Shaykh Abdallah Bin Bayyah, President of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies in the UAE and Chairman of the Emirates Fatwa Council received on Monday April 29th the prestigious ‘Ambassador for Liberty and Peace International Award’ at the Palais Des Nations in Geneva.

The award was in recognition of the Shaykh’s role in promoting peace and human rights, in particular freedom of religion and belief; as well as preventing atrocities and violent extremism based on the abuse of religion.

The award was presented at the Second Global Summit on Religion, Peace and Security, hosted by the United Nations. The event was attended by religious actors, government officials, human rights experts and academicians who met to discuss the theme of “Building Bridges, Fostering Inclusivity and Countering Hate Speech to Enhance the Protection of Religious Minorities, Refugees and Migrants.”

“What happened in New Zealand and Sri Lanka is senseless terrorism, which every single time lays bare its barbaric and savage nature, which only serves to emphasize the fact that nothing unites terrorists except departure from religion and a spirit of hatred for humanity,” said Bin Bayyah in his ceremonial speech.

“The most powerful weapon with which to counter this is keeping the fire of hope alive in our hearts, not to allow the intractable disease of despair to take over our souls, and to be aware of the fact that we are like passengers on a ship, united by a common destiny and a common course, such that in order for some to survive all must survive,” he added.

Bin Bayyah also pointed to the Marrakesh Declaration of January 2016 as an important mechanism to make citizenship the basis of rights and duties, and its emphasis on contractual citizenship in Muslim societies.