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Salil Shetty, secretary general of Amnesty International, was welcomed by World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit in a meeting on 24 August held at the WCC headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
Freedom of religion or belief, the relationship between faith and human rights, and the elimination of extreme poverty in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals agenda were the focus of their discussion.
Recognizing the strong convergence of interests in all these areas, Tveit and Shetty agreed to explore possibilities for the WCC and Amnesty International to work together to strengthen the connection between justice and peace agendas.
Shetty, an Indian-born long-time activist on poverty and justice, has since 2010 headed one of the world’s leading organizations in the global movement for human rights. Prior to joining Amnesty International, he served as director of the United Nations Millennium Campaign from 2003 to 2010. He also played a pivotal role in building the global advocacy campaign for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
