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The Third Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions(Astana, July 1-2, 2009)
On July 1-2, 2009 Astana hosts the 3rd Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions.
Delegations from different directions of three world religions, as well as traditional religions will take part in the work of the Congress. Participation of more than 60 delegations from different religious confessions, honorable guests and representatives from international organizations, such as the United Nations, Islamic Conference Organization, OSCE and UNESCO are expected.
In the first day of Congress the plenary session will take place on a theme: "The role of religious leaders in construction of the world based on tolerance, mutual respect and cooperation".
The second day of action will be devoted to the work in three sections: "Moral and cultural wealth, world ethics", "Dialogue and cooperation" and "Solidarity, especially in crises".
Following the results of the Forum adoption of the total document - Reference of the participants of the Third Congress is planned.
Within the frameworks of the Congress meetings of the President of Republic of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev with the Leaders of world religions and guests of honour such as Sheikh Mohammed Said Tantaui - the Supreme Imam of the University of Al-Azkhar, Mohamed Ahmed Sherif - Secretary General of the World Islamic Call Society, President of Papal Council on interreligious dialogue, the Cardinal Jean-Luis Tauran, Main Ashenazi Rabbin of Israel Yona Metzger, the Chief Sefardim Rabbin of Israel Shlomo Amar, President of Israel Simon Peres, the Assistant of the UN Secretary General, General Director of the European branch of United Nations Sergei Ordzhonikidze, the Secretary General of OSCE Mark Perren de Brishambo, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Spain Miguel Moratinos, the ex-Prime Minister of Norway Kjell Bondevik, Director of Secretariat of the Alliance of Civilizations Marc Scheuer etc. will take place.
The Congress of the leaders of world and traditional religions has been internationally recognized as an effective dialogue platform for peace and consent advancement on our planet. Kazakhstan, being an example of successful model of interethnic and interconfessional consent, has become a venue for this unique forum.
Inter-Religious Harmony in Kazakhstan
Today the Republic of Kazakhstan is a striking instance of peaceful coexistence of over 40 confessions and denominations as well as 130 nationalities and ethnic groups.
Historically Kazakhstan was always a crossroad, a place of meeting and dialogue of various religions, cultures and civilizations of the East and West.
The spiritual tolerance inherited from the cultural and ethical traditions of Kazakhs serves as a reliable foundation for maintaining the civil peace both in the present and future. Being an independent state, Kazakhstan ensured an absolute religious freedom to all Moslems, Orthodox Christians, Catholics, Protestants and Jews as well as other religious denominations. The nation saw a considerable quantitative and qualitative growth of religious institutions. Today, the total number of religious associations reached 4,173 while in 1990 it equalled 670.
The number of Islamic associations grew from 46 to 2,441. There occurred almost five-fold growth in number of the Russian Orthodox Church parishes (from 62 to 293), two-fold increase of the Roman Catholic Church associations (from 42 to 86), Evangelical Baptist Christians communities (from 168 to 362) and Seventh Day Adventists (from 36 to 66). The quantity of Jehovah's Witnesses associations increased from 27 to 78, and that of Protestant alliance of new trends jumped from 13 to 540.
Religious associations own 3,129 cultic buildings, including 2,229 mosques, 258 Orthodox and 93 Catholic churches, 6 synagogues and over five hundred Protestant churches and prayer houses.
Currently 384 missioners from over 20 foreign countries work in the Republic of Kazakhstan while in 1990 there were only 12 people.
Religious organizations periodically publish 38 newspapers.
The Moslem Id al-Adha and Orthodox Christmas are national holidays in Kazakhstan.
Upon the initiative of the Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev the city of Astana hosted two Congresses of World and Traditional Religions Leaders in 2003 and 2006. Those forums demonstrated not only the applicability of the country’s foreign policy but also proved the effectiveness of the unique Kazakhstani model of inter-confessional collaboration.
The upcoming Third Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions 2009 to be held again in Astana will become the next step in strengthening the relationship between the confessions and contribute to the global dialogue of civilizations.
The Kazakhstan model of inter-relations between the state and religious organizations is based on democratic principles respecting the believers' rights and freedoms, on equality of public and religious interests, partnership and strive for mutual understanding. This is an outcome of the targeted policy of the Head of the State, Mr. Nazarbayev N.
