A conference on "Cultural Transparency, a Base of Peace and Agreement" was held in Astana with the contribution of the Assembly of the people of Kazakhstan and with the speech of the Iranian cultural attaché in Kazakhstan.

According to the Public Relations of Islamic Culture and Relations Organization, a conference on "Cultural Transparency, a Base of Peace and Agreement" was held in Kazakhstan Independence Palace in Astana in four academic panels with the contribution of the Assembly of the people of Kazakhstan and within the framework of Festival of Kazakhstan Peoples Friendship and with the presence of national and cultural centers of the countries which are the members of Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA).

The conference began with the visit of Darkhan Mynbai, the Deputy Chairman of the Peoples Assembly of Kazakhstan, Vladimir Karpovich Bozhko, Deputy Chairman of Mazhilis of Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Akylbek Kamaldinov, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan, the representatives of foreign embassies in Astana, guests and media of the exhibition of cultural centers from Iran, Turkey, South Korea, China and India.

Following the conference and in the first panel, Darkhan Mynbai, the Deputy Chairman of the Peoples Assembly of Kazakhstan delivered a speech and referring to the importance of the conference he stated: "One of the goals of CICA Conference is to develop cultural relations among the countries which are the members of CICA and the convergence of Kazakh culture in the global atmosphere. Interestingly, the conference is being held during the International Expo 2017".   

Stating that the exhibition shows that Kazakhstan is ready for the development of cooperation in all areas of life, Darkhan Mynbai added: "The Expo exhibition provides an opportunity to introduce the Kazakh culture and its integration into the world".

Then Akylbek Kamaldinov, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan, delivered a speech and pointed out the 25^th establishment anniversary of CICA and measures taken over these years. According to Akylbek Kamaldinov, CICA has become an effective organization for building peace and strengthening security and the Kazakh model of harmony between ethnic groups and religions is considered as the best model for maintaining peace in the country.

At the end of his speech he invited the audience to participate in the second Astana Marathon which will be held on August 27. The Marathon will be held on the occasion of the establishment of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the 25^th establishment anniversary of CICA.

Then, Sabyr Imandosov, the Deputy Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, read the message of Rashid Alimov, the Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. In his message, Rashid Alimov congratulated the holding of CICA Conference and emphasized that the Assembly of the people of Kazakhstan is the basis of agreement between ethnic groups and religions and it plays an important role in creating peace and developing agreement.

In addition, in this conference Christy Picot, the Head of the UNESCO Office in Almaty for the affairs of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan was also present who delivered a speech and referring to the features of Central Asian countries, such as diversity and plurality of ethnic groups, he stated: "Based on this, the importance of peace-keeping and inter-ethnic and inter-religious agreement is doubled".

In addition, in this conference Rashad Mammadov, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Kazakhstan, delivered a speech and referring to the political problems with Armenia in the case of Karabakh he talked about the importance of coexistence of different ethnic groups.

In his speech he stated "Currently there are more than 40 ethnic groups that are living in Azerbaijan, including Jews, Russians, Armenians, etc. and the Azerbaijani government also takes measures to prevent disagreements in the society".

Following the meeting, Aydar Abuov, the Director of the International Center of Cultures and Religions, talked about the stages of the development of the Assembly of the people of Kazakhstan, including its division into three stages of the support of ethnic cultural centers in the country, the formation of Kazakhstan national identity under the motto of "One Nation, One Destiny" and the development of media resources potential.

The Iranian Cultural Attaché in Kazakhstan: We Should not Threaten Cultural Diversity

At the beginning of the second panel Masoud Sheikh Zainuddin, the Iranian cultural attaché in Kazakhstan delivered his speech. Congratulating the 25^th establishment anniversary of CICA (Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia), he stated: "Kazakhstan is a country with unique features; a territory with rich mineral resources, and most importantly the plurality of ethnic groups that have more than 120 ethnicities and nationalities. This plurality and variety can be the best opportunity for the development of a country".

He continued: "However, no phenomenon by itself is either an opportunity or a threat; it is our orientation that provides an opportunity or a threat. Therefore, the fact that ethnic diversity can be a good opportunity for the development of a country depends on how it is viewed".

Referring to the goodwill of Nursultan Nazarbayev, the President of Kazakhstan, to culture, Sheikh Zainuddin added: "The program presented by the President of Kazakhstan, entitled "Look into the Future: Modernization of Social Consciousness" in a country with a diversity of ethnic and national populations has double importance, as with the proper understanding of culture and cultural proximity of ethnic groups, this potential can be changed into an opportunity to advance the goals of Kazakhstan".

The Iranian cultural attaché in Kazakhstan also stated: "Iran has long been engaged in cultural interaction with Central Asian countries, including Kazakhstan. Cultural commonalities between us such as Nowruz, common names, the existence of more than three thousand common words, cultural and literary influences which have been emerged in the speeches and poems of the prominent figures, the existence of a prominent figure such as Khoja Akhmet Yassawi, as well as the presence of Cossacks in Iran and Iranians in Kazakhstan and dozens of other signs confirm this issue".

He continued: "Certainly, for collective happiness there is no way except resorting to moral and cultural values. If we remove or overlook culture and cultural relations from the relations of nations that have valuable historical links, what else will remain?"

He emphasized: "For a rooted nation like Kazakhstan, cultural and artistic interests are among the most important parts of bilateral relations, especially with a country like Iran, which is one of the origins of literature, mysticism, art and religion in the East".

At the end of his speech, the Iranian cultural attaché in Kazakhstan explained about the importance of cultural relations among nations and countries and then declared that the Cultural Center of the Islamic Republic of Iran is ready for performing activities such as the holding of conferences, the establishment of exhibitions, the publication of books, the teaching of Persian language, the exchange of academic delegations in interaction with Kazakhstan academic centers and universities, museums, libraries and other academic and cultural centers in Kazakhstan.

Then following the conference, the representatives of the cultural centers of India, Russia, Turkey and South Korea, the heads of cultural centers of the Cossacks outside the country, the representatives of museums, libraries, Eurasian University and Lomonosov University, as well as politicians and intellectuals delivered a speech.   

In addition, on the sidelines of this conference, an exhibition was established by the Cultural Center of the Islamic Republic of Iran in which the Iranian handicrafts and pictures of womens activities in Iran were exposed to the public. This exhibition was next to the cultural exhibitions of China, South Korea, India and Turkey.