AMMAN, January 6 (JT) - HRH Prince Hassan on Wednesday said the right path to the sound rebuilding of Iraq is through religious and sectarian dialogue that contributes to setting up a democracy based on respect of other sects and faiths.

Religion should be a tool of construction and should be dealt with as a positive value that helps build a democratic society, the Prince said in his address at an international conference “Iraq: Notions of Self and the Other Since the Late Ottoman Era,” which opened yesterday for three days at the Amman Marriott Hotel.

The three-day conference is organized by the Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies (RIIFS) and the Japan Foundation (JPF) in cooperation with the American Academic Research Institute in Iraq and the Goethe Institute in Amman.

Prince Hassan, who is chairman of the RIIFS board of trustees, said focus should primarily be placed on mentalities, hearts and minds.

Iraq has always been one Iraq with all the various identities it consists of, with each being an integral part of the collective identity of the country.

Citing history, Prince Hassan said that West Asia's Arabs have striven to build an Arab state built on pluralism, a moderate version of Islam, people's representations in decision-making bodies and public freedoms.

He cited King Faisal I's struggle in building modern Iraq, succeeding with the help of the Iraqi national movement to build the country within its present borders in about 10 years.