EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

Building bridges and altering misguided perceptions of other cultures are crucial in a globalised world, according Jorge Sampaio, UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations and a former President of Portugal, who addressed a formal sitting of the EP on Wednesday on the subject of cultural diversity, in a speech given as part of the EP's series of guest speeches for Year of Intercultural Dialogue.

In his introduction, the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Pöttering, stressed the shared outlook between the UN Alliance of Civilisations and the EP, with their emphasis on the importance of cultural interaction, and argued that there was a need in the modern world for practical not just symbolic steps on this front, such as the many projects the EP had supported in the context of Year of Intercultural Dialogue.

Message from UN Secretary General

At the start of his address, Mr Sampaio read out a short statement on behalf of the UN Secretary General, which said that "Like many other regions of the world, Europe faces multiple challenges in promoting intercultural dialogue.  Migration, economic uncertainty and political tensions are putting strains on relations between different cultural, ethnic and religious groups.  But it is precisely in your region, where constructive contacts over the centuries have allowed humanity to take major leaps forward, that opportunities for reconciliation and cooperation exist."  Ultimately, "Cross-cultural tolerance, dialogue, respect and understanding must be pillars of the better world we are trying to build."