Message from His Majesty King Mohammed VI to the Participants in the 9th United Nations Alliance of Civilizations World Forum

On the occasion of the 9th United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) Global Forum, King Mohammed VI addressed a message to the participants on Tuesday, November 22. Here is the full text of the Royal Message, which was read by André Azoulay, Advisor to the Sovereign.

"Praise be to God, Prayer and Salvation upon the Prophet, His family and His companions.

Mr. Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. United Nations High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations, 

Honorable Ministers, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

On this day, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations is holding the 9th edition of its Global Forum on African soil. In doing so, it sends a strong signal of continuity and universality. It unites around a shared purpose: to advance towards "an alliance for peace" and a common goal: to meet the imperative of "living together" in the name of "one humanity".

That the Alliance of Civilizations meets in Fez is a natural occurrence. Was Morocco not privileged and honored to be among the founding members of the Alliance? Is Fez not the spiritual capital of a millennial Kingdom? Does its Al Quaraouiyine University not constitute the oldest university center in the world – the place where Muslim and Jewish scholars, and even a sovereign pontiff, perfected their knowledge? Is its Euromed University of Fes not building, today, a space for academic and intercultural dialogue between the two shores?

Fez is thus, evidently, the very embodiment of a fruitful alliance between civilizations.

 That the Alliance of Civilizations meets in Fez is also a natural privilege. After New York, Baku, Bali, Vienna, Doha, Rio, Istanbul and Madrid, it was fitting that the Global Forum of the Alliance of Civilizations be held on African soil. Is Africa not the cradle of humanity, the crucible of civilizations, the reservoir of youth and the promise of the future?

For all these reasons – and many others, We insisted that the place hosting you today symbolize the dual meaning of this gathering: both in its essence – embodied by Fez – and in its scope – reflected by Africa. We are committed to ensuring that this forum yields concrete results. It cannot be otherwise, given the importance of the subject and the awareness of its urgency. 

This, too, is the meaning of the Message We address to this 9th Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations.

It marks Our confidence that this meeting will bring the added value expected by Ourselves and by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, His Excellency Mr. Antonio Guterres, and it testifies to Our shared determination to materialize the excellent cooperation between the Kingdom of Morocco and the United Nations.

Today, we extend the path opened by all those who have worked for the influence and relevance of the Alliance of Civilizations. We salute, in this regard, the determination and commitment of the United Nations High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations, Mr. Miguel Angel Moratinos.

The valiant minds who conceived the Alliance of Civilizations knew how to envision a forum for the future. Today, we remember all those, particularly in Spain and Turkey, who contributed to the perpetuation of this organization and its institutionalization as a reference for understanding, trust and dialogue between cultures, religions and civilizations.

The ideals of peace that motivated us in 2004 are the very ones guiding us in this Forum. 

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, 

The current context is marked by the resurgence of the very causes that were at the origin of the creation of the Alliance of Civilizations:

- Never has our civilization been so exposed, never has living together been so threatened on a daily basis;

- Rarely has the Other been so associated with suspicion or used to stoke fear and foment hatred;

- Extremes saturate the debate and disqualify moderate discourse; religions are too often instrumentalized, when they are not stigmatized;

- Populism agitates societies, inventing questions without answering them, brandishing migration like a scarecrow in election contexts and making the migrant a scapegoat;



- Continents that had broken with war are reacquainting themselves with weapons and violence, in all its forms;

- Covid-19 marked the return of inward-looking attitudes, even though it could have crystallized the awareness of a shared destiny;

- While the planet produces enough to feed all of humanity, food insecurity threatens the world;

- Terrorism feeds on separatism and lurks where political instability slows socio-economic development;

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is always the right time to speak of peace – of peace beyond the absence of conflict; of peace as a vision of the world; of peace as a relationship with the other. And the Alliance is, in this regard, a powerful vector for peace.

Indeed, unlike wars – whose beginning is known, but never their end – dialogue is inherently a success. In the face of the resurgence of conflict, dialogue is always a positive promise: if not of settled disputes, at least of enhanced mutual understanding. 

