Yerevan to host conference on freedom of religion in Armenia, Georgia and beyond
On May 8 a Regional Conference on contemporary issues of Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Armenia, Georgia and beyond will kick off in Yerevan. Guests include state officials, religious leaders, and representatives of civil society and academia from Armenia and Georgia, as well as renowned experts from Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Russia and Norway.
The conference will take place in Armenia Marriott hotel, Tigran Metz hall. The working languages will be Armenian, Georgian and English, with simultaneous translation. The event is open to media, and will be live-streamed online.
Opening remarks will be delivered by Deputy Minister of Justice of the Republic of Armenia Mr. Vigen Kocharyan and Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Armenia and Georgia Mr. Jos Douma. The OSCE/ODIHR Senior Adviser on FoRB Kishan Manocha and UN OHCHR Senior Human Rights Adviser for the South Caucasus Vladimir Shkolnikov will attend the event. Representatives of Foreign diplomatic missions and international organizations are invited.
The goal of the conference is to provide a platform for key stakeholders to discuss the situation and developments of FoRB in Armenia, Georgia and globally and define recommendations for governments, religious communities and policy makers. The main topics that the Conference will cover are:
- International standards of FoRB and the situation in Armenia and Georgia;
- FoRB and education;
- FoRB and secularity
- FoRB and equality between men and women
