AYE 2013 participants visited the Buddhist Maha Vihara Temple at Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur to experience how the various religious houses could co-exist in the same area and respect one another despite their differences.

International Youth Visit Churches and Temples on Interfaith “Walkabout”

About 120 participants of the Asian Youth Exchange (AYE) 2013 were taken on a field visit to various places of worship in Brickfields as part of the “Interfaith Unity Walkabout” recently.

The walkabout, organised and headed by National Unity and Integration Department director-general Datuk Azman Amin Hassan, included visits to Evangeline Lutheran Church, Buddhist Maha Vihara Temple, Sri Sakthi Karpaga Vinayagar Temple, Sam Kow Tong (3 Teachings) Temple and Madrasathul Ghoutiyyah.

“It was special and meaningful. I am a Muslim and have not visited any churches before. Now, I believe that peace and understanding can be achieved regardless of our faith,” said Hanna Andari, a participant from Indonesia.

Hanna was among youth from several Asian countries who came together this month to exchange ideas on regional and global issues while fostering a culture of peace and volunteerism.

Commendable effort: 40 teenagers living at the low-cost flats in Jalan Loke Yew cleaning up their neighbourhood thanks to the funds raised by the participants of AYE 2013.

The participants came from Indonesia, Vietnam, South Korea, Myanmar, Cambodia, Palestine, China, the Philippines, Brunei, Nepal and Malaysia.

The objective of AYE 2013 was to develop future leaders with character, creativity and morals. The four-day programme was hosted by Global Peace Festival (GPF) Malaysia.

Dressed in their respective traditional costumes, the AYE 2013 participants were joined by 200 delegates from the 3rd International Model Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Global Summit 2013 at an International Youth Exchange Night.

It was attended by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Tan Sri Joseph Kurup.

A forum featuring Global Peace Youth Corps president James Poon, One Young World Malaysia ambassador Michael Teoh Shu Lim and Peace Generation in Indonesia founder Irfan Amalee was also held.

Source: The Star Newspaper Malaysia, July 17, 2013