wfn.org | WCC AGENDA: December 2005

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

World Council of Churches - Agenda
Contact: + 41 22 791 6153 +41 79 507 6363 media@wcc-coe.org
For immediate release - 28/11/2005

DECEMBER 2005

> World AIDS Day events in Geneva and Bern
> WCC to host Indigenous caucus to UN
> Latin America, small arms and violence
> Events around the WTO Conference in Hong Kong

> World AIDS Day at the Ecumenical Centre
> 1 December, Geneva, Switzerland

"Don't turn your back on AIDS. Keep the promise" is the central slogan of
this year's World AIDS Day events being organized at the Ecumenical Centre
in Geneva by UN organizations, Geneva-based ecumenical organizations - the
World Council of Churches, Lutheran World Federation, World YWCA and
Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance - diplomatic missions, and the International
School of Geneva. The events will include conferences, films, exhibits,
information booths, an ecumenical worship service in the Ecumenical Centre
chapel, a candlelight march and a torchlight parade.

The slogan lifts up what is seen as today's major AIDS challenge: to "keep
commitments to stop AIDS at all levels: personal, community, organization,
governmental".

http://www.e-alliance.ch/wad.jsp

> Kobia speaks at AIDS event in Bern - Medicines for Africa
> 1 December, Bern, Switzerland

25,000 petitions calling on the Swiss government, pharmaceutical industry
and churches to make a far greater effort to ensure African populations
access to anti-retroviral treatments are to be presented to government,
business and church representatives on 1 December in Bern at 18:00.

With the slogan "Africa needs medicines. Now!", events outside the Swiss
parliament building will include the lighting of 8000 candles laid out in
the shape of Africa, a public interview with World Council of Churches
general secretary Samuel Kobia; and presentation of the petitions.
Representing the Swiss Protestant and Catholic churches, Rev. Thomas Wipf
and Bishop Amédé Grab will explain the positions of their respective
churches on this issue. The petition campaign was jointly organized by the
Bethlehem Mission Immensee and Swiss Interchurch Aid (EPER).

http://www.eper.ch [French]
http://www.bethlehem-mission.ch/aids/fr/index.shtml

> WCC to host Indigenous caucus to UN
> 3-4 December, Geneva, Switzerland

The WCC will host Indigenous leaders participating in a caucus at the 11th
session of the working group on a draft United Nations Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Meeting at the WCC headquarters before the
session, some 150 caucus participants from all parts of the world will
review the progress of the draft declaration, and work towards a common
strategy during the session, which takes place in Geneva from 5 - 16
December 2005.

It is hoped that the draft declaration will be finalized at the session,
and thus be ready for submission to the General Assembly for final
approval.

http://www.ohchr.org/english/issues/indigenous/groups/groups-02.htm

> Latin American workshop on small arms and violence
> 5-7 December, Buenos Aires, Argentina

"For churches promoting peace: violence and peace in Latin America and the
Caribbean" is the title of a regional church workshop to take place in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, 5-7 December 2005. It will consider case studies
on small arms and urban violence in Brazil and Argentina, the militarization of Colombia's long-running civil conflict, and the impact of violence on
women, youth and Indigenous communities. Participants will work on a peace
curriculum for church and school use. The workshop, which comes on the eve
of the 2006 Latin America focus of the WCC's Decade to Overcome Violence,
is sponsored by the Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI) and the WCC
Commission of the Churches on International Affairs.

http://www.clai.org.ec [Spanish only]

> Day of prayer on trade
> 11 December (Sunday), worldwide

Churches around the world are being asked to make Sunday 11 December a day
of "prayerful support" to the Geneva-based Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance's
efforts to promote "trade for people" at the World Trade Organization's
(WTO) upcoming (13-18 December) Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong. EAA
is offering worship materials on trade and human rights for incorporation
into regular worship services on that day. The aim is to "raise awareness
of the WTO negotiations and the impact global trade has on us all". The
materials touch in particular on the right to health and the right to
food.

http://www.e-alliance.ch/

> Ecumenical women's forum on life-promoting trade
> 12-14 December, Hong Kong

Around 60 women working for economic justice in their communities and
feminist economists from all regions will participate in an ecumenical
forum on life-promoting trade scheduled to coincide with the WTO's
upcoming Ministerial Conference in Hong Kong. The forum will focus on "two
critical WTO agreements where the stakes for women are particularly high:
the Agreement on Agriculture (AOA) and the General Agreement on Trade in
Services (GATS)". It will draw up an action plan as well as an ecumenical
women's letter to WTO director-general Pascal Lamy and the trade ministers
of WTO member countries.

The forum is being organized by 12 international, Hong Kong and Swiss
church-based organizations including the World Council of Churches.

Additional information: womenandgloby@yahoo.com

Media representatives interested in attending any of the events listed
above should contact the WCC media relations office in advance. Unless
noted otherwise, events are by invitation only and not open to the general
public. Dates and venues may change without notice.

Additional information: Juan Michel,+41 22 791 6153 +41 79 507 6363
media@wcc-coe.org

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The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of churches, now 347, in
more than 120 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 Samuel Kobia from the Methodist church in Kenya.