COPHIBU and IETV groups call for tolerance among Burundians

Burundi philosophers association (COPHIBU) and the Initiative for education on tolerance and non-violence –IETV have joined the world this Thursday 17 November in celebrating the day dedicated to tolerance and philosophy. They call for peaceful coexistence among Burundians.

Jean Sévérin Ndayisenga, COPHIBU representative (left), Islon Ninkingiye, IETV Chairperson (middle) and Joséphine Ntahobari, UNESCO representative (right)

Islon Ninkingiye, Legal representative of the initiative for education on tolerance and non-violence-IETV, has stressed acts of violence currently perpetrated in Burundi and the acts of victimization and manipulation of unemployed youth by politicians into different forms of violence and human rights violations.

“Burundians must put forth tolerance in their way towards reconciliation and peaceful resolution of the current sociopolitical problems”, says Ninkingiye.

Jean Sévérin Ndayisenga, Legal representative of the association of Burundian philosophers-COPHIBU, says the World Philosophy Day is an occasion to emphasize the importance of critical thinking in the understanding of contemporary transformations of the society.

“Changes in our daily lives push us to think up new ways of coexisting and building more decent societies by respecting human values”, he says.

For Joséphine Ntahobari, UNESCO representative, the concept of tolerance stands for a daily commitment for people to seek links that connect the entire human race.

Adolphe Sururu, Expert in non-violent communication, says humankind has always used force to find solutions to daily faced problems, the reason why the achieved results only last for short.

The World Philosophy Day was first proclaimed in Paris at UNESCO headquarters on 21 November 2002 and is celebrated every 3rd Thursday of November. The International Day for Tolerance was proclaimed on 16 November 1995 on the 50th anniversary of UNESCO creation by member states at the 28th session of the general Conference, to generate public awareness of the dangers of intolerance.