wfn.org | LWI 2008-090 - LWF General Secretary Speaks of Anguish and Outrage over Zimbabweans��� Suffering

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LWF General Secretary Speaks of Anguish and Outrage over
Zimbabweans’ Suffering Letter to SADC Lutheran Church Leaders
Seeks Unwavering Political Intervention to End People’s
Suffering

GENEVA, 16 December 2008 (LWI) - Expressing a sense of anguish
and outrage over the increasingly worsening humanitarian,
economic and political crisis in Zimbabwe, the Lutheran World
Federation (LWF) General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko is
appealing to heads of LWF member churches in the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) to work with their ecumenical
partners to push the region's governments "to take the further
steps necessary to bring an end to the suffering of the people of
Zimbabwe, which is also the suffering of the whole region." 

Building on actions requested by the LWF Council at its June
2008 meeting in Arusha, Tanzania, Noko, in a letter addressed to
the SADC churches, urges advocacy to the region's governments and
leaders "to act in the most responsible - but determined and
unwavering - manner to relieve Zimbabweans of the burden they
have already carried for far too long."

On President Robert Mugabe's current leadership of the country,
Noko notes that while many Zimbabweans paid the ultimate price
during the struggle for freedom from colonial rule, the
"independent government that they fought for has turned
liberation into repression, and finally into calamity.

"It is not acceptable that President Mugabe continues to blame
others for Zimbabwe's plight, while he demonstrates no regard for
the agonies of ordinary Zimbabweans. Indeed, he acts against his
own people as if they were enemies. He has destroyed Zimbabwe's
reputation and relationships internationally and regionally,"
insists Noko. He urges the SADC LWF member churches to send
pastoral letters to their parishes and congregations, indicating
the region's Lutheran churches and throughout the world do not
accept the intolerable situation in the Zimbabwe. 

"Without even clean water to drink, now hundreds are dying of
cholera in an epidemic that is becoming a source of infection for
neighboring countries," says Noko, of the deteriorating situation
for fellow Zimbabweans. He underscores the role of the church in
such a situation - to be a witness of the Lord who pleads the
cause of the poor (Proverbs 22:22-23) - pointing out it is
unconscionable to permit the current suffering to continue. 

Noko, an ordained pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Zimbabwe (ELCZ), reiterates the LWF's deep gratitude for the
region's hospitality and generosity toward so many desperate
people fleeing the political and economic chaos. (See June 2008
LWF Council actions on Zimbabwe at:
www.lutheranworld.org/News/LWI/EN/2251.EN.html). The LWF is
also grateful for the efforts of SADC and some individual
political leaders in the region to promote a peaceful resolution
of the political crisis, which tragically, "have so far foundered
on the obstacle of Mr Mugabe's determination to retain power at
all costs," he adds.

The LWF has 16 member churches in the SADC region, including the
150,000-member ELCZ. It also works in the country through the
Department for World Service associate program, Lutheran
Development Service - Zimbabwe. (495 words)
 *        *          *

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF
currently has 140 member churches in 79 countries all over the
world, with a total membership of over 68.3 million. 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.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the LWF's information
service. Unless specifically noted, material presented does not
represent positions or opinions of the LWF or of its various
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(LWI), the material may be freely reproduced with
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