With respect to obligations concerning the believers' rights, Kazakhstan effectively collaborates with the Office for Democratic Institutes and Human Rights of OSCE.
Close cooperation with the OSCE Office in the city of Almaty contributed to establishing in the country of the regulatory framework focused on equality of rights and freedoms of all citizens regardless of their religious and ethnic background.
The Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan "On Freedom of Belief and Religious Organizations" was adopted in 1992 and never changed in its essence despite occasional problems arising in the religious sphere and national-confessional relations.
Last year the Parliament has completed debates concerning the Draft Law "On amendments and additions to some legislative acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the Issues of Freedom of Belief and Religious Organizations" initiated by a group of deputies last spring. In February 2009 the Draft Law was rejected by the Constitutional Council of Kazakhstan. The Chair of the Constitutional Council, Igor Rogov said that the proposed Law is not in accord with the Constitution and so "cannot be signed and brought into force".
Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions
President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev as the Head of State and politician, in full measure realizing the increased role of the religion in the society, put forward the initiative of holding a forum of world and traditional religions in the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan - city of Astana. Earlier the organizers of similar events were only representatives of leading religions and denominations. Among other similar events aimed at establishing interdenominational dialogue were the meetings of representatives of world religions and denominations held in Italian city Assisi in October 1986 and January 2002.
The idea of the President of Kazakhstan is that the dialogue between the leaders of world and traditional religions formed on common aspects and exact information on each other opens wide prospects for mutual cooperation and contributes to overcoming such negative manifestations of our time as violence, fanaticism, extremism and terrorism. The dialogue of the religions as the conceptual idea of the First Congress and means of disputes settling was opposed to methods of violence and terror in the interdenominational and interethnic relations.
An initiative by Kazakhstan that gained worldwide recognition was the setting up of a unique “spiritual platform” for inter-faith dialogue, the Forum for Representatives of World Religions. Kazakhstan’s experience in establishing a peaceful dialogue of faiths is truly invaluable for contemporary world community.
Many religious figures understand clearly the necessity and importance of inter-religious reconciliation and are taking specific steps towards its bringing this about. In this respect the Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions has been a major contribution by Kazakhstan to the global process of inter-cultural dialogue. It justifiably occupies a special place in the efforts by the world community towards strengthening principles of toleration, mutual understanding, dialogue and cooperation.
Kazakhstan’s initiative, which is supported by the United Nations, is a very timely measure. Over the last few years the Congress has gained wide recognition from other major international forums, as the Alliance of Civilizations, the Community of St Egidio, the Asia House, the Tony Blair Foundation and many others all have expressed their intention to participate in it’s work.
An important proposal by Kazakhstan is that the third Congress should be held in an enlarged format which would include both a plenary and sectional sessions.
It was proposed that the theme of the plenary session of the 3rd Congress should be identified as “The Role of Religious Leaders in Building a Tolerant World in Conditions of Globalization”. During the separate thematical sessions the participants at the Congress would be able to hold discussions on five thematic blocks. These would include moral values, peace and security, the environment and harmony, genuine dialogue and cooperation, and promoting justice. Such a format would allow religious leaders to exchange views on topical contemporary problems, to set forth their vision of inter-faith reconciliation in specific countries and regions, and to give their appraisal and their recommendations on this matter.
First Congress
Under the initiative of President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev the 1st Congress of the Leaders of the World and Traditional Religions took place in Astana, Kazakhstan from 23 to 24 of September, 2003.
The most authoritative representatives of the world and traditional religions, as well as known politicians, attended this forum.
The 1st Congress greatly contributed to the global process of inter-civilization and intercultural dialogue. The forum reflected efforts the world community focuses on addressing so called clash of civilizations and global challenges induced by cultural and religious distinctions to build a world based on tolerance, development and security.
The main purpose of the 1st Congress was the search of universal reference points in world and traditional forms of religions, creation of constantly operating international inter-confessional institute for the realization of dialogue of religions and acceptance of the coordinated decisions.
In their statements participants and guests of the forum gave special credits to the Government and the people of Kazakhstan for their efforts to create a model of the interethnic consent in the country that proved to be a universally recognized success.
