Ahlan wa sahlan bikum.

It is a privilege to welcome you to KARAMAH: The Dialogue of Civilisations at the Heart of Human Dignity, here in Fes under the auspices of the World Association for Culture and Heritage.

We gather in a city where knowledge, ethics and cultural life have long been closely interwoven. Fes, with its enduring scholarly traditions and its role as a centre of learning, offers a historical and living setting in which questions of human responsibility, intellectual inquiry and social meaning have been continuously explored across generations.

Before the Enlightenment, ideas of human dignity emerged in different intellectual traditions. In Stoic philosophy, dignity was linked to reason, self-mastery and the shared rational capacity of all humans. In the Renaissance, it shifted towards human freedom and self-formation, with individuals seen as able to shape their own moral and intellectual lives. Together, these traditions formed early foundations for modern ideas of dignity.

Immanuel Kant offered one of the most important modern formulations of human dignity from the Age of Enlightenment. He argued that every human being has an inherent worth based on moral reason. This worth does not depend on status or circumstance, and it means that each person must be treated as an end in themselves, never only as a means. This idea remains a key foundation of the modern understanding of human dignity.

The French intellectual tradition has also played an important role in shaping contemporary understandings of human dignity. From the Enlightenment onwards, French thought contributed to the articulation of universal rights, linking human dignity to the principles of

liberty, equality and fraternity / "Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité"

This legacy has been further expressed through modern legal and institutional frameworks, particularly in the development of international human rights discourse, where dignity serves as a foundational principle. It reflects a sustained effort to translate philosophical ideals into shared civic and legal norms that can support cooperation between societies.

In the twentieth century, Martin Luther King Jr. exemplified how dignity can be realised in civic life through non-violence, justice and the affirmation of equal moral worth. His work demonstrates how the idea of dignity can be translated into collective ethical practice, shaping societies through principles of respect and inclusion.

Nelson Mandela further illustrated how dignity can serve as a foundation for political renewal and reconciliation. His leadership reflects how recognition of human worth can contribute to processes of social cohesion, enabling societies to move towards shared futures grounded in mutual understanding and respect.

In contemporary thought, Amartya Sen links human dignity to real freedoms, what people are actually able to do and to be. This shifts the focus to development, education and social opportunity. Martha Nussbaum builds on this by identifying the basic conditions needed for dignity in everyday life, including education, bodily integrity and participation in society.

Human dignity is therefore universal in language, but conditional in recognition.

Within this broader intellectual arc, Fes holds a distinctive place. It is a city where knowledge has long been understood not only as an intellectual pursuit but also as an ethical one. Institutions such as Al-Qarawiyyin reflect a tradition in which learning brings together reason, reflection and responsibility, shaping both individual and collective life.

KARAMAH therefore brings together a universal idea shaped across centuries of thought and practice, in a city that continues to reflect the enduring relationship between knowledge, culture and human development.

As we open this forum and program, may it provide a space for thoughtful exchange and shared reflection on how human dignity can continue to inform cultural understanding, strengthen cooperation and support the flourishing of human potential “inshallah”.

Please allow me to end my address in french:

Je vous remercie et vous souhaite des échanges d’une grande

richesse intellectuelle et humaine

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