The LWF Jerusalem Annual Report covers the main programmatic activities carried out byLWF Jerusalem Program in 2008.
Statement by Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko, General Secretary, on the conflict in the Gaza Strip
January 6, 2009
GENEVA, 6 January 2009 (LWI) – The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) reiterates its commitment to a vision of peace for both Israelis and Palestinians, urging an immediate cessation of both Israeli military operations on Gaza and Hamas missile attacks on southern Israel, and the swift establishment of a workable ceasefire agreement.
In a statement released today, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko says, “The present bloodshed and destruction will not secure peace for either Israelis or Palestinians. It will only plant the seeds for more conflict, marginalizing the peacemakers, breeding despair, promoting radicalization and strengthening the appeal of violence.”
Reports citing local medical sources put the Palestinian death toll at more than 550 and nearly 3,000 civilian injuries, since Israel launched its 27 December operation on Gaza, including ground assaults since 3 January, aimed at stopping Hamas militants from firing rockets and mortars into southern Israel. Hamas says it has killed five Israelis by rocket fire and in combat.
Pointing to the impact of the Israeli siege on the entire civilian population of Gaza during the six-month ceasefire, Noko notes the blockade “imposed severe suffering on the entire civilian population of Gaza, fostering despair and rage rather than promoting an atmosphere for negotiations and peace.” He adds however, that attacks by Hamas and other militant organizations “are condemned by the LWF as an unacceptable response threatening the lives of another civilian population.” Equally, while Israel has an obligation to protect its people and territory, its current military operations “are disproportionate to the actual threat and have resulted in an intolerable number of civilian deaths and injuries.”
The general secretary expresses grave concern for the critical humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, urging the Israeli government to ensure full humanitarian access to the people compelled to survive this conflict “without electricity, medical supplies, or sufficient food or water.”
Citing the LWF’s long-standing support to its member church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) in various activities fostering the establishment of peace with justice in the Holy Land, Noko insists the root cause of the Middle East conflict must be addressed. “The interpretation of God’s promise to Abraham and differing understandings of who may rightfully claim his legacy, which lie at the very heart of this conflict, can only be resolved by dialogue and reconciliation among all his children,” he says.
He criticizes both parties’ short-sighted focus on political gains through “displays of armed power,” rather than on the “difficult search for peace,” saying this approach was a betrayal of the Israeli and Palestinian “peoples’ hopes for a peaceful future.”
Noko released his statement as a delegation of bishops from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, led by LWF President Bishop Mark S. Hanson, proceeded with their visits with Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian religious, community and political leaders under an annual event hosted by the ELCJHL. (See separate story at: www.lutheranworld.org/News/LWI/EN/2317.EN.html)
He appeals to all LWF member churches to pray for peace, advocate for justice, and convey these concerns to political leaders. “Without a just peace in the Holy Land, there can be no true or sustainable peace for any of us,” Noko concludes. (558 words)
LWF Consultation on Peace and Human Rights in a Multifaith Context
June 20, 2008
LWF Consultation on Peace and Human Rights in a Multifaith Context
JERUSALEM/GENEVA, 20 June 2008 (LWI) – Participants in a Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Department for World Service (DWS) regional consultation for Asia, Europe and the Middle East singled out human rights’ promotion and protection, greater interfaith understanding, and tolerance as crucial components of the LWF’s relief and development work.
Raising awareness among staff, primary focus groups and duty bearers about the need to integrate a rights-based approach into all relief and development plans and work was identified as an important task. The 30 participants in the 31 March–4 April meeting at the LWF-run Augusta Victoria Hospital (AVH) on the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem, stressed the need to empower vulnerable and marginalized rights holders to assert their rights.
“Peace and Human Rights in a Multifaith Context,” was the theme of the consultation, attended by representatives of LWF/DWS country programs in the Balkans, Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Jerusalem and Nepal, and LWF staff persons from the Geneva secretariat and representatives from partner organizations in Canada, Finland and Sweden.
Mr Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, DWS program coordinator said the regional gathering offered opportunities for intensive experience-sharing among the participants. Advocacy for and protection of human rights are crucial for promoting peace and justice in a dignified way, he said.
As a faith-based organization, DWS should speak out openly and advocate justice and dignity using a rights-based approach throughout its work, Bueno de Faria explained. “The situation is quite complex, but it does not require a complex response, if churches and faith-based organizations commit themselves to foster interfaith understanding and tolerance,” he noted.
