Dear chairman El Reedy, Ladies and Gentlemen

I will address you in the language most spoken in the world today, namely English as spoken by foreigners.

First of all I would like to thank ambassador El Reedy, chairman of the Mubarak Public Library, for creating this occasion, and inviting me to speak to this prominent group of people. A month ago I had interesting talks with ambassador El Reedy in Oslo. He then challenged me to share with you some thoughts on the complex matter of justice and peace in a world of many cultures and religions.

Two days ago, I had the privilege to address the conference in connection with the Beacon for Freedom of Expression database at the Library of Alexandria. One of the aspects I touched upon there, is how important libraries are as arenas for the exercise of freedom of expression. I feel ambassador El Reedy's invitation to me to speak freely on the important matter of dialogue between civilisations, is an outstanding gesture. The Mubarak Public Library thus relays the bright signal from the Beacon in Alexandria, that libraries are essential for the exercise of freedom of expression.

I will now give a brief outline of the topics of this lecture. One of my main messages is that humanity is one. Men and women, boys and girls, young and old, we are all members of the same humanity. This means that every individual also represents humanity. On this background, I will try to say something about the function of society. A society needs to develop according to the needs of its citizens. The inherent freedom of every human shows the need to develop a liberal society where everybody is free to unfold his or her life. However this freedom must not limit the same right of other people. Democracy is probably a good example of such a liberal society. Dialogue is an essential property of humanity, both as individuals and societies. Without dialogue you cannot know yourself, and certainly not the other. A dialogue between civilisations is humanity taking place on a macro level, and requires true freedom of expression just like dialogues on other levels. A fair dialogue also enables and secures cultural diversity and respect for differences. Without respect for differences, violence may easily occur.

This lecture is of course an example of this on-going dialogue, although only one-way right now. Speaking from my perspective, I will therefore use relevant features of my society and culture, and argue for their advantages. But please don't think for a minute that I believe my country and culture is perfect – I am pointing at some principles and methods that seem useful in the process of developing society. In my view, all societies are developing. It would be impossible to think that the present state of any society is how it should remain forever.

First, allow me to point out some fundamentals. I believe that society is made by and for humans, not the other way around. I will never accept a society that sees individuals as means to society's goals. This is of course self-evident, as society cannot exist without its citizens. But sometimes we need to remind ourselves that society is a tool we develop together. We do this in order to create arenas to develop our human abilities and possibilities. I take The Universal Declaration of Human Rights for granted, though I am well aware of the objections that the declaration is a western approach without universal validity. Well, such objections make use of the rights they attack, especially the freedom of expression.

The basic idea is that man is free. Together we develop society to develop humanity. This helps clarify which authority and tasks our society and its institutions should have. I am of course talking in theory and in principle here. Human rights are ideals, that guide our developing processes, both as individuals and as citizens of developing societies. However theoretical my account may be on this point, these questions must be addressed on the background of all the violence happening around the world.

Now, if we consider the universal human rights together with the notion that society is a tool for human development, we can draw some fundamental conclusions.

There are some fields of human activity that society with its authorities must keep its hands off.

And there are some tasks society should indeed work hard to fulfil.

European history describes the painful process of division between religion and politics. This splitting up of powers left people free to choose their religion freely and started a process of developing liberal societies. A liberal society in this context means a society that leaves its citizens free to explore their abilities, and provides arenas for the free exercise of their resources. But a liberal society also implies that the citizens have deep responsibilities through democratic participation. Remember, society is the tool of development by and for the citizens. Freedom doesn't mean that anything goes. Freedom is being responsible. A person can act freely as long as she preserves the freedom of others.

Pausing a moment to reflect on the excellence of democracy, allow me to quote Sir Winston Churchill: "It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government – except all the others that have been tried."

Freedom of expression is an integral part of the liberal society. In Norway we are currently revising the constitutional protection of freedom of expression and information. The Norwegian government recently wrote in a report to the Parliament about the scope and the limit of this freedom. The starting point was the idea that freedom of speech protects three vital processes in society : the independent seeking of truth , open debate on matters of public concern in a democracy , and the individual’s freedom to form his or her own opinions by conveying and receiving information and ideas.

Put in simple terms, the idea is that persons who enjoy the right to speak their mind freely, will learn to respect the opinions of other people. That again will correct their own opinions and thereby making them able to take part in society in a constructive manner. Freedom of expression in this context also helps defusing fundamentalism. And this is probably an effective way to avoid people detonating bombs to make their opinion heard. Society benefits from freedom of expression. It helps moderating extreme views. Securing the freedom of humanity is the purpose of society. Freedom of expression is one important aspect, as it will help the citizens mature.

