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FONDAZIONE MEDITERRANEO JOINS THE 3° FORUM ABOUT INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE

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Baku  ||  18 May 2015
Iniziative (EN) - Maison de la Paix (EN)

“Culture and sustainable development” as tools to contrast violence and wars which are spreading phenomenons.This is the goal of Fondazione Mediterraneo, which for 25 years is engaged in the promotion of intercultural dialogue and peace. The Fondazione joined the Italian delegation – among its exponents were Pl. Min Enrico Granara, Italian Ambassador in Baku Giampaolo Cutillo, MIBAC General Secretary Emilio Cabasino – in the Third Edition of the Forum for intercultural dialogue which gathered in the Azeri capital of Baku high profile exponents during the 18/19 May 2015. Among the sponsor of the event, of which the first edition was held in 2008, we can mention UNESCO, United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, World Tourism Organization and the Council of Europe: the event got the patronage of the President of Azerbaijan. During this meeting the reached goal had been faced as well as strategies to increase the dialogue between cultures and nations. In the opening speech the president Ilham Aliyev highlighted the importance of Azerbaijan as an example of Caucasian cultural melting pot in which ethnic and religious coexistence are an important topic of discussion. “Exponents from more than 100 countries. It is so important that so many people gathered here to share their ideas. Today this world is plenty of territories in war. Too much violence. Too many bloody conflicts. Our Country is a solid island in the region”, affirmed the President Aliyev. The most important topics faced were security issue and the struggle to all forms of extremism. As the French senator Nathalie Goulet pointed out important steps has been taken on these issues. “It is an important result to see gathered at the same table rabbi, exponents of Gulf Country, coming from countries in war which don’t speak one with the other. We need better education for a brighter future. We need to share common values. And these values need to be acted. It is time to stop with theory. I’m aware it is long and difficult process”, declared Goulet. The world is not safe. There is so much violence compared to 10 years ago”.
Another issue to be discussed is the problem of how contrast the Nigerian Islamic State in Western Africa. Without taking in account the advance of integralist of ISIL. “In my country Boko Haram represents a little group of terrorist and fanatical Muslims. The other Muslims in Nigeria are for the peace between populations. There will be also this division until when the divisions between different religions will come to an end. We cannot think to find resolution everywhere. We have the same problems also with Christians, we are not that close” as the Archbishop of Abuja, John Onaiyekan pointed out. The Forum for intercultural dialogue is a biennial event organized in collaboration with UNESCO. And the general director Irina Bokova – which recently visited Fondazione Mediterraneo – showed which strategies can be used in order to avoid worse situations: “The situation is day by day more problematic, the number of conflicts is increasing.” We are becoming day by day more intolerant. We don’t pay attention to culture, our cultural heritage and diversity”. We don’t pay attention to education programs. We need to focus about the contents of school books. We need to know our culture and that one of other populations.”
“We need dialogue, tolerance and competence”. This is the message launched by the Forum of Baku by the president Michele Capasso which highlighted the role of Italy – with its organs which since years are working about dialogue and solidarity : “We need to be able to share differences, we need to learn to live together without killing ourselves. This is our hope, this is the involvement of Italy: a big Country, natural step of Europe in the Mediterranean, which in our recent history showed the right characteristics , giving value to the examples of good practice in order to let us live together. Diversity and mutual comprehension between nations and populations are the pillars to build a peace future.”

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