Abu Dhabi will host the sixth annual assembly of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies, under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, from 9th to 11th December, 2019.

The meeting will be held under the title, "The Role of Religions in Promoting Tolerance: From Possibility to Necessity," with the participation of 45 faith leaders and advocates of tolerance, compassion and peace around the world, along with representatives of the United Nations, UN, decision-makers and influential figures from international civil society organisations and non-profit organisations.

During the meeting, the forum will launch the "Alliance of Virtue Charter " and it is expected to provide a platform for exchanging ideas among its participants, highlighting their common values, and reinforcing human fraternity.

Shaikh Abdullah bin Bayyah, President of the Forum, said, "The sixth assembly will take place in light of our central vision of peace and build on what was discussed during the previous meetings, as part of a strategy to promote peace and tolerance."

He added that the forum’s participants have assessed the risks associated with current trends that aim to distort the image of Islam, and the Marrakesh Declaration 2016 called for the establishment of a legal document defending the rights of religious minorities in the Islamic world, based on the objectives of the Medinah Document that was established as the original model of citizenship as called for by Islamic doctrine, which respects the rights of minorities.

He also stressed that the meeting will aim to achieve an intellectual change of perspective that considers tolerance a mere possibility among many possibilities under the framework of religion, which must be made a binding and an ethical duty.

The forum issued the Marrakesh Declaration in 2016 to protect the rights of religious minorities, and based on this declaration, the American Peace Convoy was launched in 2017, which presented a successful model of dialogue for overcoming religious debates, to encourage communication and cooperation based on common values. The convoy also held the "Washington Conference" and the "Abu Dhabi Conference" in 2018.

The forum aims to continue these efforts, and in recognition of the UAE’s declaration of the Year of Tolerance 2019, it has promoted cultural dialogue to draft a new and more generous concept of tolerance.

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