By having agreed on continuing constructive inter-religious dialogues, the leaders and high representatives of the world and traditional religions made a decision to hold their forums on a regular basis and to establish a permanent body of the inter-religious dialogue – a Secretariat of the Congress. They also adopted a resolution to convene the 2nd Congress in Astana, Kazakhstan from 12 to 13 of September, 2006.
The decision to host the 2nd Congress again in Astana was a clear evidence of respect the international religious community has for Kazakhstan and its role in maintaining the world’s peace and security.
Taking note of Kazakhstan’s interreligious initiative the UN General Assembly adopted the Resolution on Promotion of Interreligious Dialogue on 12 November 2004. This document stresses the commitment of all religions to peace and stability all over the world and appeals to the international community to promote in every way the development of the interreligious dialogue. By adopting this Resolution the community of nations has expressed support to Kazakhstan’s effort to promote the culture of peace and the dialogue among civilisations.
Second Congress
On September 12-13, 2006 in Astana the Second Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions chaired by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev took place. The Congress was held in the new building "Palace of Peace and Reconciliation", built specially for realization of the Forum.
It gathered together the most well-known representatives of world and traditional religions and honorable guests from 26 countries and international organizations and was greeted by addresses from heads of the world powers, international organizations and supreme hierarchs of different churches.
One of the main goals of the 2nd Congress was establishing conditions for religious communities and believers to be involved into building sustainable civil society, overcoming religious isolationism, counteracting extremism, clericalism and enhancing spirit of tolerance across the world.
The Congress was held with the general subject: "Religion, society and international security" in two directions: "Religious freedom and respect to followers of other religions" and "Role of religious leaders in the strengthening of international security".
On the first day of the Forum “The Principles of interreligious dialogue” were accepted, where basic components by which the participants of the Forum were guided in the course of the Forum work found their reflection.
In the reports of the Forum participants have sounded words of gratitude to the President and people of Kazakhstan for the organization of the Forum of Religions where the religious dialogue as a means of disputes settling was opposed to the methods of violence and terror in interdenominational and international relations. By the results of the Congress its participants adopted joint Declaration calling representatives of all religions and ethnic groups to non-admission of conflicts on the basis of cultural and religious differences. This document reflects in full the global need in replacement of "opposition ideology" by "culture of peace".
Taking into consideration the fruitful exchange of views on the role of religions in promoting inter-religious tolerance and enhancing international security, expressing common understanding on the need to continue the constructive dialogue among representatives of the world's religions, the Participants of the 2nd Congress took a decision to convene the next 3rd Congress in 2009 in Astana, and to instruct the Congress’s Secretariat to present proposals on date of holding the next Forum.
At the initiative of Kazakhstan the 62nd session of the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution (№ 62/90 of 17.12.2007) on declaring the year 2010 as the «International year of rapprochement of cultures».
Comments of well-known religious and political figures on the Kazakh initiative
Visiting Astana in September 2001, Pope John Paul II said: "From Kazakhstan, a country that is an example of harmony between men and women of different origins and beliefs, I wish to make an earnest call to everyone, Christians and the followers of other religions, to work together to build a world without violence, a world that loves life, and grows in justice and solidarity".
Underlining the importance of the Kazakh initiative, former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan noted that “religious people have an opportunity to influence individuals and groups of people and can “inspire” them to serve society”.
Koichiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, described the Kazakh President’s initiative in holding the congresses as “a significant step to a new world where people of different religions can live together in harmony”.
Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi of Israel, Yona Metzger, thanked the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan for his “important contribution to the foundation of a constructive dialogue between religions and civilizations”, noting that the initiative had “notably enhanced tolerance between representatives of Islam and Judaism”.
Vice-president of the European Parliament, Mr. Alejo Vidal-Quadras, had the following to say: “There is a vast territory in Central Asia in which people of extremely different ethnic backgrounds and diverse faiths albeit with a clear majority of Muslims live in peace and harmony. They speak a wide variety of languages and have many different origins, tastes, sensitivities, memories and habits. In spite this rich and multicoloured diversity, the relations between all this groups are excellent, they show solidarity in the sharing of common interests, objectives and efforts, and they enjoy equal rights.”.