As I mentioned, libraries are vital in securing freedom of expression. Libraries must therefore be managed accordingly. Everybody must be welcomed, and the collection and availability of documents should not be censored by religious, traditional, private or political authorities.

In the perspective of dialogue between peoples, nations, cultures and civilizations, libraries are necessary as sources of knowledge and information on the historical, ideological, political and cultural fields. Libraries are actual places to go and find out about yourself and your history, to find accounts on your background, to explore identities. Libraries are also sources for information on foreign people and cultures. By adopting modern information technologies, libraries are stepping into Cyberspace. In societies where access to personal computers is limited, modern libraries, like the Mubarak Public Library, are very important. They provide gateways for exchange and creativity. Libraries expose a broad range of cultural values and identities. The new information technology serves to increase dialogue and communication between cultures, and helps making censorship an impossible mission.

Having admitted people freedom of expression, they can investigate, gather and express their identities, both as individuals and as members of a group. The process of identification is dynamic – for instance, think of your own development from childhood to parent, from teen-ager to voter, from reader to writer. As part of the developing process, we must welcome and nourish diversity of identities, cultural diversity, linguistic diversity, political diversity and so on.

Internationally, cultural diversity has become a recognised public policy objective. The need to safeguard cultural diversity is a widely shared concern. The issue is high on the agenda of a number of international organisations. I need mention only Unesco's Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity as a milestone in the recognition of cultural aspects in the international discussion of globalisation. The World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in 2002 recognised that respect for cultural diversity is essential for sustainable development. Cultural diversity is so important because it promotes social cohesion, nation building, identity and pride. In particular, small cultures and languages are vulnerable in our globalised era. States and governments have a responsibility and right to promote cultural and linguistic diversity. It is a question of creating arenas for expression, for instance by facilitating the production and spreading of non-commercial cultural products.

The decision of the last Unesco General Conference to develop an international convention on the diversity of cultural expressions was important. I believe the main objective of a convention is to ensure the right of states to adopt a cultural policy to promote and protect a diversity of cultural expressions. Norway will participate actively in the unesco process towards a convention, which hopefully will be adopted already at the next General Conference in 2005.

I return to my fundamental message mentioned earlier: Humanity is one. This is what makes it possible for people from different cultures to communicate at all. And needless to say, there can be no dialogue between cultures without cultural diversity. The dialogue allows for mutual enrichment – provided we all enjoy the freedom of expression in every field. We need to safeguard our identities, but at the same time to realise that identity is dynamic. Identity is our reflective response to a changing world. In our time of globalization, both cultures and religions have to adapt to answer the new, global challenges.

However, I think neither culture nor religion are the only, perhaps not even the real causes for conflict around the world. It seems to me that religious affiliation is often used as a pretext for conflicts. The conflict itself may be related to access to natural resources, or political or economical disagreement. Violence is a complex matter, and cannot be reduced to single components. Dialogue also between religions can help defusing violent situations. By speaking to each other, we can sort out what the conflict is really about, instead of using emotional or societal factors as fuel for violence. And remember, dialogue gives the right to speak, and the obligation to listen.

Dear fellows, you have been listening to me now for a long time, as I have spoken of a series of interrelated topics. Some of them I have treated in their principal meaning, while others have been touched upon in a broader context. We all know these are topics of fundamental importance to our common future on this planet.

My main objective with this lecture has been to emphasize the unity of man, and the precious freedoms, rights and responsibilities of citizens in their society. With freedom of expression as one starting point, I have argued for the need to develop a liberal society, and for the need of establishing arenas for democratic participation. A society that provides good communications infrastructure on its citizens is a society that welcomes dialogue. Dialogue is a meeting of different perspectives, based on mutual respect. This respect is a key to allowing and stimulating cultural and other diversity. And again, diversity is a condition for life. Allowing opposition defuses conflicts, but can cause society to change from its old ways. Freedom of man and the liberal society are my fundamentals. Culture and religion are of a higher order, thriving in a free society.

Once again I sincerely thank chairman El Reedy for inviting me to speak in this generous forum. I feel confident that under his leadership, Egyptians will enjoy widening public access to progressive library services, which in its turn secures and develops Egypt's place in the international community, and in our hearts.

Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen.