London: Iman Chairman addresses international conference on the Role of Arts and Culture in Interfaith dialogue and Cultural Diplomacy
Martes, 28 Agosto 2012
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The Iman Foundation & Institute of Cultural Diplomacy (ICD) held a joint international conference in London on 24th August 2012 at the National Liberal Club in London.
The conference explored the role that Arts and Culture can play in Interfaith dialogue and Cultural Diplomacy and had many prominent speakers in attendance including:
Ms Hailey Woldt, Expert on Cultural Diplomacy
H.E. Mr Mauricio Rodriguez, Ambassador of Columbia to the UK
Mr Tony Haynes, Director and Founder, Grand Union Orchestra
The joint conference was the first day of ' A Forum for Young Leaders (Arts and Cultural Diplomacy), which focused on the theme of: "The Unifying Powers: A Blueprint for Advancing Cultural Diplomacy through the Arts."
Ribal Al-Assad, chairman of the Iman Foundation made a speech on "The Role of Arts and Culture in Interfaith dialogue and Cultural Diplomacy". It was very well received by the audience of young leaders and was followed by a comprehensive question and answer session.
The Institute for Cultural Diplomacy is an international, not-for-profit, non-governmental organization with headquarters in Berlin, Germany. The ICD´s ultimate goal is to promote global peace and stability by strengthening and supporting intercultural relations at all levels. Over the past decade the ICD has grown to become one of Europe’s largest independent cultural exchange organizations, hosting programs that facilitate interaction among individuals of all cultural, academic, and professional backgrounds, from across the world.
Ribal Al-Assad made the following speech:
"The Role of Arts and Culture in Interfaith dialogue and Cultural Diplomacy"
Good morning …
… and welcome to the National Liberal Club.
I have been honoured to visit – and speak at – the ICD many times.
And it is particularly appropriate to be together here …
… in a venue established by William Gladstone …
… that has continued to celebrate liberal traditions for over one hundred and fifty years.
Not only that …
… but we are, of course, in London.
Gladstone’s greatest political rival, Benjamin Disraeli called this City “a modern Babylon”.
And nothing has changed.
Three hundred languages are spoken here …
… by communities representing almost every country, ethnicity and religion on earth.
And those people do not just live side-by-side …
… but they are constantly being exposed to each other’s culture.
That sort of exposure and interaction breeds understanding and respect.
And they are emotions that are synonymous with the Iman Foundation, which I chair.
The Iman Foundation was launched 2010 …
… specifically to promote inter-faith and inter-cultural dialogue …
… and to challenge extremism across the world.
Early in 2011, I was at Westminster to launch our campaign to 'Say No to Extremism and Sectarianism' …
… and to expose those who use the name of religion to promote hatred, violence and killing.
The Foundation and it’s work have attracted support from high-profile religious and political leaders from across the globe …
… and we have established an extremely distinguished international advisory board.
But it would be an understatement to say that we have our work cut out!
Our world is polluted by extremism bred by hatred and ignorance.
I am Syrian …
… exiled from my country because my ideas differ from those of the regime.
And I have watched with a sense of profound sadness …
... my country falling into a civil war..
...and being infiltrated by sectarian-fuelled terrorists, arms and and rhetoric from abroad
I have spoken widely about my sincere belief …
… that the only remedy to extremism …
… is pluralism.
And that ours is a mission that will not be accomplished through instruction …
… but through education.
My interest in affairs in and around the Middle East is self-explanatory.
But Iman has taken me across the world.
We have reached out to an extensive and eclectic mix of religious organisations and their leaders …
… gaining support for our work …
… an understanding of their issues …
… and the foundations for future advances across the political, cultural and religious spectrums.
This includes the promotion of moderate voices in all communities …
… a louder pluralist presence in an international news that is all too often dominated by the word and actions of the extremist minority …
… and the constant reminder that we represent an overwhelming majority of people all over the globe.
