Indonesia calls on religious leaders to promote world peace

Indonesian President Joko Widodo. (Photo: ANTARA)

Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesian President Joko Widodo has called on religious leaders to increase the contributions of religions to solving world problems to reduce rivalry and stop wars for a peaceful world.

The Indonesian President made the statement at the opening of the G20 Religion Forum (R20) in Nusa Dua, Bali, on November 2.

R20 is part of a series of G20 events initiated under Indonesia's G20 Presidency. It is a forum of inter-religious figures from various countries. Islamic organisation Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) initiated the forum in cooperation with the Muslim World League (MWL).

Widodo welcomed religious leaders attending the R20 conference and expressed his hope that they would build understanding and agreement, so that religions can make greater contributions to civilisation and humanity.

Head of the NU's Communication and Information Institute Ishaq Zubaedi Raqib stated that the R20 meeting mobilised leaders and religious leaders in the world to ensure that religion functions as a true and dynamic solution and not as a source of problems in the 21st century.

The main purpose of organising R20 is to prevent identity issues from being used as weapons, limit the spread of group hatred, and protect the public from violence and suffering due to conflicts, he explained./.