The activities of the Forum of Organizations from Local to Global were concluded, which was hosted by the Ministry of Culture for two days as part of the Darb Al Saai activities, under the slogan “Our Unity is the Source of Our Strength”.
On the second and final day of the forum, the participants affirmed that the State of Qatar succeeded in achieving the equation emphasized by international organizations, which is promoting dialogue and understanding and the right to cultural diversity while preserving the cultural specificity of each country, stressing that the State of Qatar was able to express its Gulf and Arab culture and identity, which earned it the respect of the world.
His Excellency Dr. Ibrahim bin Saleh Al Nuaimi, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Doha International Center for Interfaith Dialogue and Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, discussed in his intervention the mechanisms of cooperation and bridging between cultures to achieve understanding and dialogue and highlight the efforts made in the field of interfaith dialogue, pointing to the great efforts made by the Center in promoting communication which aims to be a platform to support coexistence and understanding between peoples.
He said that the State of Qatar enjoys distinguished relations between the citizen and the resident, and that this is one of the sources of our strength, pointing out that understanding and communication between the components of society is very important, in order to strengthen society, and he cited many examples that occurred in recent years, which reflected the existence of strong cohesion among all the people of Qatar, which strengthened the unity and strength of the state internally and externally, pointing to the center’s contribution and role in this regard.
He also emphasized the openness of the center internationally and that it helps those who wish to enhance such community cohesion, who have challenges, as much as possible, through thought and communication with religious leaders to build partnerships and relationships that in turn contribute to building communication networks to solve any problems or challenges they may face, pointing out at the same time to the center’s efforts locally and internationally, the most important conferences it organized, as well as the many publications that the center contributed to achieving these goals, including the “Religions” magazine, which is published twice a year, in addition to a monthly message, and other publications, in addition to its presence on various digital platforms, in addition to issuing “posts.” Daily in Arabic, English, French, Spanish and German, dealing with the importance of sport and its relationship to religions, and how religions encourage sport, and that it is the main component since ancient times, citing various religious sayings.
Dr. Murad Mahmoudi, the Secretary of the Executive Council and the General Conference, and the acting Director of the Cultural Department in ALECSO, spoke about the organization’s mechanisms to bridge differences and turn them into areas of strength, indicating that it stems from three things that start with the letter “T”, communication, then, acquaintance, to reach consensus.
He said that the EXO is working to communicate with the organizations and institutions, and that is through dialogue, understanding and exchanging knowledge, because meeting and communication makes us get to know the common denominators.
He added by saying that the organization chose the mechanism of networking with the institutions of society so that it would not be elitist, but would be for all children, youth and women.
He said that when knowledge is available, it enhances communication, but while preserving cultural specificity, which is what the State of Qatar succeeded in and culminated in by hosting the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, as it was able to translate the real goals of coexistence and achieved the requirements of the global summit that was held in Mexico recently, which is to live in peace with each other and respecting cultural specificities. Therefore, diversity means that we integrate with our different colors, races and tongues, stressing that the Qatari model is an Arab and international model in achieving coexistence and international understanding.
For his part, Dr. Saad Mohammed Al-Zoghaibi, the Director of the Department of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities at the General Secretariat of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf said that the State of Qatar has succeeded in bringing together international organizations in one forum, complementing its success in promoting cooperation and coexistence at the international level.
He said that the cultural strategy of the GCC countries has given the Gulf cultural identity great attention and unprecedented openness to the international community, by promoting joint representation in international cultural forums and events, building and activating strategic partnerships with countries, international institutions and cultural organizations, and benefiting from their experiences in developing the cultural sector in the GCC countries. Many cultural memorandums of understanding were signed with many brotherly and friendly countries, as well as international organizations.
He said that Gulf cooperation serves the lofty goals of the GCC states, which makes it imperative for us to strengthen and preserve this identity, by supporting, protecting and circulating the Arabic language as a language of communication and creativity and encouraging the cultural product associated with the cultural identity of the GCC countries, as well as promoting scientific research and writing to study and analyze the concept of cultural identity and its tangible and intangible elements, preserving cultural heritage and exchanging experiences in this regard, while modernizing the cultural identity of the GCC countries within the framework of the process of cultural development of society by paying attention to studying the impact of contemporary global transformations on the various aspects of life in general and on the cultural identity of the Gulf societies and providing appropriate perceptions to keep pace with these changes and deal with them appropriately, with an emphasis on upholding the values of citizenship and consolidating its pillars.