I have been lucky enough to meet and exchange ideas with fascinating religious leaders …
… including the the late Pope Shenouda of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt …
... the Grand Mufti of Egypt Dr. Ali Goma
..the Former Lebanese Patriarch Sfeir
...the Lebanese Patriarch Bshara Al Raii
… and the Mufti of Lebanon in Beirut.
… the President of the Jewish Community in Berlin …
… the leaders of the Protestant Church in Germany …
… the Head Monk of the Yonghegong Lama Temple in Beijing …
I list these names to help illustrate the scope of our work …
… and, more importantly, to illustrate the appetite of this disparate group of people for inter-faith dialogue.
With your own focus on the arts …
… it will not surprise you that when I am at these meetings …
… carried-out in contrasting continents and cultures …
… a common bond is often found in discussions about music, art and sport.
It will not surprise you in this context, that I believe passionately in freedom of choice …
… in matters of faith …
… culture …
… and politics.
And there can be no doubt that the arts can be an incredibly powerful catalyst in facilitating dialogue and change for the better.
I am no artist, and I will leave the precise definition of what constitutes art and culture …
… to those of you much better qualified than I.
However, I am a huge believer in the role of cultural diplomacy …
… in facilitating the exchange of ideas, values, traditions and other aspects of culture or identity …
… across nations, cultures and religions.
Only a couple of miles to our East …
… It was been wonderful to see the RED Gallery in Shoreditch recently bringing over 200 young professionals from London’s diverse communities together for an evening of art, music, food and live painting.
Central to the exhibition were three multi-faith artistic collaborations, created by Muslim, Christian and Jewish artists …
… to address questions of communal relations and social change.
Earlier this year, the British Museum in Bloomsbury opened the Muslim Hajj …
… giving non-Muslims a glimpse into the world of pilgrimage.
Its director proudly explained that:
"This exhibition is for everybody, Muslims and non-Muslims, everyone who wants to know more about this extraordinary phenomenon, which is one of the great religious manifestations of the world."
Attendance was huge …
… and eclectic.
The point of these examples is to not simply to illustrate London’s cultural diversity and exchange …
… but to emphasise one of the core values behind IMAN and the ICD:
We are not looking for homogeneity across the world …
… but respect, understanding and co-operation …
… in accepting the enduring qualities of different cultures and faiths.
As events in Syria demonstrate on a daily basis …
… this is a world where political diplomacy is so often left wanting.
This is often due to the weight of historical baggage …
… and the strategic implications of change.
Art, music, film, literature and sport have no such baggage.
They can play a great role in inter-faith dialogue.
And they do.
In some cases they have been directly responsible for accelerating change.
The power of culture was demonstrated in Eastern Europe before the fall of the Iron Curtain
… when Western Cinema and Rock’n’roll played their part in bringing down communism …
… in a way that diplomatic talks never could.
The Scorpion's number one hit "Winds of Change" captured the hope felt by Germans following the fall of the Berlin Wall with its lyrics written in Moscow:
In South Africa, the music of civil rights’ activist Miriam Makeba spread understanding of the apartheid regime across the world …
… whilst the film ‘Searching for Sugar Man’ illustrates the role of an American Latino singer Rodriguez …
… whose illegally imported songs helped inspire opposition to PW Botha’s regime amongst the young white middle classes.
Western culture undoubtedly acted as a catalyst in bringing about change in Eastern Europe and South Africa.
But there are, of course, many more geo-political problems that remain …
… where the diplomats continue to fail.
Much of the violence that has been evident in the Middle East since the Arab Spring …
… has been motivated by sectarianism and bigotry.
These are fundamental issues that require education and interaction between people who do not sit together at the negotiating table.
This is where exposure to art and culture can make a real difference.
The ‘West-Eastern Divan Orchestra’ is an uplifting example.
Founded by the Argentine-Israeli conductor Daniel Barenboim and the late Palestinian-American academic Edward Said …
… it has gathered musicians from Egypt, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Spain.
Its aim is to promote understanding between Israelis and Palestinians …
… and to pave the way for a peaceful and fair solution of the Arab-Israeli conflict.
Barenboim is a pragmatist.
