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The World Council of Churches, in an intervention before the UN Human Rights Council, called upon the UN to ensure that counter-terrorism laws and practices, including efforts to combat terrorism financing, do not unjustly curtail the legitimate activities of civil society organizations, impede civic space, or hinder humanitarian endeavors in the Philippines. 

The World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee released a statement on the human rights situation in the Philippines.

During the General Debate of the 52nd Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, National Council of Churches in the Philippines expressed its deep concern over continuing human rights violations in the Philippines.

In a letter to Rev. Dr Billy Gama, general secretary of Blantyre Synod of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay expressed deep sadness over the loss of life and destruction left by Cyclone Freddy.

World Council of Churches acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed great concern in the wake of a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that struck the northern part of Luzon Island in the Philippines on 27 July.

At an online roundtable hosted by the All Africa Conference of Churches, male “champions for gender justice” shared their ideas and insights during their yearlong service as men who are helping to prevent gender-based violence.

His Excellency Rev. Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, president of the Republic of Malawi, and First Lady Monica Chakwera and a delegation visited the Ecumenical Centre on 21 February, meeting with World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca, the WCC staff leadership group and programme executives.

As the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov, World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca congratulated them and expressed solidarity with their ongoing fight for justice and peace.

World Council of Churches (WCC) director of the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs Peter Prove presented, via video message, an intervention at an “International Ecumenical Solidarity Gathering for Human Rights and Peace in the Philippines” held 7 October.

World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed concern regarding the implications of a recent ruling of the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal reversing a judgement made in April that had declared the death penalty unconstitutional and ordered re-sentencing for all prisoners held on “death row.” This reversal effectively reinstates the death penalty in Malawi, and allows judges to resume its imposition.

The hopes for better times to come in the aftermath of the pandemic were evident when World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee members from the Asia region gathered online 24 June to share recent experiences and prepare for a productive WCC assembly next year.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) and the ACT Alliance have announced the pilot of a “learning process” in Malawi and Cameroon that will lead to a model for strong collaboration in many other countries as well. 

As human rights violations worsen in the Philippines, religious leaders there are urging global solidarity for their increasingly urgent quest for justice.

As a report on human rights abuses in the Philippines was delivered to the UN by the global group Investigate PH, churches and human rights groups reiterated their concerns over propagation of a culture that allows the abuse to happen.

In a message of solidarity to the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP), World Council of Churches (WCC) interim general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca expressed concern that the human rights situation in the Philippines continues to deteriorate.