The Minister of State for Home Affairs, Shri Kiren Rijiju left for Tokyo, Japan to attend the Symposium on ‘Asia’ Values and Democracy’ on 19th January, 2016. The Japan Foundation and Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), India are co-organizers of the symposium in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan.
The symposium is a follow up to the “Hindu-Buddhist Conference for conflict Avoidance and Environmental Consciousness” that was organized by VIF in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation and Tokyo Foundation in New Delhi in the first week of September, 2015. This initiative has come from the talks that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had with Prime Minister Shri Shinzo Abe of Japan in which they identified conflict and environment as the two major challenges facing the world .
The symposium in Tokyo will be attended by approximately 600 people representing 13 countries. Shri Kiren Rijiju will deliver the inaugural address. The Prime Minister of Japan Shri Shinzo Abe will address the inaugural function, where Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi’s video message will be played. The symposium will attract renowned Asian political, social, academic, and religious leaders to explore the values that have formed the basis of democracy and inter-state relations in Asia. Shri Kiren Rijiju is also scheduled to visit the ancient Buddhist temple of Todaji at Nara, Japan on 20th January, before departure for India on 21st January, 2016.