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PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church in Canada
Contact: Deacon Hagop Arslanian, Assistant to the Primate
615 Stuart Ave., Outremont-Montreal H2V 3H2
Tel: (514) 276-9479
Fax: (514) 276-9960
E- mail: [email protected]
Web: _www.armenianchurch.ca_ (http://www.armenianchurch.ca/)
August 27, 2007
* * * * *
CANADA: Canadian Church Leaders Encourage the Pursuit of Peace in
Afghanistan
On August 16, 2007 twelve Canadian church leaders, including His Eminence
Bishop Bagrat Galstanian, Primate of the Armenian Church Canadian Diocese wrote
to the Prime Minister the Right Honourable Stephen Harper to encourage the
Government of Canada to continue to pursue peace in Afghanistan. Followinga
collaborative process of consultation and research lasting more than a year,
they offered their contribution to the dialogue in Canada on moving forward
with a long lasting peace in Afghanistan.
The church leaders called for prioritizing efforts aimed at supporting
reconciliation within Afghanistan, diplomacy and negotiations leading to peace,
encouraging greater respect for human rights, strengthening just governance,
greater investments in reconstruction and development, and focusing security
efforts on advancing the safety and well-being of people in Afghanistan.
`Canadian churches have consistently called on the Canadian government to
build peace with the people of Afghanistan rather than pursue a war on terror,
to employ all diplomatic means to achieve that end including engaging civil
society and religious networks, and to direct the effort of The Canadian
Forces to the protection of lives and the preservation of civilian infrastructure.
This letter stands in a long tradition of Canadian church engagement on
issues of international significance,' said The Rev. Dr. Karen Hamilton, General
Secretary of the Canadian Council of Churches who hosted the collaborative
effort.
The church leaders invite the government to re-evaluate the mandate of =80=9CThe
Canadian Forces [to] focus on enhancing protection of vulnerable Afghans
rather than on aggressive engagement with insurgents in areas where the local
population is suspicious or alienated from the central government.=80=9D
Diocese of the Armenian Church in Canada
Contact: Deacon Hagop Arslanian, Assistant to the Primate
615 Stuart Ave., Outremont-Montreal H2V 3H2
Tel: (514) 276-9479
Fax: (514) 276-9960
E- mail: [email protected]
Web: _www.armenianchurch.ca_ (http://www.armenianchurch.ca/)
August 27, 2007
* * * * *
CANADA: Canadian Church Leaders Encourage the Pursuit of Peace in
Afghanistan
On August 16, 2007 twelve Canadian church leaders, including His Eminence
Bishop Bagrat Galstanian, Primate of the Armenian Church Canadian Diocese wrote
to the Prime Minister the Right Honourable Stephen Harper to encourage the
Government of Canada to continue to pursue peace in Afghanistan. Followinga
collaborative process of consultation and research lasting more than a year,
they offered their contribution to the dialogue in Canada on moving forward
with a long lasting peace in Afghanistan.
The church leaders called for prioritizing efforts aimed at supporting
reconciliation within Afghanistan, diplomacy and negotiations leading to peace,
encouraging greater respect for human rights, strengthening just governance,
greater investments in reconstruction and development, and focusing security
efforts on advancing the safety and well-being of people in Afghanistan.
`Canadian churches have consistently called on the Canadian government to
build peace with the people of Afghanistan rather than pursue a war on terror,
to employ all diplomatic means to achieve that end including engaging civil
society and religious networks, and to direct the effort of The Canadian
Forces to the protection of lives and the preservation of civilian infrastructure.
This letter stands in a long tradition of Canadian church engagement on
issues of international significance,' said The Rev. Dr. Karen Hamilton, General
Secretary of the Canadian Council of Churches who hosted the collaborative
effort.
The church leaders invite the government to re-evaluate the mandate of =80=9CThe
Canadian Forces [to] focus on enhancing protection of vulnerable Afghans
rather than on aggressive engagement with insurgents in areas where the local
population is suspicious or alienated from the central government.=80=9D