wfn.org | (LWF) Lutherans in Silent Protest of Visa Denials

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

LWF Tenth Assembly, Winnipeg, Canada, 21-31 July 2003

PRESS RELEASE NO. 29

Lutherans in Silent Protest of Visa Denials
Hundreds Process to The Forks to Show Solidarity with Absentees

WINNIPEG, Canada, 29 July 2003 - In silent and solemn procession delegates
and visitors to the Tenth Assembly of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF)
walked from the Winnipeg Convention Centre through the streets of Winnipeg to
the Oodeena to protest the Canadian government's refusal to grant visas to 53
of their fellow delegates from developing nations.  

The Oodeena is located next to Johnston Terminal, the location of the
Citizenship and Immigration Canada offices.

The procession which had a police escort was led by the Rev. Raymond Schultz,
National Bishop, the Assembly host-church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Canada, LWF President Bishop em. Dr Christian Krause, LWF General Secretary
Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko and several clergy. 

A single drumbeat greeted the marchers' arrival in the amphitheatre.  A
fragrant wood fire and torches lit the ancient Ojibway meeting ground, as a
liturgy of prayer and chant were punctuated by delegates' personal stories of
discrimination and injustice.  From Tanzania, Latin America and Greenland,
indigenous peoples shared their pain and the church's role in their presence
here today.  A round in which worshippers chanted the single word "Shalom" in
four parts seemed to give voice to the purpose of the event: to show
solidarity with brothers and sisters who were not able to be present and to
offer them a symbol of hope for peace and justice.

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

There are around 820 men, women and youth participants in the Tenth Assembly
including 380 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 61.7 million 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.