Participants of the VI International Multiculturalism Winter School from 16 countries visited Nij settlement of the Gabala region.

The VI International Winter Multiculturalism School entitled "Dialogue among Civilizations: New Appeals", which is held on the recommendation of President Ilham Aliyev and with the organizational support of the Baku International Multiculturalism Center, continued its work in Gabala on February 14. First, the participants of the winter school visited the Nij settlement of the region. The local and foreign youth gathered in the conference hall of the Albanian-Udi Church "Chotari" in the Nij settlement listened to a lecture on "Religious diversity in Azerbaijan". It was brought to the attention that starting from ancient times religious beliefs have been formed on the territory of Azerbaijan. It was noted that after 1993, extensive conditions for propaganda and dissemination of religion were created in our country; the Constitution enshrined the equality of all religions and practices before the law. During the reign of the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev many religious and historical monuments were restored, special attention was paid to religious enlightenment. Today, this work is successfully continued by the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev. Then, foreign students who met with the local population in the Nij settlement got closer acquainted with the residential place. During the walk, information was brought to the attention of students related to the history of the Albanian-Udi Church "Chotari" in the Nij settlement and the Udi people. It was noted that the Udin "Orayın" Cultural Center functions in the Nij settlement. On the territory of the settlement there is the Albanian church and other ancient historical monuments. For primary school students, the Udi language is taught. Then the students visited the Albanian "Chotari" Church. It was brought to the attention that the number of udins living in the world is about 10 thousand. More than 4,000 Udins live in the Nij settlement, with a population of more than six thousand. Udins in the settlement for 2,500 years keep their language, religion, traditions and customs. Representatives of the Udi community told students about the conditions created in Azerbaijan for the performance of religious rituals, noted that they feel the state's attention and concern: "Under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev in Azerbaijan, state-religious relations are regulated in accordance with democratic principles and norms of international law, and freedom of religion is ensured for each person. The preservation of the rich cultural heritage in Azerbaijan deserves praise. With the restoration of the church of Nij settlement the Udins celebrated their sacred festivities with dignity, all of which are a graphic example of tolerant traditions and a multicultural mood in Azerbaijan serving as a model to the whole world." Then, a mountain walk was organized along the cable road for Winter School participants in the "Tufandag" Summer-Winter Recreation and Tourism Complex. It should be noted that about 30 students from the leading universities of Azerbaijan, Austria, Afghanistan, Bulgaria, Estonia, Georgia, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Montenegro, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Great Britain and Ukraine take part in the VI International Winter Multiculturalism School. The lectures are held for the participants of the Winter School on the multicultural situation in Azerbaijan, a tolerant atmosphere, religious and ethnic differences, peaceful coexistence of representatives of different nations and various confessions.