Palace of Peace and Reconciliation (Pyramid of Peace)
The Palace of Peace and Reconciliation, also referred to as The Pyramid for its geometrical shape, is a unique building that has been conceived and designed by architect Sir Norman Foster (United Kingdom). This diversity is unified within the pure form of a pyramid, 62 meters high with a 62 x 62-meter base.
It contains accommodations for different religions: Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism and other faiths. It also houses Museum of national culture, National opera and ballet theatre, the University of Civilizations, exposition and concert halls, a library, as well as a research centre of world religions and offices of spiritual denominations.
The building is conceived as a global center for religious understanding, the renunciation of violence and the promotion of faith and human equality. The Palace hosted II Congress of World and Traditional religions in 2006 and Ministerial Conference “Common World: Progress through Diversity” in 2008.
The Pyramid of Peace expresses the spirit of Kazakhstan, where cultures, traditions and representatives of various nationalities coexist in piece, harmony and accord.
“The four sides of our Palace are oriented to the four sides of the world. In some sense this construction embodies independent Kazakhstan that friendly embraces all people of all nations and practicing different religions”, - Nursultan Nazarbayev describes the building.
Bathed in the golden and pale blue glow of the glass (colors of National flag of Kazakhstan), delegates from the world’s main religions and faiths are meeting every three years in a circular chamber - based on the United Nations Security Council meeting room in New York. On exiting a lift at level six, ramps ascend through a hanging garden and wind towards a circular platform with a wide oculus at its centre. Here, Brian Clarke’s stained glass windows can be admired (a flock of doves are pictured ascending towards the sun that is the central emblem of Kazakhstan’s flag).
The project was a challenge in both space and time – first because it is being integrated into a large pyramid that contains cultural and educational institututions, and second because it was designed and built more quickly than any opera house in the past century. In Europe the design and construction of an opera house usually takes 5 – 10 years. This project has taken less than 2 years. It has been achieved by all parties working toward a common goal, inspired by peace. The pyramid was completed in 2006 and became a symbol of Kazakhstan's rise from a former Soviet backwater to a leading regional economy.
Principles of Inter-Religious Dialogue
1. Dialogue shall be based upon honesty, tolerance, humility and mutual respect. It requires effective perception and learning, resulting in performing good deeds.
2. Dialogue shall assume equality of all partners and create the room for free expression of opinions, perspectives and beliefs, including the integrity of each culture, language and traditions.
3. Dialogue shall not be aimed at the conversion to another faith, as well as to abuse or demonstrate the superiority of one religion over another. It should not be aimed at eliminating differences, but rather at the cognition and res
4. Dialogue assists in avoiding prejudices and misinterpretation of faiths of other religions, thus encouraging their cognition and understanding of them. It helps to prevent conflicts and the use of violence as a means for reducing of tension and resolving disputes.
5. Dialogue offers a way towards the peaceful coexistence and fruitful cooperation of peoples. It encourages better education, and may also promote to a better understanding of the dialogue, the importance of mass media and lessen the risk of religious extremism.
6. Inter-religious dialogue can serve as an example for other kinds of dialogues, especially social and political ones.
7. Dialogue, conducted in a spirit of tolerance, emphasizes that all people inhabit the same globe. This assumes certain shared values such as sacredness of life, dignity of all human beings and the integrity of creation.
8. Dialogue emphasizes that religion plays a vital and constructive role in the society. It promotes common good, recognizes the important role of good relationships between people and respects the specific role of the state in a society as well.
9. Dialogue is fundamentally important for future generations to benefit from better relations between people of different religions and cultures.
