Esteemed President of Indonesia, His Excellency Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono,
President of the 68th United Nations General Assembly, His Excellency John Ashe,
Secretary General of the United Nations, His Excellency Ban Ki-moon,
Prime Minister of Timor Leste, His Excellency Xanana Gusmao,
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia His Excellency Marty Natalegava,
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Spain, Jose Manuel Garcia Margallo,
High Representative of UN Alliance of Civilisations, His Excellency Nasser Abdulaziz Al Nasser,
Ministers and Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to begin by expressing that it is a great honour for me to attend the Sixth Global Forum of the Alliance of Civilisations. Allow me to convey the greetings of the President of Turkey, His Excellency Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his best wishes for a successful Forum.

Indonesia, a country that consists of thousands of islands, cultures, ethnicities and religions with its natural beauty and its citizen’s hospitality is a living example of “unity in diversity”.

Indeed, Indonesia along with other countries in the region stands as a source and a crossroad for the many languages and cultures that spread from Madagascar to Easter Island, and is a monument to the cultural wealth and linguistic treasure of humanity.

Nearly nine years ago in 2005, when the Turkish and Spanish Governments presented a project - the project of Alliance of Civilizations -, to the United Nations with the objective of promoting peace and cooperation among cultures and civilizations, few people were optimistic about its future. Some pessimists even predicted falsely that this project would be left to the dusty shelves of the UN.

Here we are today, with almost 140 UN member countries as well as international organizations, the Alliance of Civilizations guides us as one of the most prominent peace initiatives of our times, and perhaps the peace initiative of the 21st century. The expanding Group of Friends of the Alliance is an indication of the growing support of the international community for the principles and aims of the Alliance of Civilizations. Owing to its special geographical location, rich history and cultural heritage, Turkey feels an additional sense of responsibility and therefore attaches a particular importance to the work of the Alliance and its Global Fora. I would like to welcome the new members of the Friends Group on this occasion.

However, we should not forget the efforts of the former and the present Secretaries General of the UN, the High Representatives, and the support and contributions of the Group of Friends in making the Alliance a success. The Alliance’s success is our success. What is attained on the way towards peace and coexistence is an achievment for humanity.

Some people surmised that the new millennium would result in tensions and clashes among cultures and civilizations. The Alliance of Civilizations initiative has never given any credit to these pessimistic scenarios, and in harmony with the spirit of the increasing relations among cultures, it emphasized the need for developing a new way of thinking, along with a suitable narrative and action to promote intercultural harmony.

In spite of the difficulties that the current times are bringing in, and of the suffering that permeates among Muslim societies in Iraq, Syria, and Gaza, as well as the security and terror oriented discourse we constantly hear, the statistical data in the last couple of centuries indicate that wars and war related deaths and casualties overall tend to show a gradual decrease. Therefore we may say confidently that there are no solid reasons for pessimism. Rather than adapting a wait-and-see approach, it is up to us to support this trend and give it further momentum.

Excellencies,

I have no intention to underrate the immensity of the problems that we are facing today. Indeed, many problems, from global warming to regional conflicts are in need of our close urgent attention and strong commitment to solve them.

As decades of misperception and disconnect cannot be redressed overnight, we are aware that this is a long process which can only be successful with the full contribution of the international community. Thus we need global cooperation in confronting the threats to our common humanity and our values. The Alliance is here for this reason, and the progress it has made so far is a clear sign for the world’s willingness and readiness for this cooperation. The Alliance of Civilizations has proved that the fundamental values which bring us together, such as democracy, human rights and rule of law, are stronger than our cultural differences.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Each culture tries to understand the world and gives meaning to it from its own perspective. Each culture forms and guides its relations with other cultures from its own window. And with your permission, I would now like to share some thoughts motivated from my own culture.

The subtle relation between unity and diversity has deep roots in the Islamic tradition. The cosmological theories developed by the Muslim scholars during the medieval times focused on how the plurality or diversity emerged from unity and the uniqueness of the creator. The conceptual understanding of Existence as “unity in diversity” has also played an essential role in the way in which Muslims have coexisted harmoniously with other cultures and adopted a pluralistic way of life.

It is as much our common hope as our shared responsibility to expect to live in a secure and free world, where the strong does not oppress the weak, the majority does not dictate the minority, and where justice and equality reign.

Thank you.