Call for Muslim youth to tackle intolerance and discrimination

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

International Peace Institute, Middle East and North Africa (IPI MENA) Director Nejib Friji has called for greater preventive approaches and measures to build community resilience to intolerance, religious discrimination and hate speech.

During a webinar hosted by the Islamic Cooperation Youth Forum (ICYF), an international organisation affiliated to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and moderated by ICYF Amel Ouchenene, Friji stressed the importance of engaging in intergenerational dialogue with the youth on such issues as the key stakeholders of our collective future.

More than 100 youth from 52 countries took part at the ICYF’s Youth Council of Foreign Ministers 2020 Virtual Summit’s fourth session, entitled “Islamic Committee for Economic, Cultural & Social Affairs: Islamophobia, Minorities Rights, Social Advocacy”.

“Instead of reactive strategies, it is our responsibility to support proactive preventive measures for a future that encompasses tolerance, sustainability and peace,” Friji stressed.

He emphasised the role of education in equipping the youth with the skills and values needed to foster a sense of global citizenship, universal principles of responsibility, accountability and cultural understanding to counter negative misconceptions and combat prejudices and hate speech.