During the First World Peace Forum (WPF), which took place in August 2006, more than 100 political and religious leaders, businessmen, academics, civil society activists, and journalists from over the world gathered in Jakarta, Indonesia, to share ideas, engaged in dialogues, and built networks in a shared believe that we are all bounded together by “one humanity, one destiny and one responsibility.” In such spirit, they strived to foster deeper mutual understanding among civilisations based on a common understanding that every human being shares the values of humanity, the destiny of humankind, and the responsibility to create peace. They all believe that in order to ensure the primacy of peace in inter-civilisational relations, greater cooperation among civilisations becomes imperative.

Building on the First WPF, Muhammadiyah, Centre for Dialogue and Cooperation among Civilisations, and the Cheng Ho Multi Culture Trust, intend to jointly organise the 2n WPF which will take place in Jakarta in 24-26 June 2008. While maintaining the spirit of “one humanity, one destiny, and one responsibility” as the framework of dialogue, the 2^nd WPF would specifically discuss the problem of violence and ways to eradicate it. Indeed, the surge of violence –both at national and international level-- has become the most troubling feature of our world today. It has taken many facets; ranging from violent crimes in many societies, political assassinations, human rights abuses by despotic and authoritarian governments, deadly ethnic conflicts, terrorist attacks, secessionist wars, and war among nations.

The root causes of violence can take multi-faceted forms. However, the use, misuse, and abuse of religious and ethnic sentiments as a tool for political mobilisation in conflict situation could easily worsen the problem. Violence in this context could perpetuate mutual suspicions among societies, people of different faiths, and ultimately among civilisations. If this trend continues unabated, then the future of humanity is under a serious threat. In the face of such enormous threat to humanity, it is the responsibility of all members of human race to work together to ensure that the forces of peace prevail over the persistence of violence in every society.

The 2^nd World Peace Forum will seek to accomplish the following objectives:

1. to provide a venue for dialogues of peace among key leaders of world civilisations;
2. to explore how the values of humanity, common destiny, and one responsibility of human kind could serve as an integrating force in efforts to eradicate the problem of violence and ensure world peace;
3. to deepen the networks of dialogue among different civilisations in order to promote tolerance and mutual respects; and
4. to explore ways by which different civilisations could better cooperate in spreading the voices of peace.