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World Council of Churches
Press Release
For Immediate Use
18 March 1997

JOINT COMMUNIQUE FROM THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES AND
SHELL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED

At their request, representatives of  Shell International Limited have met
representatives of the World Council of Churches (WCC) at the
Ecumenical Centre in Geneva.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the recent WCC report,
*Ogoni - the struggle continues" and a draft response to it which Shell
International Limited had submitted to the WCC in advance, as well as
exploring ways in which the two organisations' concern for the people
of Ogoniland and Nigeria might coincide.

An open and frank exchange of views led to a fruitful discussion.

It was agreed that the WCC and Shell International Limited share a
common concern for the people of Nigeria and the developments in the
country.

The WCC told Shell International Limited that it had noted the company's
remarks in its response to the WCC report and that it would verify facts
and statistical data in the WCC report which Shell has called to its
attention as being in error.

Shell International Limited and the WCC recognised that they approach
the issues addressed in the report from different perspectives and that
legitimate differences of opinion are possible.

The WCC agreed to take into consideration the response of Shell
International Limited to the WCC report and the discussions in Geneva as
preparations are made for a discussion of the situation in Nigeria at the
next meeting of the WCC Central Committee which is due to take place in
September 1997.

Both Shell International Limited and the WCC remain open to continuing
discussions on these and other matters as may be required.

**********
The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of churches, now 330, in
more than 100 countries in all continents from virtually all Christian
traditions.  The Roman Catholic Church is not a member church but
works cooperatively with the WCC.  The highest governing body is the
Assembly, which meets approximately every seven years.  The WCC
was formally inaugurated in 1948 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.  Its staff is
headed by general secretary Konrad Raiser from the Evangelical Church
in Germany.

World Council of Churches
Press and Information Office
Tel:  (41.22) 791.61.52/51
Fax:  (41.22) 798 13 46
E-Mail: jwn@wcc-coe.org

P.O. Box 2100
CH-1211 Geneva 2