05 February 2005	Saturday	25 Zilhaj 1425

ISLAMABAD, Feb 2: The West should intervene in resolving the Kashmir and Palestine issues in order to win the confidence of Islamic countries and bridge the gap between the two civilizations.

This was stated by Minister of State for Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Mohammad Ali Durrani at a seminar on Sachal Sarmast in Islamabad. The seminar was organized by the department of Pakistani languages of the Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU).

Mr Durrani stressed that peace was essential for avoiding a clash of civilizations and for resolving inter-state disputes. "The West should help the Islamic countries in promoting education in order to produce peace-loving generations," he added.

He said democracy required patience and tolerance and despite differences we should search for ways to develop unity. "Linguistic harmony is essential for national integrity," he added.

He said enlightened moderation was the requirement of the day as Islam was being misinterpreted by some elements. "Muslims have not been able to unite at a single platform and are suffering from individualism," he regretted.

AIOU Vice Chancellor Dr Altaf Hussain said the university was making efforts to promote regional languages and the department of Pakistani languages would soon be converted into an institution.