He has explained that “The Divan has very flatteringly been described as a project for peace. It isn't. It's not going to bring peace, whether you play well or not so well. The Divan was conceived as a project against ignorance.”
But he does himself a disservice.
Because it is ignorance that constantly blocks the chances of a peaceful political solution.
He has created a forum for Arabs and Jews to watch their contemporaries travelling, working and playing together …
… which sets an example for others to follow.
This religious and cultural appreciation and understanding was also evident in the relationship between the British Museum and the National Museum of Iran two years ago …
… at a time when its politicians were drafting motions regarding the severing of diplomatic ties … when the British Museum lent the Cyrus Cylinder to an exhibition in Tehran …
… to reciprocate the loans made to the Forgotten Empire and Shah Abbas exhibitions.
These examples have focused on the Middle East …
… but there is much evidence of burgeoning inter-faith cultural diplomacy across the world.
Ten years ago in Philadelphia …
… Cathleen Cohen began to use poetry and the arts to open-up a dialogue called "We the Poets" between local Muslim and Christian communities.
More recently in Kentucky, a State with a history of growing Islamophobia ever since 9/11 … … Iranian-born artist Haydar Hatemi was also inspired to develop an inter-faith focus through poetry.
He quoted Masnavi …
… a 13th century Sufi poem by Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi.
Its message is timeless and sums up the very essence of what we are trying to achieve:
“I hold to no religion or creed, am neither Eastern nor Western, Muslim or infidel, Zoroastrian, Christian, Jew or Gentile.
I come from neither the land nor sea …
… am not related to those above or below …
… was not born nearby or far away …
… do not live either in Paradise or on this Earth …
… claim descent not from Adam and Eve or the Angels above.
I transcend body and soul.
My home is beyond place and name.
It is with the Beloved, in a space beyond space.
I embrace all and am part of all.”
Less mystical …
… but equally relevant …
… has been the role of Jazz …
… not only in the Civil Rights movement …
… but in the liberalisation of cultures around the globe.
Meanwhile, the United Nations ‘Art for Peace’ competition encourages children across the globe to draw a world with no weapons, war or fear …
… whilst the Art of Peace Foundation …
… is dedicated to achieving the Dalai Lama’s vision of cultivating inner peace to ensure that our actions in the world generate happiness and peace in others.
And cultural influence runs well past music and art.
Not least in architecture.
Buildings have inspired generations of inter-faith activity.
The Pyramids in Egypt are the most obvious example …
… but religious integration is more pronounced in the Alhambra's Islamic palace in Spain …
… built for the last Muslim Emirs …
… then inhabited by the Reyes Catholics …
… before being rediscovered in the 19th century by European scholars and travellers.
It now attracts tourists of all faiths …
… and is protected by UNESCO …
… with symbolic dualism apparent every time you walk from one room into another.
Tolerance and mutual interest that will flourish if the Iman Foundation and ICD continue our good work.
We are fundamentally aligned.
I could not be more in agreement with any of your five guiding principles …
… from Respect and Recognition of Cultural Diversity & Heritage …
… to the Protection of International Human Rights.
We must continue to use art and culture to fight extremism and sectarianism …
… by encouraging dialogue …
… promoting education …
… and championing empathy and exchange.
The London Olympics illustrated the potential of cultural interaction.
David Cameron and Vladimir Putin sat together watching Judo.
Amir Khan, the British Muslim boxer, who won a silver medal winner in Athens …
… spoke to millions about boxing on television …
… and hundreds of thousands of non-Muslim followers read his tweets …
… including a recent explanation of the term ‘Inshallah’.
The internet can be used for many purposes …
… but it is a unique tool for lovers of art and culture to spread their message.
It means that positive messages and ideas discussed at forums like this can be digested in every country on the planet.
As importantly, it is a tool of the young.
It is so exciting for two such liberal and progressive institutions as the Iman Foundation and the ICD to be sharing this event with so many young people.
The future is in our hands …
… and whether it is through politics, art or culture …
… I know we are all committed to a more peaceful and inclusive future.
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