The dialogue carried by the Alliance must have a voice and it must build the conditions for success. Salvation will come from dialogue, provided however:



- That this dialogue be inter-civilizational: that is, inclusive and mindful of humanity in all its components, to apprehend the world in its plurality, act through non-vertical multilateralism and embody the universal in the primary sense;

- That this dialogue be inter-generational: that is, that it involves youth and conjugates the future with the present. Young people do not only represent the generations we must preserve from the scourge of war and the discourse of hatred; they are those who, already, are making peace;

- That this dialogue be inter-continental: that is, non-ethnocentric. I can speak of Africa and for Africa, of the place that rightfully belongs to it and not in a backyard; of the treatment to which it is entitled: neither assisted nor left behind; that it has the partners it deserves and who deserve it, and that it is considered for what it is: that is, the demographic lung of the world and its economic reservoir, with its hopes and assets.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, As a founding member of the Alliance of Civilizations, the Kingdom of Morocco has been part of all the organization's battles:

- First, for reasons consubstantial with its identity: Morocco is structured around a model of openness, harmony and synergy that saw the convergence of the Arab-Islamic, Amazigh and Sahrawi-Hassani components, and which, simultaneously, was enriched by African, Andalusian, Hebrew and Mediterranean tributaries.

- And also for reasons inherent to its commitments: the values of the Alliance, the ideals it carries and the paradigm it promotes are also the values of Morocco, its ideals and its paradigm.

From the outset, Morocco committed to this vanguard and has remained steadfastly engaged: Firstly, it committed by promoting openness as a culture of peace:

- Our Grandfather, His Late Majesty King Mohammed V, protected Jewish compatriots from Nazi barbarity and the brutal and segregative practices of the Vichy regime;

- Our Father, His Late Majesty King Hassan II, cultivated throughout His Reign the spirit of fraternity between Jews and Muslims of Morocco, everywhere in the world;

- For more than two decades, We Personally have worked to enhance and safeguard the Moroccan Jewish heritage and to cultivate this spirit of sincere communion between Jews and Muslims, in the land of Islam; this bond makes Morocco unique.

- And, with unwavering constancy, We make, in the Kingdom of Morocco, the continually renewed choice to remain a land of tolerance, coexistence and openness.

Secondly, Morocco committed, by living religion as an instrument of peace:

- As Commander of the Faithful – of all Believers, We Guarantee the free exercise of worship everywhere in the Kingdom of Morocco;

- We believe that religion must be a bulwark against extremism and not its pretext, and We advocate this conviction everywhere, through the Kingdom's religious diplomacy. The Mohammed VI Foundation of African Ulema and the Mohammed VI Institute for the Training of Imams, Mourchidines and Mourchidates are intended to counter the radicalism raging at Africa's gates and to promote an Islam of moderation, the middle way.

- Conscious of this role, Morocco secured the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly of resolution A/73/328 on "Combating hate speech: promoting interreligious and intercultural dialogue and tolerance". Co-sponsored by 90 countries, this resolution highlights the Fez Action Plan on combating hate speech and promoting interreligious dialogue.

- We welcomed His Holiness Pope Francis to Morocco on the occasion of a historic visit during which We emphasized the importance of seeing the three Abrahamic religions "open up to one another", in respect of otherness and knowledge of the other.

- With Pope Francis, We signed the Al Qods Appeal, which pleads for the preservation of the Holy City as a meeting place for the faithful of the three monotheistic religions and a symbol of peaceful coexistence, dialogue and mutual respect. Thirdly, Morocco committed, by working for development, in the broad sense, as a pillar of peace:

- Morocco is an essential ally in the fight against terrorism; a reliable partner in the fight against climate change; a responsible actor in migration management;



- Morocco is involved in all areas of action of the Alliance – whether it is strengthening multilateralism, valuing and empowering youth or empowering women and highlighting their role as actors for peace and security.



Mr. Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. United Nations High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations, 

Honorable Ministers, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Politics speaks to citizens, religion speaks to their souls, dialogue speaks to their civilizations. In all languages, we must speak to peace. This injunction stems from the gaze of past generations and future generations. In this particular moment in History, as we fight climate change, combat terrorism, work for sustainable development, water, energy and food security, development in general, we must return to the essential, that is, living together.

There is no point in carrying out great projects if we cannot overcome this first link of living together, in the name of a single humanity that places the human being at its heart.

Wassalamou alaikoum warahmatoullahi wabarakatouh".