Persecution of Christians in the World, Brussels - Main contents
| date | July 1, 2015 14:30 - 18:00 |
|---|---|
| city | Brussels, France |
| location | European Parliament  |
| organisation | European People's Party (EPP) i |
The Group of the European People's Party (EPP Group) has the pleasure to invite you to a conference organised by the Intercultural Activities and Religious Dialogue Unit on 'The Persecution of Christians in the World'. The conference will take place on 1 July 2015 from 14.30-18.00 hrs in the European Parliament in Brussels.
The aim of the conference is to raise awareness at EU level and to provide a follow-up for the Motion for Resolution on the persecution of Christians in the world, in relation to the killing of students in Kenya by terror group al-Shabaab, adopted on 30 April 2015 in Strasbourg by Members of the European Parliament. In this Resolution, Members condemned the persecution of Christians and called on the EU and its Member States to address the persecution of Christians as a priority issue for their foreign policy.
The conference will consist of two parts: the first session will concentrate on the broader Middle East region, notably the cases of Syria and Iraq, and the second on other areas of the world, by giving examples from Asia to Africa.
Interpretation will be provided in ES-DE-EN-FR-IT-HU-PL
Event Timetable
Wednesday
14:30
Opening
Speakers
Manfred WEBER, Chairman of the EPP Group in the European Parliament (EP)
Federica MOGHERINI, Vice-President of the European Commission and High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
Antonio TAJANI, Vice-President of the EP
15:00
Introduction
Speakers
Heiner BIELEFELDT, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief
15:15
THE SITUATION IN THE BROADER MIDDLE EAST REGION, NOTABLY IN IRAQ AND SYRIA
Chaired by Teresa Jiménez-Becerril Barrio MEP, Conclusions by Elmar Brok MEP, Chairman of Foreign Affairs Committee of the EP
Speakers
His Holiness Mor Ignatius APHREM II, Patriarch of the Syriac-Orthodox Church of Antioch
His Excellence Archbishop Jean Benjamin SLEIMAN O.C.D., Roman Catholic Archbishop of Baghdad
Ahmed Muhammad AHMED EL-TAYEB, Grand Imam of al-Azhar University, Egypt
Rabbi Avi TAWIL, Director, European Jewish Community Centre, Belgium
16:35
THE SITUATION WORLDWIDE
Chaired by György Hölvényi MEP, Conclusions by Cristian Dan Preda MEP, EPP Group Coordinator in the Foreign Affairs Committee of the EP
Speakers
Bishop Hassan KUKAH, Bishop of Sokoto, Nigeria
Rev Father Andrzej HALEMBA, Projects Director for the Middle East, Africa and Asia, Aid to the Church in Need
Father Bernardo CERVELLERA, Editor-in-Chief of Asianews.it
Rev Leszek GESIAK SJ, Radio Vatican
Conclusions
Conclusions of the conference by Jan Olbrycht MEP