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Zimbabwe-South
Africa Church Leaders Consultation - Oct 30-31, 2002
November
02, 2002
Church leaders
from Zimbabwe and KwaZulu-Natal met over two days (30 and 31 October,
2002) at Umzumbe on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast to consult on
matters affecting the role of the church in peacemaking and the
preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ in a post-liberation context.
The meeting was sponsored by the KwaZulu-Natal Church Leaders Group
and the Network of Independent Monitors.
The discussions,
which were jointly chaired by Anglican Bishop of Natal, Rubin Phillip,
and the Roman Catholic Auxiliary Bishop of Mutare, Patrick Mutume,
covered the land issue, human rights and dignity, the torture of
innocent civilians, governance, and food security in the region,
as well as drawing collectively on South Africa and Zimbabwe's experience
of national healing and reconciliation and how the church in both
countries can contribute to this process. Zimbabwean church leaders
cautioned their South African colleagues on the slowness of the
land redistribution process in South Africa and advised the church
to put pressure on landowners to voluntarily contribute land for
redistribution.
The church leaders,
who are members of various denominations, jointly resolved to:
- Urgently
meet with national church structures in their respective countries
i.e. the South African Council of Churches, the Zimbabwe Council
of Churches, the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, the Evangelical
Alliance of South Africa, and the Catholic Bishops Conference
in both countries, to share the outcome of their discussions.
- Request the
South African national church leaders to set up an urgent meeting
with President Mbeki to impress on him the pivotal role that South
Africa can play in helping resolve the crisis in Zimbabwe which
threatens to spread to other countries in the region.
- Continue
arranging exchange visits and a process of dialogue and consultation
for Church leaders in both countries, and to extend these consultations
to include church leaders from other countries in the SADC region.
In conclusion, the church leaders commit themselves to continue
standing with the poor and oppressed in their respective countries
based on their commitment to the transformation of society in
accordance with the values of God's kingdom, and as the critical
conscience of society.
For more
information, please contact
Frank Kantor
Tel +27-(0)31-7095135
Fax +27-(0)31-7095134
Cell +27-(0)82-4251543
Email franktalk@mweb.co.za
Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.
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