COLOMBO: A four-member delegation from Sri Lanka will attend the Conference of Southeast Asian Ulama (Islamic scholars) which is to be held on Thursday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on June 30.
The event attended by representatives from 20 South East Asian countries is being organized by the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) in coordination with the Muslim World League,in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The Sri Lankan delegation comprising, the director of Muslim Religious and Cultural Affairs, Ibrahim Sahib Ansar, General Secretary of the All-Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama, ACJU, Asheikh , Arkam Nooramith.Asheikh,its Assistant Secretary General Assheikh Dr M S M Thassim and Mohammed Rasooldeen,Chief Editor of Colombo Times paid a courtesy call on the Malaysian High Commissioner Tan Yang Thai in Colombo before their departure to Kuala Lumpur.
Islamic theologians from south-east Asia will be meeting, greeting and exchanging views,news with one another on the latest developments that are taking place in this part of the world through Islamic perspectives.
The United Nations General Assembly President Abdullah Shahid has sent a special message which will be telecast at the inauguration of the conference.
MWL Secretary General, Mohammad bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, who is widely recognized as a leading global voice on moderate Islam, is slated to make a speech at the inaugural ceremony of the conference.
As Secretary-GGeneralof the Muslim World League, a Makkah-based non-governmental organization that represents adherents of the Islamic faith around the world, Dr. Al-Issa has been a trailblazer in building a better understanding among the peoples of the world.
The purpose of this forum is to develop a civilized vision that would consolidate the values of moderation in human societies, strengthen friendship and cooperation among nations and peoples, and work to spread awareness of the concepts of unity, peace and harmony among religious leaders and intellectual influencers of human societies in general and youth in particular.
The Conference will conduct dialogues on the concept of Islamic unity in light of opportunities and challenges facing Muslims in the twenty-first century, which require Muslim communities, institutions and individuals to rejuvenate the Islamic unity, a perennial ideal throughout the history of Muslims until today.
This noble idea of the conference calls for humanitarian and civilizational unity based on cooperation, solidarity, interaction and mutual benefit in knowledge, education, culture, economy and trade among the nations and societies. It is time to return to this centuries-old affinities for a better future of all.
