Aid to the Church in Need: Sudan: Bishop speaks out after warrant for President's arrest

Sudan: Bishop speaks out after warrant for President's arrest

Posted by Press release on 11/3/2009, 7:34 am
Board Administrator

ACN News, Wednesday, 11th March 2009 – SUDAN

Should he stay or should he go?

Bishop speaks out after warrant for President's arrest

By John Pontifex

AN end to Sudan’s human rights abuses – not the overthrow of the president – is the answer to the country’s problems, according to an outspoken bishop in Khartoum.
With thousands of supporters crowding the streets in support of embattled Omar al Bashir, Bishop Daniel Adwok Kur called on the international community to pray that the country “turns the page” and guarantees respect for all communities regardless of ethnic and religious differences.
But crucially, the Auxiliary Bishop of Khartoum said that now was not the time to consider a change of leader, saying it could derail the fragile peace process, especially concerning south Sudan.
His comments, made in an interview with Aid to the Church in Need, the charity for persecuted and other suffering Christians, comes after the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague last week issued a warrant for Mr Bashir’s arrest, accusing him of crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur, west Sudan.
Speaking from Khartoum, Bishop Adwok said: “The indictment of the president is not a matter taken lightly by the President or the people around him.
“Removing him could throw obstacles in the path to peace – including in the south of the country.”
Bishop Adwok went on: “We urge people around the world to pray for us. Sudan has entered into a critical moment in her history.”

Bishop Daniel Adwok Kur of Khartoum

An uncertain peace is in place more than four years after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, brokered by the Khartoum government and rebel leaders in the south, brought an end to 25 years of civil war.
Tension in the region is growing in the run-up to a referendum on independence for the south, due within two years.
Bishop Adwok said: “Whatever happens now, the people should be treated justly. We are asking ourselves ‘Who will defend the rights of Christians in our country?’.”
The bishop called for an end of abuses against minorities, including Christians. He said: “There have been human rights abuses going on for a long time and now we need to put that behind us.”
He added: “Above all justice for the people should be maintained. Those who have suffered are innocent people who have been put through misery because of their ethnic background, their religion or culture.”
Bishop Adwok’s comments come after Bishop Rudolf Deng, the President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Sudan, released a statement saying that arresting President Bashir would only create more tension in the country.
In the message he gave to the Catholic Information Service for Africa (CISA), Bishop Deng wrote: “What we need is more sincerity from the leaders and the rebels and a more serious dedication from the international community to save the Sudan.”
In his ACN interview, Bishop Adwok stressed that the charity’s work in Sudan – supporting priests, religious Sisters, and school children – would not be affected by the increased tension in Khartoum.
It comes after President Bashir responded to news of the warrant for his arrest by announcing the expulsion of 13 (aid) agencies – a move that prompted a wave of international protest.
ACN, whose support for Sudan includes help for seminarians, Sisters, catechists, Mass offerings, Child’s Bibles and Save the Saveable schools in Khartoum, works directly with leading clergy on the ground who liaise with the charity’s project staff.
Bishop Adwok said: “The support given by ACN is crucial for the development of the Church in the Sudan – I would like to thank all those who help us, especially in these times of great tension and difficulty.”

Editor’s Notes:

Directly under the Holy See, Aid to the Church in Need supports the faithful wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need. ACN is a Catholic charity – helping to bring Christ to the world through prayer, information and action.

Founded in 1947 by Fr Werenfried van Straaten, whom Pope John Paul II named “An Outstanding Apostle of Charity”, the organisation is now at work in about 145 countries throughout the world.

The charity undertakes thousands of projects every year including providing transport for clergy and lay Church workers, construction of church buildings, funding for priests and nuns and help to train seminarians. Since the initiative’s launch in 1979, 45 million Aid to the Church in Need Child’s Bibles have been distributed worldwide.

For more information, please contact the Australian office of ACN on (02) 9679-1929. e-mail: info@aidtochurch.org or write to Aid to the Church in Need PO Box 6245 Blacktown DC NSW 2148. Web: www.aidtochurch.org

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Aid to the Church in Need PO Box 6245 Blacktown DC NSW 2148 ABN: 62 418 911 594
Ph/Fax (02) 9679-1929 e-mail: info@aidtochurch.org web: www.aidtochurch.org