ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Interfaith and Peace Council organised a roundtable discussion for the promotion of interfaith and intra-faith dialogue and understanding Wednesday. The event was supported by the Delegation of the European Union to Pakistan.

Religious leaders from all Islamic Sects and religious minorities in Pakistan, faith-based organizations, civil society organizations, human rights and legal professionals as well as academics participated in the roundtable.

The discussion aimed to seek common ground between participants in order to promote religious harmony and tolerance. Following the one-day discussion, participants committed to continue working together.

They vowed to work for all constitutional rights to be extended to all citizens of Pakistan irrespective of religion, creed, colour, and race. The participants vowed to ensure that the message of inclusion and inter- and intra-faith harmony will be spread and amplified from the pulpits, places of worship of all religions and the platforms of other fora.

The closing session took place in presence of the Ambassadors and diplomats of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Italy , the Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland, the United Kingdom as well as France, Germany, Hungary, Romania and Spain . While addressing the closing session, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Allama Dr Peer Noor-ul-Haq Qadri, referred to the 'Message of Pakistan', which guarantees the protection of the non-Muslim population of the country, all civil rights and the freedom of worship and faith, and which declares suicide attacks in the name of religion as contrary to the spirit of Islam.

The participants extended appreciations to the efforts to the convenors, H.E. Androulla Kaminara, Ambassador of the European Union, and Maulana Syed Muhammad Abdul Khabir Azad, Chairman of the Interfaith Council for Peace and Harmony Pakistan, for their tireless efforts in convening the event.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020