Declaration of the II Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions
We, the leaders of world and traditional religions, gathered at our Second Congress in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan:
- building on the success of the First Congress, which took place in the city of Astana on 23-24 September 2003 and engaged internationally recognized world religious leaders in an important initiative of inter-religious dialogue;
- wishing to help strengthen mutual understanding between cultures, religions and ethnic groups which form the basic components of world civilizations, and aiming to prevent conflicts based on cultural and religious differences;
- acknowledging that religion, having always been a fundamental element of human life and society has, at the beginning of the new century, assumed a significant new role in establishing and preserving peace;
- recognizing the great responsibility held by religious leaders for spiritual teaching and advocacy on behalf of current and future generations, and their vital role in establishing a spirit of mutual respect, understanding and acceptance in the face of new challenges;
- underlining the unique character of every religion and culture, and considering cultural and religious diversity to be an important feature of human society;
- expressing concern about increasing inter-religious and interethnic tensions in the world deriving from the exploitation of religious and national differences as a justification for violence which causes suffering to innocent victims;
- stressing that extremism and fanaticism find no justification in a genuine understanding of religion and that the vocation of all religions demands the refusal of violence and appeals to respect and peaceful coexistence with peoples and religions;
- believing that the difficulties in inter-religious and intercultural relations are related both to a fundamental imbalance in international politics, economics, social, humanitarian and information resources, and to the manipulation of religion for political ends;
- discussing and debating the above-mentioned concerns within the main theme of the Congress - "Religion, society and international security" in the context of two special blocs;
I. "Freedom of religion and recognition of others";
II. "Role of religious leaders in enhancing international security"
appeal to people of all religions and people of good will across the globe, and:
- call upon them to abandon enmity, discord and hatred; and embrace common respect and generosity, recognizing the reality of cultural, religious and civilizational diversity;
- declare our determination together to tackle and ultimately eliminate prejudice, ignorance and misrepresentation of other religions by placing particular focus on what religions hold in common as well as what distinguishes them;
- condemn all forms of terrorism on the basis that justice can never be established through fear and bloodshed and that the use of such means in the name of religion is a violation and betrayal of any religion that appeals to human goodness and dialogue;
- reject all false inventions and wrongly created stereotypes about the violent nature of religions and attempts to attribute terrorism to any particular religion;
- call upon all to work together to address and eliminate all causes of terrorism, thus promoting human flourishing, dignity and unity;
- declare our rejection of any form of pressure or violence to convert followers of one religion to another;
- reaffirm the pivotal role of education, youth policy and cultural activity for understanding, solidarity and social cohesion.
We also call upon the global community, international and regional organizations, states and governments all over the world to:
- actively support the process of intercivilizational dialogue; exert sustainable efforts towards creating a culture of peace, strengthening its principles as a firm basis of international politics and the life of all people;
- work to establish a more fair world, to consolidate international law and justice, and to implement UN resolutions and signed international agreements, and to find effective means of establishing peace and security all over the world;
- heed the voices of victims of oppression and terrorism and use all means to seek a just settlement of the existing conflicts, thus addressing the grievances that nurture violence;
- reject totally the development, production and possession of weapons of mass destruction and promote the strengthening of non-proliferation regimes;
- respect and protect the sanctity of religious symbols and places and take appropriate measures
Based upon the abovementioned, we, the leaders of world and traditional religions, RESOVED TO:
- take concrete collective measures for encouraging and highlighting positive perceptions of inter-religious relations by organizing joint meetings, seminars and addresses in the mass media, the Internet and other places of influence;
- strongly promote interreligious tolerance among younger generations to make them more devoted to dialogue and encourage them recognize universal values;
- integrate questions of the dialogue between civilizations and religions into curricula at all educational levels with a view to helping young people to respect and understand religious and cultural difference without hostility;
- use our spiritual influence, authority and resources to further establish peace, security, stability and contacts between each other in order to make a combined contribution to the prevention and resolution of disputes among different religious communities;
- offer our experience and best efforts to governments and people or groups and powers involved into conflicts in order to assist them in easing tensions, forming where appropriate joint delegations to conduct negotiations with them;
- commit to make efforts to promote and realise the goals stated in this Declaration, and to assign the Congress Secretariat to propose a plan for the best possible translation of these recommendations into reality;
- conduct the Congress of religions on a permanent basis and hold the third Congress of the leaders of world and traditional religions in 2009. For the Secretariat to present proposals on time and place of the next forum;
- bring to the attention of the General Assembly of the United Nations the conceptual and practical role performed by the Congress in promoting dialogue among civilizations, cultures and religions and its considerable achievements in interreligious understanding, inviting support for the further activity of the Congress.
Astana, 13 September 2006
(More information available at http://www.religions-congress.org) |
