Kerala: The Shaikh Zayed International Peace Conference began on Saturday in Kerala under the title Renaissance of the World Through Peace, which will be held as part of the Sunni Markaz 37th Anniversary Conference 2014 in Calicut, Kerala, India.
The conference comes at a time of exceptional circumstances witnessed by the world, with many countries witnessing civil disorder, wars and ethnic and sectarian conflicts, which require cooperation to achieve stability and security of their communities.
The opening was attended by Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy, Shaikh Abu Bakr Ahmad, Head of the Sunni Cultural Centre University, Saeed Mohammad Al Muhairi, Acting Charge d’ Affaires at the UAE Embassy in New Delhi, and Mohammad Hajji Al Khouri, Director-General of Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation, along with a number of ambassadors accredited to India, members of parliament and businessmen from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
The one-day conference witnessed the attendance of more than 1,000 key political, cultural and social figures, intellectuals, academics and officials from a number of Arab and Islamic countries.
Speaking at the opening session, Al Muhairi expressed delight at participating in the work of the Shaikh Zayed International Peace Conference.
He added that the significant contributions made by the late Sheikh Zayed in the fields of science, knowledge and development will be an approach and a guide to the people of the United Arab Emirates.
In his concluding remarks, Al Muhairi expressed thanks and appreciation to the Government and people of India and university members and all attendees.
In his speech, Abu Bakr Ahmad said, “The late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan was focused on the development and building of human resources and called to deepen the values of tolerance and dialogue in the face of confrontation and conflict in the name of religion.
“In this context, we sought through this conference to work on consolidating the thoughts of Shaikh Zayed and his calls to boost world peace and coexistence between peoples of the world, noting the Indian experience in the peaceful coexistence of different religions and denominations.”
He also commended the support of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, while hailing the efforts of Rulers of the Emirates and expressing his appreciation for their humanitarian and charitable stances.
