The Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions is a unique interfaith forum, convened every three years in Astana at the initiative of President Nursultan Nazarbayev. For 15 years, this landmark forum has played an important role in the rapprochement of cultures and civilizations, in searching for answers to the key challenges of our time. “Religious Leaders for a Safe World” was the main topic of the Sixth Congress, which was held October 10-11, 2018 in the capital of Kazakhstan.
Ramesh Jaura, Director-General and Editor-in-Chief of the International Press Syndicate Group and its flagship news agency IDN-InDepthNews, and Katsuhiro Asagiri, Multimedia Director, travelled to Astana to provide a glimpse of the Congress, admittedly a unique event of its kind.
The following are articles and videos the IDN-INPS team produced by way of throwing open a window on the Astana conference.
Leaders of World and Traditional Religions Gather in Astana for Inclusive Dialogue by Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, is Chairman of the Senate of the Parliament of Kazakhstan and Head of the Secretariat of the Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions.
Interview with Yerzhan Ashikbayev, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Video)
Faith Communities Play A Vital Role in Ensuring Human Security by Hirotsugu Terasaki, Vice President, Director General of International Bureau, Peace and Global Issues, United Nations Liaison Offices, Soka Gakkai.
Presentation by Hirotsugu Terasaki (Video)
Creating A World Where We All Feel Secure by Samir Somaiya, President of the Institute on the study of Indology and inter-religious dialogue ‘Somaiya Vidyavihar’.
Interview with Samir Somaiya (Video)
World Religious Leaders’ Astana Congress Pledges ‘Unity in Diversity’: At a critical point in time when religious tolerance is being consigned to oblivion, an international conference has appealed “to all people of faith and goodwill” to unite, and called for “ensuring peace and harmony on our planet”.
Interview with Hamba Lama Choyzhilzhavyn Dambazhav – The Head of the monastery “Dashichoylin”, the Vice-president of the World Federation of Buddhists (Mongolia) (Video)
Presentation by Joshua Lincoln, Secretary-General of the Baha’i International Community (Video)
‘Peace Concert’ Presents a Feast of Harmony (Video)
Kazakhstan Sets the Ball Rolling for the Landmark Interfaith Congress in Astana
Highlights of the Congress captured in a Video.
[IDN-INPS – 21 October 2018]
