Speech of Rene van der Linden, President of Pase 

"Those who say that religion has nothing to do with politics do not know what religion is".
Ladies and gentlemen, friends and colleagues,
I have chosen to begin my speech with the words of Mohandas Ghandi, a fearless fighter for peace, freedom and justice and a man of great spirituality.
Ghandi's political life was inspired by his religion, and yet he was a champion of secular democracy, seeing it as the only way to unite such a huge and diverse country as India.

In recent years, its rapid economic development and growth have shown, how even culturally and religiously diverse and often troubled country, can take advantage of the opportunities of globalization.
In very many parts of the world and for very many people, however, globalization is neither experienced nor perceived as beneficial.
Certainly, the phenomenon is transforming all our societies. These changes take many forms.
Traditional economic systems and agricultural practices are being exposed to global trade and market forces, often with destructive consequences.

The introduction of powerful new technologies, especially in industry and telecommunications, is accelerating this process and increasing its impact and penetration. Alongside and resulting from these pressures, there is an international migration on an unprecedented scale.

Whilst the largest group is undoubtedly made up of migrants from developing countries seeking work in industrialized countries, one should not neglect the significant numbers who travel in the opposite direction, whether as tourists or for business.

In both cases, these movements are having profound social consequences caused by the shock of the unfamiliar and exacerbated by ignorance, insensitivity and intolerance.

Unless people are given reassurance and leadership in such times of uncertainty, the nature and pace of these changes can too easily cause fear and resentment.

At its mildest and most innocuous, this appears as conservatism or a resistance to change.

When more hostile, it manifests itself in reactionary attitudes that seek to reject and reverse modernity.

But when they take the form of extremism and recourse to the methods of terrorism, responses to globalization can cause serious instability, threatening international peace and security.

Ladies and gentlemen,

"A society without religion is like a vessel without a compass."

Whilst Napoleon Bonaparte was a very different man to Ghandi, they both led their countries during times of great change and upheaval.

Each recognized that, since the dawn of man, religion has been a foundation of societies throughout the world: an essential element of group identity and a thread running through the fabric of society.

Today, however, globalization is presenting religion with its greatest challenge in centuries, and our future thus depends on how religious leaders respond.

Traditional ways of life, often closely linked to religion, are being undermined, so that the role and meaning of religion in people's lives are changing.

Migrants to industrialized countries find themselves surrounded by people of different faith, or none.

These host societies often react to the newcomer's religion with misunderstanding or mistrust.

On both sides, it can be difficult to see a reflection of their own values in the religion and culture of the other.

The opening up of previously closed societies - including the countries of the former Soviet Union - not only permits a resurgence of their traditional religions, but also exposes them to other beliefs through travel, cinema, literature and missionary activities.

Whatever the challenge, religious leaders have a responsibility to themselves, to their followers and to their beliefs to recognize, accept and rise to that challenge using all the strength and wisdom of their faith.

In an ever-changing, fast-moving and inter-connected world of overlapping cultures and religions, however, no single religious leader can confront these challenges alone

To be effective, the efforts of all religious leaders must be coordinated and presented, both to their own followers and to those of other faiths, as a united front.

For this to happen, however, all those whose faith is based on peace, justice, equality, tolerance and respect must unite around their common values.

Ladies and gentlemen,

In the aftermath of the Second World War, Europe's leaders established the Council of Europe to ensure that Europe would never again descend into such hatred, barbarity and bloodshed.

The core mission of the Council of Europe is not to facilitate trade or strengthen defense but to protect and promote our common values.

These values - values that now unite 46 member States and over 800 million people, and which have preserved unbroken peace amongst its members for over 60 years - are those of democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

They are values based on universal respect for human life and for human dignity.

They protect the freedom of religion, including the right to hold any belief, the right to manifest that belief, the right to be free from prejudice or discrimination on account of that belief and the right to congregate and organize with other believers.

The values of the Council of Europe are a secular political reflection of the values of all religions built upon the love of humanity.

Through their application to politics, they are the essential preconditions for peace, stability, security and prosperity.

They are values, therefore, that can mitigate the potentially harmful effects of globalization.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Within the Council of Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly is a natural forum for inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue.

Our parliamentarians come from a wide range of societies and cultures and represent believers of all the major world religions.

As President of the Assembly, I am exploiting this potential by making inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue a priority of my mandate.

I have met many religious leaders, including Pope Benedict XVI and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, as well as national religious leaders during all my official visits.

At my suggestion, the Assembly has exchanged views with Secretary General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

More recently, Prime Minister Erdogan of Turkey addressed us on the Alliance of Civilizations initiative that he and Prime Minister Zapatero of Spain are promoting through the United Nations, and which the Assembly fully supports.

In addition to the work of the Assembly, the current Russian « Chairmanship of our Committee of Ministers last week held an important International Conference on the dialogue of cultures and inter-faith cooperation in Nizhny Novgorod.

I had the honor of speaking at the opening session.

In my speech, I recalled that churches and other confessional organizations, through their moral and ethical commitment and values, are active players in civil society and valid democratic partners.

There is thus no reason why churches and other confessional organizations should not have an official status within the Council of Europe, similar to that which has been granted to non-governmental organizations, whilst taking into account the situation and specificities of religious organizations.

Your Excellency,

Ladies and gentlemen,

The spectrum of international terrorism is an awful reminder of how religion can be given distorted and perverted interpretations in times of crisis and upheaval.

It is therefore crucial for the future of all societies that we forge a new alliance between the secular and the sacred.

I hope that this Congress will give both sides inspiration to turn the challenges of today into opportunities for building better societies, based on the fundamental values common to both true religion and democracy.

Thank you very much.