The Intercultural Communication and Leadership School
The ICLS in Asia
Indonesia - Cilegon
The seminar for young people from Cilegon (Banten province, West Java) was the first Asian project of the ICLS. In partnership with Yayasan TIFA (TIFA Foundation), Jakarta and in financial partnership between the ICLS, Yayasan TIFA and the British Embassy, Jakarta, the first ICLS seminar was held in Bogor in March/April 2004. Participants of the seminar formed the Cilegon Network of Trust after the seminar and implemented a great number of initiatives between the different local communities. They informed the ICLS President about these initiatives and projects during his visit to Cilegon, in November 2004.
After a good start, the local implementing partner, Yayasan TIFA, with which the ICLS was planning to implement three local seminars, dropped out as partner for reasons of shortage of their own funds and changing geographic priorities. The ICLS has been searching for a new local implementing partner and currently exploring with LEAD Indonesia such partnership, on the basis of joint priorities and shared values.
Japan - Tokyo
On 10 March 2006, at the invitation of the Human Security Program of the University of Tokyo, ICLS President Geza Tessenyi spoke at the International Symposium on Peace-building for Human Security. The title of his intervention was: Insulting the Prophet, Burning Embassies: Is There an Alternative to the Clash of Civilizations? - coexistence and cooperation between different populations in Europe and Asia.
During his short stay in Japan, Geza had discussions on potential cooperation issues with high ranking officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Global Issues Department, with colleagues from the universities of Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Kobe, the Executive Director of the Niwano Peace Foundation, a reporter from The Asahi Shimbun newspaper, leading officials of the Japan International Volunteer Center (JVC) and 'Peaceboat' (an innovative self-financing civil society organisation) and with fellow conference speakers from Singapore and the Palestinian Territories. The photograph below shows Professor Yasunobu Sato (University of Tokyo), Ms Faizah Binte Abdul Samat (Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies, Singapore) and Geza in a blue hat (ICLS, Rome) at the gate of the Rock Garden of the Ryoanji Zen Temple in Kyoto.
Pakistan - Karachi
The first seminar in Pakistan was held in June 2005 in Karachi. 19 young people attended from eight faith communities such as Bohra, Hindu, Ismaili, Protestant, Roman Catholic, Shiite, Sunni and Zoroastrians (Parsee). The School of Leadership Foundation (SoLF) which represents the ICLS in Pakistan organised the seminar in partnership with the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Pakistan Program and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
The Karachi Network of Trust (KNOT) was set up by participants and joint projects were launched.
Pakistan - Islamabad/Rawalpindi
Islamabad is the secondary seat next to the central seat in Rome of ICLS International. The first local seminar with 13 young participants from different faith communities living in Islamabad and neighbouring Rawalpindi was held in June 2005, on the week after the first Karachi seminar. It was organised by the School of Leadership Foundation (SoLF) with the same partners.
The Rawalpindi - Islamabad Network of Trust (RINOT) was established by participants and within a few months they organised a spectacular event on "intercultural communication and leadership awareness". This was a one-day long seminar with more than 150 participants from many different faith communities of the two cities.
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