His Excellency Ambassador Khaled Fateh Al-Rahman, the Director of the Center for Civilizational Dialogue at ISESCO, spoke about the role of centers specialized in civilized dialogue in achieving bridges of understanding, saying, “Centers for civilized dialogue are promoted all over the world through one mission, which is to enhance the utterance of civilization in terms of the content of dialogue, pointing to the existence of dialogue tools to work on strengthening the dialogue itself and its mechanisms and tools, in addition to strengthening the civilized role in its complex issues that are consistent with the issue of peaceful coexistence between people, which makes it necessary for people to understand others and their culture, and to play a joint role in this. understanding.
He added that talking about the roles of dialogue centers requires an understanding of the nature of these centers, as there are independent centers on their own that perform this task with complete independence, and there are centers that are within larger systems, such as the Center for Civilizational Dialogue, which is within the Organization of the Islamic World for Education, Science and Culture.
He said that: Some may think that the lack of independence may affect the performance of the centers that are within the institutions, but, sometimes this may be an advantage that gives these centers the ability to integrate with other departments that they benefit from in terms of resources, in terms of networking issues, and in terms of internal integration, and confirmed that, in the operative roles, there are visionary roles where the citizen becomes enlightened with the treasures of his civilization, for example, and enlightening roles, which is in line with the degree of foresight, because all dialogue centers have a forward-looking mission, as well as measures that are consistent with resources.
Mrs. Jawda Mansour from the UNESCO Office for the Gulf States and Yemen in Doha addressed the definition of the cultural strategy of UNESCO in the GCC countries, explaining that UNESCO harnesses all its capabilities and efforts to develop educational tools, teaching aids and capacity-building in order to achieve global citizenship away from all forms of discrimination, hatred and intolerance, and takes these efforts take into account and the inadequacy of the political and economic measures of governments to secure permanent and practical support for peoples, indicating the organization’s belief that peace is based on dialogue among civilizations, cultures and peoples on the basis of mutual understanding.
She said that: In line with the UNESCO’s global priorities, the UNESCO Office for the Gulf States and Yemen sets a local action program in consultation with member states, stressing that UNESCO has a firm conviction that development cannot be sustainable without a strong cultural component; where culture is one of the main drivers of development, and individuals and peoples have a fundamental right to participate in and enjoy it.
She added that the UNESCO office in Doha assists the Gulf states and Yemen in promoting and implementing UNESCO cultural conventions and recommendations by supporting relevant policies, capacity building, cooperation, communication and developing partnerships.
She continued by saying that the UNESCO Office for the Gulf States and Yemen is working to increase support for the development of the capacities of all stakeholders in order to inventory, protect and preserve the intangible cultural heritage in a practical and effective manner in the countries of the region that contribute to the transfer of living heritage to the younger generation, affirming UNESCO’s commitment to assisting the Gulf countries and Yemen in designing policies and measures and cultural programs aimed at supporting the creation, production, distribution and dissemination of cultural goods and services; and access to the cultural and creative industries, in particular through the implementation of the 2005 Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions and the 1980 Recommendation on the Status of the Artist. She added that: I do not have time to talk about our various projects in Yemen, which are also within the scope of work of the UNESCO office in Doha, but our partners from the Arab Gulf countries should be commended for supporting our projects in Yemen.
Mrs. Maryam Yassin Al-Hammadi, the Director of the Department of Culture and Arts, said in press statements following the conclusion of the forum.
The slogan of the National Day of the State 2022 “Our unity is the source of our strength” confirms that with concerted efforts, the best work is always achieved, and that the discussions that took place during the forum reflected the unity of the directions and strategies in force, which allows for there to be many areas of convergence that can define the area of goals, especially the common areas, foremost of which is the promotion of identity, as well as the promotion of civilized communication, whether at the level of interfaith or cultural dialogue through various initiatives.
She added by saying that according to the discussions that took place during the forum, it was agreed on some axes that will be dealt with jointly through the referred organizations, which reflects the unification of efforts and common positions, foremost of which is the start of a joint project for the Arabic language, because of the great interest it represents at the local level, and also at the Arab level, especially since the League of Arab States had previously launched a day for the Arabic language.
She said: The discussions reflected a desire to hold this forum annually, to focus in the coming times on one of the topics, in a way that enhances the unification of points of view, to develop a common strategy that achieves these goals, so that there is a faster achievement for all.