The President of the Republic of Macedonia, Dr. Gjorge Ivanov, addressed today the Youth Forum "The Role of Religion in Building Tolerant Youth", which was held as part of the Third World Conference on Dialogue among Religions and Civilizations "Freedom and Dignity - Fundamental Values in Inter-Human, Inter-Religious and Inter-Cultural Relations".

"Only dialogue can make fears, prejudice and misconceptions change. Hence, I reiterate that the one who communicates is integrated, and the one who does not communicate is ghettoized. If we talk, we can come to a solution. The agreement includes two. We have to talk. Thus, I urge all young people to discuss more", President Ivanov said in his opening remarks.

The Macedonian President said that the 20th century has left numerous traumas in humanity, adding that many of these conflicts and wars were basis of prejudice, fears, stereotypes that existed in the past and are still present.

"100 years after the Balkan wars it is evident that some still use the same rhetoric, the same wording, in the 21st century they do not recognize the right of self-identification, they do not recognize the human dignity to self-determination. The same will happen in the future, too. This will not be changed. However, the dilemma remains how today's youth, when our age, will face the new world?", President Ivanov said.

"We are aware that many conflicts in our region were inspired by religious understanding. Some abused religion because it strongly mobilizes, encourages feelings and provides certainty that other groups, communities do not provide. We have a positive experience because long periods of our history we have lived in open space", President Ivanov said. That open space, the President said, creates the idea that people have to live together.
"Europe is not our target as economic well-being, as others interpret it. People living in this region consider Europe as union that will restore peace, stability, safety because same standards, same principles, same criteria will apply to all", President Ivanov added.

The Forum moderator, Muhamed Mesic from Tuzla, a lawyer and a linguistic genius who speak seventy languages, said that the moment we understand others, we need to understand ourselves. "Religious communities have built and preserved human traditions for thousands of years. The diversity of this heritage is a key benefit of humanity in today's world. The role of the messages in religious lectures marks humanity, dignity. We all need this. All young people need to cooperate. All religious and political leaders need to work together to create a world of dignity and understanding for the generations to come", Mesic added.

Youth Forum, held as part of the Third World Conference on Dialogue among Religions and Civilizations, tends to become a part of it which will be continuously developed and upgraded. The Youth Forum was attended by youth nominated by religious groups and religious communities in the Republic of Macedonia, as well as representatives from the three generations of the School for Young Leaders, which is organized under the patronage of President Ivanov. As a special guest of the Forum were invited representatives of domestic and foreign youth organizations which, inter alia, deal with inter-religious dialogue, religion, culture and spiritual values.