Call your church to solidarity with German peacemaking bishop in Sudan

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

PROTESTANT LEADER CALLS FOR MORE PEACE EFFORTS IN SUDAN
Bishop Huber: More Must Be Done to Sustain Peace

By Wolfgang Polzer
Special to ASSIST News Service

BERLIN (ANS) -- The leader of the German Protestant mainline churches, Bishop Wolfgang Huber, has called on the international community to increase their efforts for a sustainable peace in Sudan.

Huber was speaking to journalists in Berlin November 28 after a trip to the African country. Sudan has been plagued by 21 years of civil war between the Islamic central government and the Southern Sudanese People’s Liberation Army.

Although a peace accord in January ended the strife Huber is not convinced that the agreement has been implemented satisfactorily. Although a stable truce had been maintained, many burning issues still needed to be addressed, for example the situation of six million refugees.

The bishop has not noticed many efforts to rebuild the devastated areas. The capital of Southern Sudan, Juba, was still in a depressing state. The civil war cost the lives of two million people.

Since the eighties the central government in Khartoum tried to impose the Islamic law, the Sharia, on the South, where the population is made up of Christians and animists. Of the 30 million Sudanese 65 percent are Muslims, 24 percent Christians and 11 percent animists.

According to Huber the ongoing conflict in the Western province of Darfur must also remain on the international agenda. Since the beginning of the year 2003 Islamic mounted militia are harassing the predominately black African community.

The Bishop called for a halt in international development aid to Northern Sudan as long as the government does not stop its participation in the conflict. Huber criticized the introduction of Sharia law in the North. It makes the conversion to Christianity a punishable offence.

This is a violation of human rights, according to Huber. There are also Christians in Northern Sudan, he said. Shortly before his visit a Lutheran church had been burnt to the ground.

The bishop called on the European churches to assist their Sudanese partners in the peace process. More international aid through church agencies was also necessary. A better coordination of aid was obviously needed, he said.

Northern Sudan had probably the highest density of UN- and Non-Governmental Organizations. But Huber was not sure if the efficiency of their efforts always corresponded with their presence.
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