William Johnsson, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty staff
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, April 25 ”¦ Amjad B. Shammout, a prominent human rights advocate based in Amman, Jordan, will present a Muslim perspective on religious freedom when he addresses the 7th International Congress of the International Religious Liberty Association (IRLA) on April 26.
Shammout, a lawyer and former judge in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, left that work to establish and direct the Arab Bridge Center for Development and Human Rights. This non-profit organization aims to foster moderation, with the avoidance of violence, to bring about change. It promotes respect and understanding among people of all religions.
The Arab Bridge Center, with branches throughout Jordan, also carries on its activities in other countries of the Middle East. If focuses on educating people in human rights and religious liberty by conducting workshops, seminars, symposia, and other activities.
Shammout underscores the need to work with young people in order to shape attitudes of peace and tolerance rather than violence. In conversation, he becomes passionate about human rights in regard to women, children, and others who are marginalized or ill-treated. “I have a vision,” he says. “It is that throughout the entire world people will be treated with justice and fairness.”
A member of the IRLA, Shammout shares its concerns in Jordan and surrounding countries. Last year he played a key role in organizing a symposium in Amman on behalf of the IRLA. Held at the Amman College of Al-Balqa Applied University, it featured speakers from Jordan and from the West, and addressed the topic “Teaching Respect for Religions.”
The symposium attracted more than 100 leaders and many university students. The Prime Minister of Jordan, Marouf Suleiman al-Bakhit, sent the opening address, which was read by Jiryis Samawy, secretary-general of Jordan’s Ministry of Culture.
In 2010, Shammout helped the IRLA organize its annual Meeting of Experts. This function in Amman marked the first time the IRLA had met in the Middle East.
Shammout’s address to the congress will focus on the relation of Islam to religious liberty.