(Bali, Indonesia, 23 November 2012)

1. We, members of parliament, spiritual leaders, and representatives of the religious communities and denominations, gathered in Bali on the occasion of the Parliamentary Event on Interfaith Dialogue recognize that all religious beliefs and faiths can make valuable contributions to civilizations, to promoting  peace and compassion and tolerance among humankind;
2. We firmly recognize cultural and religious diversity as a fact of global life that can contribute to global wisdom and play a major role in enhancing social bonds among different nations, societies, and ethnic groups, thus, they should be acknowledged and respected within and among all societies and civilizations;
3. We affirm interfaith and intercultural activities as tools to advance human welfare, to resolve common challenges, as well as to encourage and promote respect, dialogue, and cooperation at the local, national, regional and international levels, and among different cultures, civilizations and peoples in order to promote international peace, stability, and security;
4. At this important juncture, we are aware of persistent challenges in promoting a consistent understanding of human rights and fundamental freedoms which threatens peace and cooperation;
5. We recall the purpose and principles enshrined in the United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the IPU Resolution on Ensuring Respect for and Peaceful Co-existence between All Religious Communities and Beliefs in a Globalized World, the IPU Quebec Declaration on Citizenship, Identity and Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in a Globalized World, the PUIC Palembang Declaration, and other relevant international instruments that recognize human rights and develop interaction among people of different faiths and culture on the basis of respect  and mutual understanding;
6. We deeply understand that what some civilizations and cultures see as the exercise and enjoyment of fundamental rights including freedom of opinion and expression can be regarded by other faiths or beliefs to be offensive;
7. We reiterate that ethical values which can be drawn from religion are needed to deal with the problems of our people in matters of inequality and poverty but that peace, stability and security can be compromised by all forms of violence, intimidation and coercion motivated by religious intolerance;
8. We believe that parliament as a pillar of democracy holds a pivotal role to protect the rights of the minority and respect the rights of the majority, to express the aspiration of the people with its diversity of characters, ideologies, and views through the political process of enacting legislation, therefore, parliament can help to facilitate understanding and cooperation among states and people as well as to promote dialogue, tolerance, mutual respect, and understanding among civilizations, helping to prevent and counter related conflicts;
9. We deem that parliament shall foster initiatives to promote interfaith and intercultural harmony through cooperation by which they share their common interests, inter-alia by:

•    Exploring ways and sharing their best practices to reduce the growing tension between people resulting in acts of violence on the basis of religion or belief;
•    Building the awareness of the World Interfaith Harmony Week which was proclaimed by UN Resolution No A/RES/65/5 in their countries respectively as a way to promote harmony between all people regardless of their faith;
•    Developing a network of parliamentarians who share common interest on interfaith and interreligious activities nationally and globally;
•    Engaging active civil society participation through interfaith, and intercultural forums to build an understanding of tolerance and coexistence;
•    Encouraging effective national legislations to implement the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (UN 1966).

1. We recognize that the contribution of the media to develop a better understanding among people of different faiths, religions, beliefs, and cultures is important and, therefore, we acknowledge the role of media and the exercise of the freedom of expression in such a way as not to incite hatred, racism, xenophobia or human rights violations including denigration of religions and the religious symbols;
2. We also recognise that the media has the ethical responsibility to consider the potential for some communities to react negatively to published material and the responsibility of the leadership of those communities, to encourage respect and tolerance for world views that differ from their own;
3. We congratulate the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia for initiating this Parliamentary Event on Interfaith Dialogue and express our hope that it will bear fruit of greater understanding and acceptance among people of different faiths, religions, beliefs, and cultures.