Bandar Seri Begawan - A total of 370 Islamic youths from the Southeast Asian region will participate in the Islamic Southeast Asia Youth Conference held for the first time in Brunei Darussalam on January 12 to 14.

The conference carries the theme "Perpaduan Belia Islam Menjana Kecermerlangan" or "Unity of Islamic Youths Toward Excellence" and is organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports in conjunction with the National Day Silver Jubilee celebrations.

This was revealed by Haji Md Mahdi bin Pehin Dato Haji Abdul Rahman, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Religious Affairs and chairperson of the event, during a media conference at the ministry's building in Berakas.

Among the objectives that Haji Md Mahdi outlined was to inculcate the progress and experience in the development of Islam among the countries in the Southeast Asian region.

According to the chairperson, the conference is a great opportunity for participants to exchange ideas and discuss ways to spread the teaching of [slam among youths from different charters and careers in accordance with the holy al-Quran.

Touching on the theme for the conference, Haji Md Mahdi said that it relates to the theme from last year's National Day celebration, `Maturity as a Nation' and theme from important Islamic celebration for Brunei in 2009, `Maturity as a Nation with Zikir'.
Haji Md Mahdi stressed the importance of the theme as the roles for Islamic youths are to foster closer relations as well as team spirit, even though they have differences in opinions or perceptions, to strengthen fellowship and unite the Southeast Asian counties.

A total of 19 conference papers will be presented, including one prime working paper, eight main working papers and 10 papers on on various fields, including culture, civilisation, education as well as science and technology.

He also revealed that the prime working papers entitled "Perpaduan Belia Islam Menjana Kecermerlangan" will be presented by Pehin Orang Kaya Paduka Seri Utama Dato Paduka Seri Setia Haji Awg Salim bin Haji Besar, the Syariah High Court Judge.

Imam Shady Al-suleiman will also make a comeback on Brunei soil as a guest presenter. Imam Shady will present his working paper entitled "Sydney Muslim Youth Development Programme: Building Tomorrows Leaders Today".

With the upcoming Islamic Youth Southeast Asia Youth Conference, Haji Md Mahdi hopes that it will boost the country's image on the international scene towards the greatness of Islam. The other participating countries are Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam and Laos.

On the third day of the conference, the participants will be given a tour of places of interest in Brunei.-- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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