News
A 27 September ceremony in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva will be an opportunity for the ecumenical community to celebrate the contributions of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Programme to Combat Racism (PCR), and to honour its first director, Baldwin Sjollema.
Created in 1969 to define and carry out ecumenical policies and programmes that contribute to the liberation of the victims of racism, the WCC's PCR focused its energy during the apartheid era on Southern Africa.
In recognition of these efforts, and of Sjollema's commitment to the South African liberation movement and the struggle against apartheid, South African president Thabo Mbeki presented Sjollema with the Oliver Tambo Order on 16 June 2004 in Pretoria.
27 September programme at the Ecumenical Centre, Geneva
16:00 Main hall
Welcome: Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, WCC general secretary
Prayer: Rev. Marilia Schüller, WCC/PCR programme executive
Panel of interviews led by Rev. Simon Oxley on the work of PCR:
Rev. Dr Philip Potter, former WCC general secretary
Dr Francis Wilson, University of Cape Town professor, prominent anti-apartheid activist
Rev. Dr Emilio Castro, former WCC general secretary
Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia
Video clip of James Baldwin
Interview of Dr Pauline Webb, long-time UK anti-apartheid activist and BBC commentator who was WCC Central Committee vice moderator during the years of PCR's struggle against apartheid, by Rev. Simon Oxley on the life and contribution of Baldwin Sjollema.
Messages from around the world / Video clip of Martin Luther King Jr. / Response by Baldwin Sjollema
Ecumenical Centre foyer:
Unveiling of plaque: Dr Pauline Webb and Dr Francis Wilson
Aperitif and departure
Press representatives are welcome to attend this event. Please contact WCC Media relations office in advance (022 791 6421 - [email protected])