wfn.org | Pakistan foreign minister says Islamic leaders should thank European and US Christian church

["WCC Media" <Media@wcc-coe.org>]

World Council of Churches
Update 03-09
For Immediate Use
11 March 2003

Pakistan foreign minister says Islamic leaders should thank European and US
Christian churches

"I told Islamic leaders they should thank the churches and Christians in
Europe and the US for their stand on military violence against a Muslim
country," said the foreign minister of Pakistan, Mr Mehmood Kasuri, to World
Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser during a
March 8 meeting between the ecumenical leader and Pakistan government
officials. 

Raiser met with the president of Pakistan, General Pervaiz Musharraf, the
prime minister, Mir ZafarUllah Jamali, and Mr Kasuri, who agreed with Raiser
that, despite what some media are saying, the conflict around Iraq cannot be
considered a clash of civilizations. The meeting took place on the Islamabad
leg of a three-day visit (7-9 March) to Pakistan; the visit was the last
stage of a four-nation Asian tour. 

During meetings with church leaders and representatives of Pakistan's
Christian community, Raiser heard about their fears of possible backlash in
case of war against Iraq. The Christian community is worried that military
strikes in Iraq could lead to renewed attacks against local Christians,
hospitals, schools and other institutions. Christian leaders also complained
about a general trend towards intolerance and discrimination in the country.

Raiser raised these issues with the Pakistan government officials. He told
President Mushurraf that although he appreciates the present government's
measures to restore a joint electoral system, he is concerned about blasphemy
laws and the fact that those responsible for killing Christians and attacks
on churches and other institutions have not yet been brought to trial. 

Raiser also mentioned the possibility of setting up an independent minorities
commission as an advisory body to look into the minorities' grievances.
President Musharraf said that he appreciated the Christian community's
contribution in all fields of national endeavour, particularly health and
education. 

Ambassadors of reconciliation 
The four-nation Asian visit was meant to assure Christian communities living
in minority situations that they have the support of the world wide
ecumenical family. But Raiser also advised the Christians to take a proactive
approach to dialogue and not to get caught in a minority complex. Christians
should be ambassadors of reconciliation, he said. 

In a meeting with church leaders and with the Christian Muslim Federation
International, he suggested that differences between the two communities
should be resolved through dialogue to foster close relations and maintain
international peace. Together with Muslims, Christians should try to
determine what constitutes a viable relationship between church and state,
and forge a common vision and understanding of the status of religion in
society. 

Raiser visited Lahore, Islamabad and Gujranwala. In Lahore on 6 March, he
inaugurated a National Council of Churches ecumenical centre. In Gujranwala,
he visited the seminary and, amidst tight security, attended an ecumenical
service at the Swift Memorial Presbyterian Church. Gujranwala is close to
Chianwali village in Daska District where an attack by Islamic militants on
the Presbyterian Church on 25 December 2002 killed three young girls and
injured twenty others. 

Church leaders in all the three cities thanked the WCC general secretary for
visiting them at this critical juncture, and despite fears of a possible
outbreak of hostilities in the Middle East. 

For further information, please contact the Media Relations Office, 
tel: +41 (0)22 791 64 21 / 61 53

**********

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a fellowship of churches, now 342, 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, The Netherlands. Its staff is headed by general secretary
Konrad Raiser from the Evangelical Church in Germany.

World Council of Churches
Media Relations Office
Tel: (41 22) 791 6153 / 791 6421
Fax: (41 22) 798 1346
E-mail: media@wcc-coe.org 
Web: www.wcc-coe.org 

PO Box 2100
1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland