wfn.org | LWF Makes Last-ditch Appeal to Canadian Government on Visa Denials

["Frank Imhoff" <franki@elca.org>]

Controversy Highlights Exclusion of Poorest from World Community

WINNIPEG, Canada, 20 July 2003 (LWI) * The leadership of the Lutheran World
Federation (LWF) issued a last-ditch appeal to the Canadian authorities to
issue visas for over 60 participants of the LWF Tenth Assembly, due to start
here tomorrow.

Over 800 official participants, including some 400 delegates from member
churches, have been invited by the global body to attend the July 21-31
Assembly.  Of these, about 35 percent require visas to enter Canada.

"If immediate action is taken, it still might not be too late for the
Canadian Government to rectify this matter," the Federation's Council said of
the visa denials, in a statement issued here today after its July 19-20
meeting.

The Council expressed "deepest concern and outrage" about the visa denials,
noting that they only affect participants from among the poorest nations of
the world.

"This situation reflects one of the most deplorable aspects of
globalization."  The result is that churches "of the South, the poor and the
marginalized" are excluded from the global community.

The visa controversy highlights "the brokenness of human relationships" in
the world that the Assembly theme seeks to address.  The meeting's theme is
"For the Healing of the World".

One of the Assembly's main actions is to elect the new Council, which will
then meet here August 1-2.

The Council gives leadership to the LWF between assemblies. Most of the
present Council's members were elected at the Federation's previous Assembly,
in 1997.

The full text of the Council's statement follows below:

Statement by the Council of the Lutheran World Federation

On the eve of the opening of the Tenth Assembly of the Lutheran World
Federation (LWF) in Winnipeg, the leadership of this global church family
expresses its deepest concern and outrage that over 60 delegates and official
participants from around the world have not received visas from the
Government of Canada to enable them to attend this meeting.

The LWF is a federation of 136 member churches of the Lutheran communion in
73 countries, representing a total of approximately 63 million people. In
addition to serving as a forum for the worldwide Lutheran community, the LWF
is also a major institution for mission, theological reflection, ecumenical
dialogue, development cooperation and humanitarian assistance. The Assembly
is the highest decision-making body of the LWF, in which representatives of
all member churches are entitled to participate. The Assembly takes place
only once every 6 years, and sets the direction for the LWF's work for the
coming period. Comprehensive participation is therefore essential.

It is the first time that the LWF has held its Assembly in Canada, and we
have been warmly and enthusiastically received by the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in Canada (ELCIC) as host church. The joy of this celebration of
global Christian fellowship is dimmed by visa difficulties of a magnitude
completely unprecedented in the more than 50 year history of the LWF.

We are very grateful for the untiring efforts of the ELCIC and the LWF's
Secretariat in Geneva to secure the favourable consideration of these
outstanding visa applications. However, the response thus far of the Canadian
authorities has been in effect to deny entry to participants exclusively from
among the poorest nations of the world. This situation reflects one of the
most deplorable aspects of globalization, namely theexclusion of the South,
the poor and the marginalized from the global community. It illustrates very
concretely and painfully the brokenness of human relationships that the theme
of the Assembly, 'For the Healing of the World', seeks to address.

The situation is also a poor reflection of Canada's traditional policies of
openness, internationalism and support for the developing world. The lack of
recognition and responsiveness to the concerns already repeatedly raised by
the ELCIC with Citizenship and Immigration Canada manifests a very saddening
disregard for the church's role in this society.

If immediate action is taken, it still might not be too late for the Canadian
Government to rectify this matter, and to facilitate the fulfillment of the
Assembly's primary purpose as a truly global gathering of the Lutheran church
family. We appeal to the Canadian Government to be a force 'For the Healing
of the World', to avoid promoting division and marginalization, and to issue
these visas now.
 
*	*	*

The Tenth Assembly of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) is taking place
21-31 July 2003 in Winnipeg, Canada, under the theme "For the Healing of the
World." It is being hosted by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
(ELCIC).

There are some 800 men, women and youth participants in the Tenth Assembly,
including delegates from the 133 churches with full membership and three
associate members.  The Assembly is the highest decision-making body of the
LWF, and meets normally every six years. Between Assemblies, the LWF is
governed by its Council that meets annually, and by its Executive Committee. 

Further information including photos, video and audio news, is posted on the
Assembly Web site www.lwf-assembly.org

To order photographs, please contact LWF-Photo@lutheranworld.org

*	*	*

The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund (Sweden), the LWF now has 136 member
churches in 76 countries representing over 61.7million of the 65.4 million
Lutherans worldwide. 

The LWF acts on behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest
such as ecumenical and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian
assistance, human rights, communication, and the various aspects of mission
and development work. Its secretariat is located in Geneva, Switzerland.