HH the Emir of Qatar Addresses the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC)

Vienna, February 27 (QNA) - HH the Emir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani on Wednesday participated in the 5th Global Forum of The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) currently underway in Vienna. Addressing the opening session of the forum, HH the Emir said the severe divisions, tensions and conflicts sweeping the world give the forum great significance, noting that these political and ideological divisions require continuous efforts in order to be eliminated and to spread the values of understanding and coexistence. "There is no doubt that dispute and conflict are signs of power politics and domination throughout history, and will remain so, but the question faced by the international community is about the possibility of imposing dialogue and negotiation as a basis for conflict resolution, and the quest for the commonalities that constitute concerns and challenges for the whole humanity, as well as in coping with those who dress conflicts and disputes in the mantle of civilizations, as if we encounter a clash of civilizations," HH the Emir noted. HH the Emir referred to the necessity to set up "a global human society based on commonality, and respects the peculiarities and the nature of cultures and religions," adding that in this society, international law prevails over everyone, and double standards and selectivity are absent. "It is a must to strive towards finding just solutions to global problems through genuine respect for the values, norms and principles instilled into the hearts and minds of humanity and which promote constructive cooperation, and achieve security, peace, prosperity and sustainable and equitable development for all nations and peoples." HH the Emir regretted that violence still prevails in many parts of the world although the ultimate goal of everyone is to achieve peace. "The acts of violence and gross violations of human rights occurring to the two peoples of Syria and Palestine constitute a disgrace to humanity, and the international community should bear its responsibilities by standing up to address these violations and to back the Syrian and Palestinian peoples to attain their legitimate rights." Elaborating HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani said, "Still there are major powers in the world that adopt an unfair attitude preventing the resolution of the last colonial issue in history, the Palestinian cause, which is exacerbating and constituting a constant source of tension in our region, and it also constitutes a source for people to believe that racism is still prevalent in the international community, and to make them skeptical about the fairness in implementing the international law". "Recently we also have witnessed a supportive attitude by central countries of the genocide committed by a regime that lacks legitimacy in Syria, while other countries only condemning that verbally," HH the Emir noted. HH the Emir pointed to recent "manifestations of misunderstanding about Islam and the Islamic civilization," noting that Muslims in several parts of the globe are suffering from marginalization, discrimination and hatred. "These manifestations and others emphasize the urgent need for the Alliance of Civilizations initiative to build prospects of cooperation between various nations and peoples, and address tensions and conflicts and eliminate everything that might further widen the gap between the nations," HH the Emir said, while addressing the opening session of the 5th Global Forum of The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations. HH the Emir noted that the myth of a clash of civilizations is anchored down by "the complexities of striking a balance between the freedom of expression and respect and protection of the rights, sanctities, beliefs and feelings of others, and the failure to criminalize racist practices," which resulted in the rooting down of hate language and the sparking of conflicts. HH Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani stressed that understanding and respecting other cultures and beliefs and the abandonment of extremism and hatred is the only way to put an end to racism- and extremism-based violence and terrorism. "The growing responsibility of media in portraying the right image of the other while avoiding preconceptions and stereotyping others, and looking at factual things to judge accordingly, make the success of the dialogue among civilizations depend largely on the availability of this level of rationality and impartiality in media that should take into consideration that they have a mission and a humanitarian responsibility," HH the Emir said. HH added that even under the restrictions of market laws, media's mission should go beyond excitement and securing high viewership rates, warning that writers and journalists might be carrying preconceived notions as a result of their own upbringing and nurture. "Freedom of expression is vital but not enough, and must be coupled with responsibility. I am talking here about the ethical and humanitarian responsibility, and not the political," HH the Emir of Qatar told the UNAOC. "Therefore, we underline the importance of consolidating the effort to correct fallacies and address all destructive trends that promote the spread of hatred, extremism and violence and block the prospects of dialogue and alliance among civilizations," HH the Emir said in concluding his remarks. HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser attended the session, along with a number of Their Excellencies members of the official accompanying delegation. Attending the session too were Austrian President Heinz Fischer, Romanian President Traian Basescu, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and a number of dignitaries. (QNA)