On Wednesday 14 February, the Edward Cadbury Centre for the Public Understanding of Religion hosted a one-day symposium on ‘Islamic values, human rights’.

The symposium, chaired by Dr Andrew Davies and Liam Byrne MP (MP for Birmingham Hodge Hill, and representing the Council of Europe), was an opportunity for dialogue between experts working in the countering extremism space. Discussion focused on the overlap between Islamic and European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) values, core shared religious and theological values, and their symmetry with ECHR ethics. 

Speaker at the symposium

Delegates came from a variety of local and national organisations, including think-tanks and faith-based organisations (the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, Faith Matters and Connect Futures), independent research institutes (the Institute for Ismaili Studies, London and the Al-Mahdi Institute, Birmingham), the Ministry of Defence, the UK armed forces, and academics from the University of Birmingham, including Professor Jocelyne Cesari, Dr David Cheetham and Dr Yafa Shanneik.

The discussions and outcomes from the day will inform work being undertaken by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on Terrorism and guide future preventative work on counter- and alternative narratives of extremism.

Speakers at the symposium
Speaker at the symposium