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In a letter to the prime minister of Pakistan, the general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) expressed “great shock and dismay” at the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, the Pakistan government minister for Minority Affairs. Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit noted that reports indicate that Bhatti “was assassinated by religious extremists because he was critical of the controversial blasphemy law in Pakistan.”

The annual observation of a world-wide Interfaith Harmony Week has been scheduled for the first seven days of February beginning in 2011. One of the groups that has endorsed the initiative was a global consultation of Muslim and Christian organizations addressing the topic “Transforming Communities” in November 2010. The consultation was convened at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva and was jointly sponsored by the World Council of Churches (WCC), the World Islamic Call Society and A Common Word.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) Executive Committee has set October 2013 as the date for the Tenth WCC Assembly which will be held in Busan Korea.

Grief over the many deaths and the devastation caused by recent floods in Pakistan, as well as appreciation for the relief work provided by the Diocese of Peshawar of the Church of Pakistan, was expressed by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in letters to the government and the church.

"Great dismay" at the shooting and killing of two young Christians in Faisalabad on 19 July was expressed by the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit in letters to Pakistan's president and its prime minister.

World Council of Churches (WCC) current and incoming general secretaries have highlighted honesty in dialogue as the basis of meaningful interfaith encounters.

The election of a new general secretary for the organization and the selection of the venue for its next assembly were highlights of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee meeting that ended yesterday in Geneva, Switzerland.

The WCC Central Committee called on the government of Pakistan to “guarantee the rights of all religious minorities in the country”.

El comité central del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) llamó al gobierno de Pakistán a “garantizar los derechos de todas las minorías religiosas en el país”.

The World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia appealed to Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari to "ensure the safety and security" of Christians in the Punjab province, where three attacks against Christian communities were carried by militant Islamic groups in the last two months. He demanded that the government "take necessary actions against the perpetrators".

At a time when the international community is re-kindling the vision of a world free of nuclear weapons, the North Korean nuclear test is a source of profound concern, stated the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia.

An international ecumenical consultation has appealed to the government of Sri Lanka and the rebel movement Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to halt fighting in order to free tens of thousands of civilians trapped in a war zone in the north of the country.

"Heartfelt congratulations" were expressed to the recently elected moderator of the Church of Pakistan, Bishop Samuel Azariah, in a letter by the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia.

Los ataques terroristas en Mumbai y un acuerdo con el FMI que influirá negativamente en los pobres marcan la visita efectuada por el equipo de Cartas Vivas del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) a Pakistán, del 24 de noviembre al 1 de diciembre.

By Henrik Hansson (*)

The Mumbai terrorist attacks and an IMF agreement that will negatively impact the poor set the tone for a World Council of Churches (WCC) Living Letters team visit to Pakistan from 24 November to 1 December.

The Convention on Cluster Munitions has been welcomed as a "humane and historic victory" by the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia. Commenting on the signing of the convention in Oslo, Norway today, Kobia congratulated the more than 100 signatory countries and reiterated the need for states that have not yet done so - including the United States, Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and Zimbabwe - to "sign and support this timely arms control and humanitarian initiative".

Religious freedom and interreligious dialogue will be on the agenda of an international ecumenical delegation visiting Pakistan from 24 November to 1 December. The group will discuss how churches can help ease political and religions tensions with representatives from churches, the Muslim community and government officials.

La libertad religiosa y el diálogo interreligioso figuran en la agenda de una delegación ecuménica internacional que visitará Pakistán del 24 de noviembre al 1 de diciembre. Dialogando con representantes de iglesias y de la comunidad musulmana, y con funcionarios gubernamentales, el grupo examinará cómo las iglesias pueden contribuir a mitigar las tensiones políticas y religiosas.

"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.