Eventos Pasados

On the 16^th  and 17^th of June, we held in Madrid, at the Palacio de Parcent (headquarters of the Ministry of the Presidency, Justice and Parliamentary Relations), the 5th meeting of the network Dialogue between ministerial offices responsible for religious affairs, an informal platform for European cooperation launched in 2022 by the Office for Religious Affairs of the Austrian Federal Chancellery.

The meeting brought together ministerial representatives and public officials from seventeen European countries with responsibilities in the areas of religious freedom and relations with religious communities, consolidating this forum as a space for exchanging experiences, analysing public policies and strengthening institutional cooperation.

The first day was devoted to dialogue with the religious traditions present in Spain. Representatives of various faiths shared their perspectives on the current state of religious freedom and the main challenges facing religious communities in an increasingly diverse social context. The second day focused on analysing models of governance relating to religious freedom and on the exchange of experiences amongst the participating countries. The Spanish model for the protection of religious freedom and multilevel cooperation with faith communities was presented, as was the role of the Pluralism and Coexistence Foundation in supporting public administrations in the governance of religious diversity. Furthermore, the national delegations shared their regulatory frameworks, administrative structures and public policies, enabling the identification of common challenges and different approaches to addressing them. The meeting concluded with several thematic working sessions devoted to issues of particular relevance to public policy on religious freedom, including the relationship between legal systems and religious or ideological beliefs, the various models of recognition and multilevel cooperation between states and religious communities, and the presence of religious expressions in the public sphere.

The meeting helped to strengthen cooperation between the relevant European authorities and to promote joint reflection on current challenges relating to religious freedom and the governance of diversity in Europe.