Partners for Transparency organized a training course entitled “Intercultural Dialogue to Combat Hate Speech” in partnership with a number of partner organizations, with 40 participants from 5 countries attending: Spain, Egypt, Belgium, Luxembourg and Latvia. The aim of this session was to emphasize the importance of dialogue between North and South Mediterranean countries. To combat hate speech and extremism in the Euro-Mediterranean region

The training course lasted for 4 days in February 2021, in which several topics were addressed on hate speech, starting with identifying the concept of hate speech and extremism and its types, the most important tools and strategies needed to address it in the Free Mediterranean region, and the importance of using dialogue and cultural exchange as a mediating tool for conflict resolution and peaceful coexistence. And the rejection of violence, leading to the United Nations strategy to combat hate speech.

This training came out with several recommendations on the part of the participants, most notably the interest in formal and non-formal education, digital education, awareness, youth empowerment, interest in the media, strengthening the role of oversight over information dissemination and fact-finding, renewing religious discourse and using appropriate narratives for target groups to eliminate intolerance, prejudice and existing hate speech. On nationalities, religion, race, gender, etc.

On her part, Mirna Shalash, Executive Director of the Partners for Transparency Foundation, emphasized during this training session the main role that Egypt plays in promoting cultural dialogue at the international level and the effective efforts to confront hate speech and extremism, such as the “Human Brotherhood Document” signed by the Grand Imam. Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Sheikh of Al-Azhar, and Pope Francis, Pope of the Catholic Church, as well as the “International Conference on Intercultural Dialogue and Interfaith Dialogue” that Egypt will host in its thirty-first edition next month.

It is worth noting that this training course comes within the framework of the cultural dialogue project to counter hate speech and extremism led by Partners for Transparency (Egypt) as the president of the Egyptian network of the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures, in partnership with the institutions that head the Anna Lindh Foundation network in each From Spain, Belgium, Latvia and Luxembourg, with the support of the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures.