2nd Round of Youth Symposium for Peace & Tolerance | Balkh Province
The second round of the Youth Symposium for Peace & Tolerance initiated by the Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO) in direct collaboration with the White Assembly – Balkh province, on the role of youths in promoting and teaching the values of peace, tolerance and prosperity, has been successfully organized in Balkh province.
The program was attended by huge number of university students & lecturers, cultural and social activists, human rights activists, youth, and civil society activists.
At the beginning of the program, Mr. Atiqullah Zarifi, AELSO’s representative in Balkh province briefed the participants about AELSO’s initiatives and goals in the country particularly its activities in Balkh province.
Then Mr. Lotfur-Rahman Rahimi, university lecturer, and Ms. Zohal Mohammadi, civic activist, talked about the role of youth in promoting and teaching the values of peace, prosperity, and mutual acceptance, and answered the questions raised by the participants’. Mr. Rahimi called the role of educated and knowledgeable youths essential in promoting and teaching the values of peace and emphasized by saying:
“Young people by having the talent and dynamism can play a prominent role in creating the mindset and making a difference in the society. These youth should work with the passion to prevent the enigma of peace and resolve the Afghan peace process through problem-solving mechanisms, and play their part in promoting the idea of social peace in the country.”
Continuing the program Ms. Zohal Mohammadi said:
“It is the responsibility of the youth to take the lead in promoting and educating these values and to make the people aware and awake. Young people can prove their role in promoting and teaching the values of peace, prosperity and mutual acceptance when they engage in dialogue instead of conflict and institutionalize the culture of logic and dialogue. They should act on what they have learned and respect others despite the differences. Young people should work to deny violence in society, learn to live together, and empathize with the needy and work with others to better understand them.”
The symposium also included Q&A session and group work where all the participants have been divided into different working groups to express their views on the questions specified for the group work.
The program ended with distributing certificates of participation for the participating, free time for networking and group photo.
aelso communication and public relations department