KUCHING: There is a need for people to understand that there are no eastern or western values but only human values, Datuk Amar Puan Sri Laila Taib, the wife of the Chief Minister said yesterday.

IN HARMONY: Laila (seated centre) with (from left) organising chairman Iskandar Abdul Kadir Merican, Junaidi, Datin Feona Wan Junaidi and others at the forum.

She believed that values were a universal matter and so terms such as Eastern, Western, Southern and Northern values should be questioned.

“Countries speak of eastern and western values. Why? We are not different. It is our circumstances that are different,” she said when officiating at a Interfaith Forum at Sipec here.

She said having come from two different religious backgrounds — Muslim and Russian Orthodox Christian — and interacting with a mixed group of friends, confirmed her conclusion even more about values.

“So when people talk about Eastern and Western values, it’s just ignorance,” she said, adding that all religions taught universal values.

She said even if there were a difference, it was very small and the difference could actually bring people closer together to find out what they actually had in common.

“This is what the objective of the forum is for the different faiths, to converge and discover similarities among each other besides knowing the problems they experience,” Laila added.

She said by sitting down and discussing things, they would have better understanding of each other’s faith besides fostering closer bond.

She said it was crucial given the challenges faced in the modern times in a borderless world in which unscrupulous group of people tried to do damages to others through a click of the button.

“A similar kind of problem that exists in Sarawak is the poison pen letter problem which would normally happen around election time,” she said.

She said it was unfortunate that while some were trying to help others, there tended to be others who were out to twist matters into a negative thing.

Another was the spate of robbery cases in the state which left society in fear, she pointed out.

Earlier, she said Sarawak was blessed because it did not have a majority race of religion unlike in other countries which resulted in the minority group being sidelined and at times, displaced.

“We want to have a society where each individual is cherished no matter what background he or she comes from. Therefore, this forum serves as a great platform to understand and support one another with a common objective — that is to spread compassion among the people in Sarawak. Sept 11 should serve as a wakeup call to all of us and we must learn to cooperate with each other or we will destroy the world. We have to love one another,” she stressed.

The one-day forum, the first of its kind in the state, was organised by the Ex-Police Association, Sarawak branch in collaboration with Yayasan Dakwah Islamiah (Sarawak Zone).

Leaders from the various religions, including Islam, Christianity, Buddhism and Sikhism attended the forum.

Meanwhile, Ex-Police Association, Sarawak branch chairman Datuk Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said the forum was to assist the different faiths in the problems they faced and to foster better understanding among them.

He said it was vital as most of the problems the world faced today were associated with religion and culture.

However, he was quick to add that in some ways, the problems were actually instigated for a different motive, mostly for business and politics. He said the media also played a role and just as the media created hype about the world problems, they too should promote solidarity and brotherhood among the world population.

Junaidi believed that all religions should have the right to explain their faith for the betterment of everybody and it should not be taken as a competition to determine whose religion was the best.

“We should hold on to our own beliefs but be in harmony with others at the same time,” he said.