During discussion, participants noted that fostering interfaith understanding and tolerance called for awareness raising and education among church leaders and other workers on the nature of diakonia, as well as developing user-friendly information, education and communication materials. This should include communicating basic information abut world religions and various approaches to diaconal work. They pointed to the need to create opportunities for members of different faiths and interest groups to become mutually acquainted and engage in common action.
The implementation of joint programs and projects that bring different faith communities together in a non-religious setting could contribute substantially to better understanding and tolerance, participants at the meeting agreed. Sensitivity to local conditions and contexts was cited as important, in ensuring the sustainability of joint projects and preventing conflict between faith groups.
Education
Mr Anoj Chhetri, DWS Nepal program coordinator, spoke about awareness raising and advocacy in a country in which the LWF program has been supporting Bhutanese refugees and other marginalized and disadvantaged populations for 17 years. Ordinary people, in particular, are totally unaware of their rights. Hence, a central concern of the program is educating people with regard to exercising and defending their rights, he said.
Dr Inn Sam, DWS Cambodia deputy representative, said supporting local communities in asserting their rights is a priority for the LWF program. He pointed out the need to emphasize government accountability regarding human rights respect and protection as provided for in international treaties. Raising people’s awareness requires considerable education. “Some people are powerful, others are powerless. We try to empower the powerless,” said Ms Vuthy Chhuon, the program’s human resource manager. “Greater commitment is needed, especially with regard to interfaith conflicts, if conflicting parties are to be brought to the dialogue table and greater mutual understanding is to be achieved,” she added.
Adverse Human Rights Situation
The current conflict between Israel and Palestinian territories held the center stage during the meeting in Jerusalem. Israeli and Palestinian participants reported on the consequences of the extension of Jewish settlements, as well as the construction of security infrastructures and walls separating Israel and the Palestinian territories and the resulting impact on the daily lives of Palestinians.
Ms Randa Siniora, director general of the Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizen’s Rights (PICCR), said the human rights situation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip had become more critical at all levels. Each month dozens of Palestinians lose their lives as the result of Israeli reprisal attacks in response to rocket fire from Palestinian territories. In addition, conflict between Hamas and Fatah are making her organization’s efforts increasingly difficult. This concerns both visits to prisoners and training and capacity-building programs.
Bishop Dr Munib A. Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL) denounced as scandalous the fact that world political leaders have allowed the Palestinian people to live in refugee camps for 60 years. Without justice, relief work and development aid are merely inflated words, said Younan, who is LWF Vice-President for the Asian region. He noted the LWF wants justice and seeks to empower the weak and refugees.
The struggle by the Palestinian people to obtain their rights must be non-violent, the Lutheran bishop said. It is a sin to kill another Palestinian; it is a sin to kill anybody.
Younan expressed his conviction that peace was possible. He said when he mentions the two-state solution along the pre-1967 borders, he also affirms Israel’s right to exist. But this also implied that natural resources such as water and land must be shared equitably. He however, sees the Jewish settlements as a major stumbling block, saying the settlement policy must end and settlements beyond the 1967 borders must be dismantled. This, together with the partitioning of Jerusalem, is an absolute precondition for an enduring peace.
The world community must recognize that Palestinians have been the victims of injustice, Bishop Younan concluded. (923 words)
LWF Jerusalem Program E-Newsletter, Issue 2 Published
January 7, 2007
The Future of the AVH Tax Issue Featured in The Lutheran
August 1, 2006
Lutheran World Federation General Secretary Ishmael Noko met May 8 with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to discuss the Israeli government’s rescinding of a 1967 tax exemption agreement with Augusta Victoria Hospital…
The Lutheran Discusses the Funding Crisis at Augusta Victoria Hospital
June 30, 2006
Recent emergency donations from the ELCA and other church groups are helping the Lutheran World Federation’s Augusta Victoria Hospital in Jerusalem overcome a financial crisis….
AVH and the Funding Crisis Featured in The Christian Century
June 27, 2006
Jerusalem’s Augusta Victoria Hospital, a facility that treats Palestinian residents from the West Bank as well as some Arabs from East Jerusalem, has a million-dollar view from its perch atop the Mount of Olives…
