FLYING outside town hall, in the centre of Sturt Street, is a symbol to celebrate global peace and tolerance. Ballarat Interfaith Network spokeswoman Margaret Lenan Ellis said the group’s flag-raising ceremony on Thursday, marking World Interfaith Harmony Week, had timely relevance each year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
“Fortunately in Ballarat there isn’t the dissent that there is in some nearby towns and cities,” Ms Lenan Ellis said. “This ceremony is echoing the whole philosophy to generate peace and harmony for all different religions and those with no particular religion at all.”
Ballarat’s Anglican bishop Garry Weatherill was key note speaker for the ceremony, which also featured works from a combined women’s group in Israel and Pakistan who were also celebrating World Interfaith Harmony Week. Representatives from the Islamic Society of Ballarat were also present for the flag-raising.
World Interfaith Harmony Week was proposed and unanimously adopted by the United Nations in 2010 to be celebrated annually in the first week of February.
