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"Please remind the world that we are no longer at war," a high-ranking government official from Sierra Leone told an international ecumenical team visiting churches and ecumenical organizations in Liberia and Sierra Leone from 2 to 8 November.

"As Christians, we are called to stand with those who are victims of oppression, poverty or violence," Rev. Elenora Giddings Ivory, director of the World Council of Churches (WCC) programme on Public Witness said in advance of the WCC's United Nations Advocacy Week, 16 to 21 November in New York.

A delegation of church leaders from Burundi, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo has set out to meet the presidents of the latter two countries in order to convey them a strong message in favor of peace.

To achieve reconciliation takes nothing less than the transformation of society, the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia said in Managua, during a 2-5 November visit to Nicaragua.

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In Liberia, Sierra Leone and South Africa, churches have played a major role in reconciliation between groups who had been in violent conflict with each other for decades. Two international ecumenical teams sent by the World Council of Churches (WCC) will visit the three countries during the next two weeks.

An international ecumenical delegation led by the general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, will visit Nicaragua from 2 to 5 November.

By Fredrick Nzwili (*)

Leaders of Sri Lanka's Buddhist majority expressed divergent views on resolving the ethnic conflict in their country, while speaking to a delegation led by Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, general secretary of the World Council of Churches.

The plight of people displaced by war will be the main topic of a " Living Letters " visit to Uganda, 27 October to 2 November. An international ecumenical delegation sent by the World Council of Churches (WCC) will discuss with representatives of churches, state and civil society about the protection of refugees, with a specific focus on sexual violence and the vulnerability of children.

Trauma and bitterness are among the challenges Sri Lankan churches must face in promoting peace and reconciliation as the island nation is in the middle of an intense war, a World Council of Churches (WCC) delegation has learnt during a 19-23 October visit to the country.

By Anto Akkara (*)

By Anto Akkara (*)

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has called on the UN and the Iraqi government "to quell the violence" targeted to Christians in Iraq and has urged its member churches and partners worldwide to "pray for peace and reconciliation" in the country.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia has said that "one of the greatest problems facing the world today is religious extremism."

India and Sri Lanka, two South Asian countries that have seen alarming levels of violence in recent months and years, will receive a 16-23 October the visit of a World Council of Churches (WCC) delegation headed by general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia.

Despite having a constitution which does not allow discrimination and a proactive government working for the integration of the marginalized parts of society, violence and discrimination persist in some parts of India.

The executive committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC), meeting in Luebeck, Germany, 23-26 September 2008, reviewed programme, budget, and approved various public statements and reports and the extension of the contract of the current general secretary.

The United Nations Liaison Office of the World Council of Churches (WCC) co-sponsored an international dialogue on September 25 between some 300 religious leaders and political figures - including Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - aimed at exploring faith perspectives and the role of religion regarding global issues such as poverty, war and prejudice while deepening mutual understanding.

The executive committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC) meeting 23-26 September in Luebeck, Germany announced their decision to extend the contract of Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, the current WCC general secretary, through the time when a new general secretary takes office.