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Today, in New Uzbekistan, special attention is being paid to the in-depth study of the scholarly and spiritual heritage of our great ancestors and to the broad promotion, on the international stage, of the ideas of humanism, peace and enlightenment embodied in Islamic civilization. The initiatives put forward by President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev in September 2017 at the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly marked the beginning of a new stage in the study and wide promotion of the rich scholarly and spiritual heritage of Islamic civilization.

In particular, these initiatives, aimed at demonstrating the great contribution of the scholars of the Central Asian Renaissance to the development of world civilization, preserving and studying the scholarly heritage of great muhaddiths such as Imam Bukhari, and advancing the principles of “Enlightenment and Religious Tolerance” at the international level, are being consistently implemented today.

Conveying the ideas of peace, tolerance, knowledge and enlightenment inherent in Islam to the global community is becoming not only the task of a particular state, but also a common responsibility of the entire Muslim world. Uzbekistan is emerging as an initiator of this international cooperation. Indeed, as the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan has emphasized, the in-depth study of the scholarly and spiritual heritage left by our great ancestors and its use for the upbringing of young people and the development of society are among the priority tasks of New Uzbekistan.

For this purpose, major educational, scholarly and spiritual institutions, such as the Center of Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan and the Imam Bukhari Memorial Complex, have been established in our country in order to study in depth the rich scholarly and spiritual heritage of Islamic civilization and introduce it widely to the global community. Today, these complexes are becoming not only important centers of our national spiritual life, but also significant platforms for international academic cooperation, research and the exchange of enlightenment.

As a noble continuation of these noble goals, on 7-11 July of the current year, the international forum “The First International Islamic Civilization Forum: The Path of Peace, Tolerance and Enlightenment” is being organized in the cities of Tashkent, Samarkand and Termez.

This prestigious forum is being organized in cooperation with the Islamic Civilization Center in Uzbekistan, the Committee on Religious Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the Imam Maturidi, Imam Bukhari and Imam Termizi international scientific research centers, the Muslim Board of Uzbekistan, the International Islamic Academy of Uzbekistan, and the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization – ICESCO.

Representatives from more than 50 countries, including state and public figures, ministers, muftis, prominent ulama, academics, researchers, heads of museums and libraries, international organizations and mass media representatives, are expected to take part in the Forum. In total, nearly 300 foreign scholars, political, cultural and religious figures are expected to attend the event.

In particular, the event is expected to be attended by Dr. Salim M. AlMalik, Director-General of ICESCO; Mohammed Al-Issa, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League; Prince El Hassan bin Talal of Jordan; Ravil Gaynutdin, Mufti of the Muslims of Russia; Kubanychbek Omuraliev, Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States; Sultan Raev, Secretary General of TURKSOY; Mahmud Erol Kılıç, Director General of IRCICA; Sheikh-ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazadeh, Chairman of the Caucasus Muslims Office; and many other distinguished guests.

It should be noted that the main goal of the “The First International Islamic Civilization Forum: The Path of Peace, Tolerance and Enlightenment” is to reveal the true essence of Islamic civilization, demonstrate its great contribution to science, culture and spiritual development, and widely promote the ideas of peace, tolerance and enlightenment in the modern world.

The Forum will also serve to introduce Uzbekistan’s rich historical and scholarly heritage to the international academic community, present the Islamic Civilization Center as a global scholarly and educational platform, and widely highlight the results of reforms being implemented in the religious and educational sphere.

This event is also an important preparatory stage for special presentations dedicated to Islamic civilization and the heritage of our ancestors, which are planned to be held this year, at the initiative of the Head of our state, at the UN headquarters in New York and Geneva, as well as at UNESCO’s office in Paris.

The main events of the Forum will take place at the Islamic Civilization Center in Uzbekistan. At the opening ceremony, a congratulatory message from the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the participants of the Forum will be read out.

Within the framework of the forum, 11 plenary sessions will be organized, during which the following issues will be discussed:

-       the role of the Center of Islamic Civilization as an international scholarly and educational platform;

˗       reforms being implemented in the religious and educational sphere in New Uzbekistan;

˗     the ideas of the Third Renaissance and their spiritual foundations;

˗     the contribution of Turkic peoples to the development of Islamic civilization;

˗     scholarly heritage in the fields of hadith, fiqh, kalam and theology;

˗     issues of preserving, studying and digitizing manuscripts;

˗     prospects for research on Islamic art and cultural heritage;

- the importance of education and enlightenment in the development of civilization.

