Success Stories

Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB)1 has recently emerged as a significant framework in international forums. Several governments have appointed Special Envoys or Ambassadors to monitor its status locally, regionally, and globally. International organizations and academic institutions have published research and human rights reports in which the Southwestern Asian and North African (SWANA) countries score very low regarding religious freedom and blasphemy laws2. So far, however, SWANA stakeholders have yet to produce a wholistic response3. To develop such a response, Dar al-Kalima University, jointly with the Christian Academic Forum for Citizenship in the Arab World (CAFCAW)4, organized a consultation gathering 20 secular, atheist, agnostic, and faith-based (Muslim and Christian) scholars and experts from multi and interdisciplinary fields - representatives from civil society organizations, religious-based institutions, universities, national human rights/women’s rights groups, and SWANA sectoral bodies coming from Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Qatar, UAE, Egypt, Morocco, and diaspora communities in Europe. Read More