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WCC expresses concerns over reinstatement of death penalty in Malawi

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 work ahead in combatting racism: relearning history, changing behaviors

Ending racism both in the USA and worldwide will require reexamining history - or even learning it for the first time - taking stock of the present, and changing our laws and ultimately our behavior, said Lisa Sharon Harper, founder and president of Freedom Road, a consulting group that helps communities strengthen their capacity to build a just world.

Lahore bombing shows vulnerability of Pakistanis

A bomb attack by terrorists using the name of religion in Lahore on Easter Sunday marked the third time Christians have been targeted in Pakistan in three years, illustrating the vulnerability of people in the country.

WCC calls for protection of church leaders in Colombia

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.

Concern over recent developments in Pakistan’s Asia Bibi case

The WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit has expressed profound concern over the rejection of an appeal against the death sentence for a Pakistani Christian woman, Asia Bibi, convicted under Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy law. To promote tolerance, religious harmony and protection of the rights of religious minorities, Tveit said it is important that justice is ensured in cases like that of Asia Bibi.

WCC calls on Sudanese president to protect Mariam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag

A court sentence in Sudan ordering flogging and the death penalty for Mariam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag has prompted an expression of “profound concern” from Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC, who has urged President Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir to “prevent the implementation of this unjust and unconscionable sentence.”

WCC event at UN Human Rights Council highlights rights of religious minorities in Pakistan

“No state should take away the right of its citizens to debate a law that affects them gravely. Therefore, there is a growing need of dialogue on the blasphemy law and its negative impacts on religious minorities in Pakistan,” said I.A. Rehman, veteran human rights activist and director of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan in a side event at the United Nation’s Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland.

WCC public hearing debates “misuse of blasphemy laws” in Pakistan

“The misuse of blasphemy law is contrary to the vision of Pakistan as a moderate and democratic country,” said Mohammad Tahseen, in a public hearing on the “Misuse of blasphemy law and religious minorities in Pakistan” organized by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Religious minorities and rights for religious freedom

We, the participants of the International Study Consultation on Freedom of Religion and the Rights of Religious Minorities - drawn from churches, church related organisations, academia, civil society and human rights organisations and the legal profession in 23 countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Americas and Europe - met in Istanbul, Turkey as part of an international study consultation organised by the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs of the World Council of Churches. The Consultation analysed the situations of rights of religious minorities and freedom of religion in various contexts.

Commission on International Affairs