The main working day of the Forum will also include a number of media events and presentations. In particular:

-         “The Center of Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan: A Global Platform of Heritage, Science and Enlightenment”.

-         Presentation of the book-album “Shavkat Mirziyoyev – An Enlightened Leader”, published in cooperation with IRCICA.

-       Presentation of the book-album “The Highest Point of Brotherhood and Alliance”.

-       Presentation of the book-album “Sahih al-Bukhari – The Book of the Ummah”.

-       Presentation of the book-album “Eternal Friendship, Scholarly Cooperation, Enlightened Future: The Path of IRCICA and Uzbekistan”.

-       Announcement of the new edition of “The Scientific Atlas of Islamic Civilization”.

-       Presentation of the book “Abu Isa al-Tirmidhi. The Virtues of the Prophet”.

-       Announcement-presentation of the project for the second edition of the Katta Langar Qur’an.

-       Announcement-presentation of the project for the facsimile edition of the “Marcel Collection” from the collection of the National Library of Russia.

-       Presentation of publication projects entitled “114 Qur’ans”, “Katta Langar Qur’an” and “Qur’ans of Uzbekistan”.

-       Presentation of the publication “The 99 Beautiful Names of Allah”.

-       Presentation of “INKSIGHT AI – an intelligent model for recognizing and reading manuscript texts in Arabic script”.

-       Presentation of the digital project “Digital Images of Historical Figures”.

-       Presentation of the inclusive project “Museum of Equal Opportunities: Sign Language in the Digital Space”.

-       Presentation of the virtual project “Museum Without Borders: A Journey into the World of Historical and Cultural Heritage”.

-       Presentation of the new project “1001 Inventions from Uzbekistan to the World” mobile children’s exhibition.

-       Presentation of the modern analytical laboratory of the Center of Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan.

-       Events such as the presentation “The Return of Heritage: A Program for the Repatriation of Cultural Assets with the Support of the OSCE” are expected to take place during the day.

At the final plenary session of the Forum, new initiatives aimed at developing international cooperation in the field of Islamic civilization will be discussed, and future areas of cooperation will be defined.

Within the framework of the Forum, four international scientific conferences dedicated to the heritage of great scholars will be held.

At the Imam Bukhari Memorial Complex in Samarkand Region, a conference on the theme “Imam al-Bukhari’s Al-Jami al-Sahih – The Book of the Ummah” will be organized. It will discuss Imam Bukhari’s scholarly heritage, the criteria for selecting hadiths, and the place and significance of Sahih al-Bukhari in world scholarship.

At the conference on the theme “The Heritage of Imam Maturidi – The Foundation of Moderation and Reason in Islamic Civilization”, views will be exchanged on the teachings of Imam Maturidi, the scholarly heritage of the ulama of the Maturidi school, and the significance of this doctrine today.

At the conference “The Termez Hadith School: The Heritage of Scholars and Modern Research”, to be held in the city of Termez, the scholarly significance of Imam Termizi and the Termez school of hadith studies, the heritage of scholars from Termez, and the results of modern research will be presented.

Participants of the Forum will familiarize themselves with the museum exposition of the Center of Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan and the Imam Bukhari Innovative Museum, and will also visit the pilgrimage sites of Imam Bukhari, Imam Maturidi, Hakim Termizi, Sultan Saodat and Makhdumi A’zam.

Within the framework of the events, exhibitions of rare manuscripts and historical artifacts, scholarly presentations, cultural programs and official meetings will be held.

At the conclusion of the Forum, initiatives will be put forward to further expand international cooperation in the study and promotion of the heritage of Islamic civilization, strengthen ties between scholarly institutions, and implement joint projects on the preservation and digitization of manuscripts.

It is also planned that, at the conclusion of the Forum, the Tashkent Declaration of the First International Islamic Civilization Forum will be adopted, the “Roadmap” for the development of the Center of Islamic Civilization in Uzbekistan for 2027-2030 will be approved, and memoranda of cooperation and agreements will be signed between international organizations, scientific research centers and cultural institutions.

As the main event of the Forum, an address is expected to be sent to the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan on behalf of the participants of the forum.

In short, The First International Islamic Civilization Forum will become an important international platform that serves to introduce Uzbekistan’s rich historical and scholarly heritage more widely to the world community, strengthen dialogue among civilizations, and broadly promote the noble values of Islam based on peace, tolerance, knowledge and enlightenment.