Conference on Freedom of Religion and Belief outcomes exceed all expectations

Manama, June 1 (BNA): The European Union, the French Embassy to Bahrain, the King Hamad Global Centre for Peaceful Coexistence and This is Bahrain have organized a three-day of high-level discussions on policy actions to reflect on the role of FORB. The conference focused on FORB future challenges and action to reinforce respective actions, and program, policy undertaking, funding schemes. It also looked into developing new tools that could make Bahrain and the EU stronger allies to uphold Freedom of Religion and Belief - internally, as they all have their challenges, not least in Europe, but also on the global stage. This event was organized in the framework of the annual human rights dialogue between the EU and Bahrain as well as the EU-GCC Enhanced Political Dialogue, Public Diplomacy and Outreach program both aiming at reinforcing mutual understanding and cooperation in several fields. They include co-existence through freedom of religion and belief, a theme that the EU and Bahrain have been consistently promoting for decades. Held under the “Broadening the Tent: Freedom of Religion and Belief’ theme, the event brought together 40 EU and Bahraini experts in this domain and gathered around 500 European and GCC participants from different horizons. Policy and decision makers, academics, civil society representatives, associations from faith/belief-based sectors, and the media participated around a structured dialogue to better understand their respective journeys regarding FORB, how they practically encompass and work with diversity of religions and beliefs and how both societies could cooperate to reinforce the respect of FORB at the regional and global levels. “The fuels of hate, the culture of hate, hate speeches, hate propaganda and religious intolerance will not dry up, we know it and we are not naïve. This is why such conferences are indispensable,” French Ambassador to Bahrain Jérôme Cauchard, said. In his remarks, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of King Hamad Global Centre for Peaceful Coexistence Dr. Shaikh Khalid bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said: “We are pleased to share Bahrain’s history of freedom of religion and belief and we look forward to sharing a brighter future together with the European Union and its Member States”. Betsy Mathieson, Chairperson of This is Bahrain, said: “The outcomes have exceeded all expectations, there is more that unites us than divides us, we look forward to learning more from the EU countries moving forward.” Patrick Simmonet, said: “Our own European history, since the adoption of the UDHR in 1948, which enshrined FORB, has shown that nothing is won forever. There are clusters, currents, in our societies who think that FORB is a luxury that we should not afford, or worse, a burden that weights on our development, our opportunities to seek uniformity, restrict our group, our community to only the people who are like “us”. This is the time for stepping up our cooperation with partners with whom we share the same understanding of the need to promote this principle, locally, regionally and internationally. This conference has been the first step and I am confident that more joint activities will follow in the future”. Other speakers included Dr. Waleed Al Manea, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health; Eamon Gilmore, EU Special Representative for Human Rights; Dr. Arwa Hasan Al Sayed, Chief of the Human Rights Affair Sector, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Abdullah bin Faisal Al Doseri, Bahrain Ambassador to Belgium and the European Union; Jean-Christophe Peaucelle, Advisor for Religious Affairs at the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs; José Ramón Bauza, MEP, Member of the Delegation for relations with the Arab Peninsula, and Shura Council members Hala Ramzi, Dr. Mohammed Al Khozai, and Ali Al Aradi. At the end of the conference, through an inclusive process of dialogue, participants have recommended to organize follow-up high level conferences on an annual basis which will bring together policy and decision makers, academics, experts and civil society representatives. They also proposed to set up a working group of key stakeholders, which will meet more regularly in Bahrain and the EU to keep moving the dialogue forward. The working group will also explore the possibility to develop common funding programs to support EU-Bahrain joint activities promoting and enhancing concretely FORB in the EU, Bahrain, other GCC countries, and on the international stage, including in the area of combatting radicalism in the cyberspace. Participants have unanimously expressed the urgent need to reinforce the implementation of FORB at both regional and global levels.