Bahrain: Peace advocates should steer youth in the region away from extremism and wrong interpretation of religious texts, said activists.
This can be done by a revamp of the education curriculum, fostering reading habits in children and
promoting a culture of peace in
societies.
This was the outcome of a Peace Readers Forum organised by the International Peace Institute, Middle East and North Africa (IPI, Mena) at its office in Harbour House,
Bahrain Financial Harbour.
“Peace education and culture are the key right now and we need to redesign our approach in the Arab world as we have the tools to change the mindsets,” said IPI, Mena
director Nejib Friji.
“We are in a constant fight to build better societies in the region and need to stand up against crises whether in Iraq, Syria or elsewhere to promote peace.”
The event yesterday was attended by diplomats, senior government officials, scholars and religious
leaders.
National Evangelical Church chairman Reverend Hani Aziz called for more public libraries in Bahrain, including at the airport, to encourage people to read.
Bahrain resident Adam Jade Kadia, aged nine, delivered a message from the UK via Skype about his first book Hakeem the Adventurer and his mission to have a generation of peace-makers.
The forum was co-chaired by Mohamed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for World Peace (MRAWP), board of trustees vice-chairman Sultan Buti bin Mejren Al Marri who spoke about the UAE’s efforts to promote peace education.
MRAWP was set up in 2011 to highlight Islam’s teachings of peace as a doctrine that promotes
harmony, tolerance and moderation.
“The group of terrorists and extremists are in a minority, with the rest wanting peace,” said Mr Al Marri.
“What we are seeing now is terrorism versus struggle for peace and we need to counter the narratives of extremism by encouraging youth to read and understand religious and other texts.”
He said the UAE declared 2016 as the Year of Reading and MRAWP is targeting other GCC countries to spread the message of producing a reading generation to turn the region into a hub of culture and knowledge content for a “new generation of scientists, intellectuals and innovators”.
MRAWP has partnered with IPI, Mena to launch the first Peace Readers Forum Festival which opens
at City Centre Bahrain at 11am today and continues until Sunday.
Hundreds of books will be available electronically at the three-day festival for visitors to download to their smartphones or other digital platforms.
The “Pulpits of Peace Readers” relies on mobile electronic platforms as visitors will be able to select and read a book.
MRAWP Peace Library containing over 50 million books aims at providing access to the public by the means of electronic devices.
Royal Court special envoy Sameera Rajab, during the question and answer session, stressed the need to deal with the core issue of preventing young minds from being hijacked by extremism, deal with drug addiction among youth and help them become better citizens.
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