those that are youth- led, and grassroots, as well as the private sector, academia and most religious leaders and faith based organizations. We have reached out and worked closely with religious leaders since 2013. For the last five years more than 30 events involving religious leaders were organized or sponsored by the UNAOC, creating a global platform for dialogue among those essential actors. Before concluding, allow me to reiterate that words such as dialogue, reconciliation, and tolerance mean little if not supported by a concrete, broad range of actions performed under an international umbrella of sincere cooperation from both state and non-state actors. After all, the qualities of peace, justice, human dignity and tolerance that we all aspire to are what bind us together, as we are all part of one humanity despite ourmany diverse cultures. HE Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser High Representative for the UNAOC HE Mr. Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser assumed the position of High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations on March 1st, 2013. Prior to that, he was the President of the 66th session of the United Nations General Assembly from 2011 to 2012. A veteran diplomat, Mr. Al-Nasser held the rank of Minister, granted by His Highness the Emir of the State of Qatar from 1998 to 2011. Mr. Al-Nasser has served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations where he played leading roles as Chairman of the General Assembly’s Special Political and Decolonization (Fourth) Committee from 2009 to 2010, and as President of the General Assembly High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation from 2007 to 2009. He also chaired the Group of 77 and China at the United Nations in New York in 2004, guiding the action that paved the way for the Second South Summit of the Group which took place the following year and led to the establishment of the South Fund for Development and Humanitarian Affairs, a financing mechanism aimed at assisting the countries of the Global South in addressing issues such as poverty, hunger and natural disasters. Mutual understanding and interreligious dialogue constitute important dimensions of the dialogue among civilizations and of the culture of peace