An international conference in Melbourne today will bring
Jewish, Christian and Muslim communities together in an effort to dispel
misconceptions about religion.
President of the Jewish Community Council of Victoria, Michael Lipshutz, says
war has highlighted the need for such a gathering.
"There's a great deal of suspicion, we've seen in the news people blaming
Jews for the war and that is simply not true and we've seen people blaming the
people of the Islamic world, which again is not true - what we're trying to do
is bring harmony... rather than trying to bring conflict," he said.
Turkish academic Hadi Adanali is attending the conference from Ankara
University in Turkey.
He says this type of meeting, which brings together key figures from different
faiths, has a role to play in future international relations.
"We don't need force we need peace and I think we don't need death we need
life," he said.
"People should be educated.
"These kind of conferences, meetings are essential in establishing a
future peaceful period and we shouldn't give up hope on that."