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Peace in Colombia has been a long time coming, began Juan Carlos Cuéllar, representative of the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN), as he spoke at a World Council of Churches (WCC) panel discussion titled "The things that make for peace in Colombia” on 9 April.

Bishop Dr Heinrich Bedford-Strohm and H.E. Archbishop Dr Vicken Aykazian, moderator and vice moderator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) central committee, respectively, traveled to New York City on 3-4 April to deepen the WCC’s engagement with the United Nations. 

Within the framework of the negotiations and conversations of the third cycle of the Peace Dialogue Table between the government of Colombia and the Estado Mayor Central FARC-EP, the news was received on its fourth day of sessions that President Petro approved Decree 0016 of 14 January 2024, which it extends the ceasefire with the EMC FARC-EP for six more months.

Aunque la vigésimo octava Conferencia de las Partes de la Convención Marco de las Naciones Unidas sobre el Cambio Climático (COP28) no logró producir un plan creíble para eliminar gradualmente los combustibles fósiles, todavía hay motivos para abrigar la esperanza de que el mundo podrá avanzar hacia la justicia climática, dijo el secretario general del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias, el Rev. Prof. Dr. Jerry Pillay, al concluir la COP28.

In a nation marked by decades of alarming numbers of internal displacement and confinement mainly affecting Indigenous and Afro-Colombians, the walk toward peace is complicated—but the World Council of Churches (WCC) is deepening collaboration on Colombia’s vision for total peace.

Though COP28 failed to produce a credible plan to phase out fossil fuels, there is still reason for hope that the world can move toward climate justice, said World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay as COP28 concluded.

A delegation from the World Council of Churches (WCC) is visiting Colombia, conveying a message of the WCC’s commitment to accompanying and supporting the nation’s peace processes.

In a discussion with World Council of Churches (WCC) staff, Mariela Kohon, advisor to the Office of the High Commissioner for Peace - an office that reports directly to the presidency of the Republic of Colombia - shared insights into the ongoing peace dialogues in Colombia and the important role of the WCC and faith leaders.

The World Council of Churches (WCC), with the Colombian Episcopal Conference, United Nations Mission in Colombia, and Organization of American States, has been appointed as a permanent accompanier for peace talks with the Estado Mayor Central (EMC) FARC-EP in Colombia.

In a letter to Colombian president H.E. Gustavo Petro Urrego on 28 July, WCC general secretary Rev. Prof Dr Jerry Pillay expressed deep appreciation for the Colombian government’s initiatives for peace. 

En dos cartas dirigidas respectivamente al presidente de Colombia, Gustavo Petro, y al comisionado para la paz de Colombia, Danilo Rueda, el Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) expresó su apoyo y su solidaridad a la construcción de la paz en Colombia y confirmó la representación del CMI en el proceso de diálogo entre el gobierno colombiano y el Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN), en respuesta a una invitación anterior.

The World Council of Churches (WCC), in letters to Colombian president Gustavo Petro and to Colombian peace commissioner Danilo Rueda, expressed the WCC’s support and solidarity for peace-building in Colombia—and confirmed the WCC’s representation in the dialogue process between the Colombian government and the National Liberation Army (ELN) in response to an earlier invitation.

In a letter to Colombian president Gustavo Petro Urrego, and to the high commissioner for peace Danilo Rueda Rodriguéz, the World Council of Churches, World Communion of Reformed Churches, and ACT Alliance congratulated the government of Colombia for the appointment of four women to the negotiation team for a peace agreement with the National Liberation Army.