I amsterdam - Amsterdam hosts Europe and Asia Interreligious Dialogue conference

The ASEM Interfaith Dialogue is an annual conference for diplomats and representatives from religious groups and NGOs from Asia and Europe. They are able to exchange ideas about the relations between different faiths in an informal setting. Issues such as the role of religion in tackling poverty, religious education, new media and government policy will be discussed in various workgroups.

Since the terrorist attacks in the US, the Danish cartoons and various other events, interreligious dialogue has taken on added importance. The fourth ASEM Interfaith Dialogue has been organised by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs together with the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The City of Amsterdam is hosting the conference. The first ASEM Interfaith Dialogue took place in 2005 in Indonesia, the next will be in 2009 in Pakistan.

In run-up to the conference, on 2 June ASEF will organise the ASEF journalist conference, with presentations concerning the role of (new) media in interreligious dialogue and the importance of freedom of expression. Mayor Cohen will hold a speech during the event. On 3 June the City of Amsterdam council will open her doors and let participants see how interreligious dialogue works in practice. Work visits have been organised to religious/social projects in Amsterdam, including the organisation Islam & Dialogue, the Augstinian Sisters in the Red Light District and the Moses and Aaron church.

The ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting) was set up in 1996 as a cooperation between the governments of 27 European Union members, the European Commission, the 10 ASEAN countries, the ASEAN secretariat and China, Japan, South Korea, India, Pakistan and Mongolia. ASEM wants to promote dialogue and cooperation between Europe and Asia in political, economic and cultural areas.

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