wfn.org | Int'l Leaders To Discuss Religious Persecution

[CAROL_FOUKE.parti@ecunet.org (CAROL FOUKE)]

National Council of the Churches of Christ in the
U.S.A.
Contact: For Information: Carol Fouke, NCC News,
  212-870-2227
  To Schedule Interviews: Eric Thomas,
  Fratelli Group, 202-822-9491
Internet:  news@ncccusa.org

39NCC4/23/98

INTERNATIONAL DELEGATION OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS TO
DISCUSS
RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION, BEST STRATEGIES FOR COMBATING
IT
IN NCC "VOICES FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM PROJECT"

DATES/TIMES April 27 (p.m.), New York City
AVAILABLE: April 28-29, Washington, D.C.
(April 28, 10 a.m. - NEWS
CONFERENCE,
B-318 Rayburn House Office
Building)
 April 30-May 3, TBA

OVERVIEW: During their itinerary sponsored by the
National Council of Churches, the religious leaders
will meet with members of Congress, U.S. religious
leaders and news media to talk about:

1)  the realities of religious persecution in their
respective countries,
2)  what they see as the likely impact of U.S.
intervention, and
3)  how the United States could be most helpful in
ensuring religious liberty in their countries.

The NCC and partners worldwide have expressed
particular concern about the sanctions-oriented
Wolf/Specter Bill (Freedom from Religious
Persecution Act), which they fear would, in many
countries, do more harm than good for the very
people it seeks to protect.  They believe sanctions
should be a matter of thoughtful, multilateral last
resort, to be imposed only in consultation with the
people they are intended to help.  They further
oppose any "hierarchy" of persecutions, asking equal
treatment (for example, in immigration) for all who
suffer any kind of human rights abuse.

HOST: The Rev. Dr. Joan B. Campbell, General
Secretary, National Council of Churches.  The NCC,
founded in 1950, is the nation's leading ecumenical
organization.  34 Protestant and Orthodox
denominations, with a combined U.S. membership of
nearly 52 million, join as NCC members in a broad
program of mission and service.

CONFIRMED PARTICIPANTS:
NCC VOICES FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM PROJECT

China:  Dr. Han Wen Zao, President, China Christian
Council - Christian
Dr. Han is the elected leader of a Christian
community of approximately 17
million Chinese Christians. (Comparatively, it is
larger than the membership in the churches of the
Southern Baptist Convention in the USA.)

Pakistan: Bishop Sammy Azariah - Moderator, Church
of Pakistan - Christian.  Bishop Azariah, an
Anglican, is a respected leader in the Christian
community as a whole. As Moderator, he is the senior
leader in his church, with both pastoral and public
service experience.

Russia:  Dr. Anatoly Krasikov, President, Russian
Chapter, International Religious Liberty Association
of Russia.  Christian.  As a member of the Russian
Orthodox Church, a community where many are
supportive of the new religious statutes in Russia,
Dr. Krasikov is the leader of an interfaith body
committed to religious liberty.

Middle East:  The Rev. Dr. Riad Jarjour, General
Secretary, Middle East Council of Churches.
Christian.  A Presbyterian, Dr. Jarjour heads an
ecumenical community of Christian bodies throughout
the Middle East, including the Roman Catholic
Church.  A native of Syria, he currently lives in
Beirut.

Indonesia:

Dr. Amien Rais, Chairman of Muhamadiyah.  Muslim.
Dr. Rais leads Muhamadiyah, a nation-wide Muslim
community of 25 million Indonesians.  He is a
respected university professor and intellectual
leader in Indonesia.  He has become a strong
advocate for religious liberty in a nation that has
the largest Muslim population in the world.

The Rev. Dr. Soritua A. E. Nababan - Christian.  Dr.
Nababan, of the Batak Protestant Christian Church
(Lutheran heritage), is a member of his church's
Central Council.  He is both a pastor and a past
General Secretary of the Communion of Churches in
Indonesia.  For years he was an active youth
minister and leader. Currently he also serves as the
Vice Moderator of the Central Committee of the World
Council of Churches.

The Rev. Dr. Joseph M. Pattiasina - Christian.  Dr.
Pattiasina is the General Secretary of the Communion
of Churches in Indonesia.  Prior to assuming this
ecumenical post he was a local and regional leader
in his church. He is highly regarded as an effective
voice for the Christian community in a predominantly
Muslim nation.

Africa:  The Rev. Canon Clement Janda, General
Secretary, All Africa Conference of Churches.
Christian.  An Anglican priest, for a number of
years Dr. Janda served as the General Secretary of
the Sudan Council of Churches in his native Sudan.
He moved to his present post only recently.
Previously he gave executive leadership in Geneva to
the World Council of Churches' program of ministries
in conflict situations.. He is involved with all
Christian communities throughout the African
continent.

Cuba:  Rev. Dr. Pablo Oden Marichal, General
Secretary/President, Cuban Council of Churches.
Christian.  Having been the dean of the Episcopal
Cathedral in Havana, a theological professor as well
as an Anglican parish priest, Dr. Marichal was
recently elected by his home community to serve as a
member of the National Assembly (part-time), a
secular setting he sees as an opportunity for
Christian witness. The Protestant and Pentecostal
communities in Cuba are active members of the Cuban
Council of Churches.

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