Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, deputy general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), expressed concern and voiced solidarity for the people of Colombia as they confront a recent upsurge of violence.
Forty years after the Soweto uprising, leaders of churches in conflict-torn countries gathered in South Africa to study the ways of peace and reconciliation.
Serious death threats to human rights defenders, many of them church leaders, have been made by a paramilitary group in Colombia. The WCC, among other international organizations has called on Colombian government to protect their lives.
The adverse impact of business activities on the lives of members of the local population in Colombia and El Salvador was highlighted by the WCC-sponsored participants at the United Nations Forum on Business and Human Rights.
At the Second United Nations Annual Forum on Business and Human Rights, human rights defenders from Colombia and Guatemala exposed degrading environmental, ecological, economic and social impacts on indigenous communities. These impacts are consequences of the projects run by multinational companies in a number of countries.