RELIGIOUS LEADERS SHOULD LEAD IN ADVOCATING PEACE AND UNITY

PETALING JAYA, May 7 (Bernama) -- People of religion are the best group to bring forth values of peace into humanity in the present world today, said the Chairman of the Christian Federation of Malaysia, Cor Episcopa Philip Thomas. 

He said as leaders of religion they have to see the value of peace, as peace cannot only be based on the expression of a construct based on agreements alone. 

“One of the cardinal expressions of peace should be the love of coexistence, and many of the values of the present world today emerge from a system of a negative form of education,” he said in his keynote address at the International Conference Of Religious Leaders 2024 today. 

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Phillip said that young children today should be taught a concise regulated form of peace in their education so that the expression of peace is not alien to them, as it will be part of their formation and expression as they grow up. 

“Every effort of building bridges is an expression that is seen in our own country Malaysia to the various expression. Not only by the non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and the religious communities but also by the government,” he said 

Philip said that the Malaysian government through many of its programmes and various governmental departments has tried to converge into an expression where there would be peace, unity and coexistence throughout the country. 

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“All these efforts tell us that the dignity of humankind is always challenged by the forces of evil, negativity and oppression which always try to divide what is united,” he said.

He also emphasised that one of the ways to restore unity is by working towards redeeming the dignity of humankind. 

“To see this dignity among the poor, in the rich, in the marginalised, in the refugees and all those who go through various kinds of oppression. 

“Nowadays we have been reduced to thinking that the value of a human being is a commodity, and we should never fall for that,” he said, adding that the essence of humankind is unity, oneness and love. 

Meanwhile, the Cambodian Minister in Charge Of Special Missions-Islamic Affairs, Okhna Datuk Hassan Othsman said that although in Cambodia, Muslims are considered a minority, they still play a large role, especially in the leadership sectors of the Cambodian government. 

In fact, Hassan said there are also Muslims in the Cambodian Senate, in the Parliament and in the Cabinet.

“The government gives us the same opportunity as everyone, even in the Muslim-majority provinces in Cambodia, Muslims are given leadership roles as district representatives or town governors,” he said in his keynote address.

“We Malays (in Cambodia) are fully Cambodians, we do not see race and religion as we live together in harmony and what is important to us is the national interest of Cambodia and its security,” he added.

The International Conference Of Religious Leaders 2024 kicked off at Sunway Resort Hotel, Petaling Jaya, this morning, drawing approximately 2,000 religious and intellectual figures from 57 countries and regarded as as the most significant international conference of religious leaders hosted by the Asian continent. 

The event is officiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in the presence of the Muslim World League's (MWL) Secretary-General and Chairman of the Organisation of Muslim Scholars, Sheikh Dr Mohammed Abdulkarim Al-Issa.

-- BERNAMA