9th Annual Doha Conference on Interfaith Dialogue opens Monday, 24 October 2011 13:50

US civil right activist Reverend Jesse Jackson attends the opening session of the 9th Doha Conference of Inter-faith Dialogue in the Qatari capital on October 24, 2011.
AFP PHOTO/KARIM JAAFAR

DOHA: HE the Minister of Justice, Hassan Bin Abdullah Al Ghanem opened Monday morning at Sheraton Doha the 9th Annual Doha Conference on Interfaith Dialogue under the theme "Social Media and the Interfaith Dialogue .. A Vision of the Future".

Al Ghanem said that social media has both negative and positive aspects. Societies are required to develop the positive aspects and regulate them, and to minimize the impact of the other aspects. He recalled that if such means weren't capable of cherishing dialogue and acknowledging the existence of others they could be transformed into means of hatred and racism as was the case in some countries.

The minister called for using information technology in promoting dialogue and wondered whether there should be a code of conduct to prevent any insults to sanctuaries or religions. Such issues will be tackled at the conference, he noted.

The minister noted in an opening speech that the belief in the oneness of God is the basis upon which the divine religions are built and hence, it is incumbent upon all to maintain a relationship of mutual respect for the good of humanity, to which all belong.

Al Ghanem said that the Qatari people, under the leadership of HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani believe in those noble values. "By organizing the previous eight conferences we have confirmed that we look at the Interfaith dialogue as a means for communication and exploring the other in order to reach sublime objectives that improve the status of the human being and respect his dignity, not at the futile dialogue which only leads to more dissension and differences".

Dialogue among the followers of the divine religions is practical and real, aiming at coexistence of peoples in dignity, equality, peace and security, he said.