Harare, Zimbabwe, Jul 22, 2016 / 04:54 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- In Zimbabwe, there are protests against the government and officials’ harsh treatment of a Christian pastor whose video about his frustration went viral on the internet. Now, Christian leaders in the country have called for an end to harassment of clergy and for a just response to other grievances.
“We call upon our government to listen to the cries of citizens whose cries and sufferings are loud and clear. There is need to act justly and mercifully on behalf of the poor and disadvantaged in our nation,” a group of Christian leaders said in a July 14 statement.
The Zimbabwe Catholic bishops’ conference joined the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Council of Churches, and other groups in making the statement.
The leaders voiced concern about apparent disregard for the constitution by the government and police, failure to deal with corruption, and the exclusion of citizens from determining their destiny. Intra-party conflicts are distracting the government from dealing with real economic and social issues.
They voiced concern about the harassment and arrests of religious leaders, including Pastor Mawarire, and the intimidation of other pastors “speaking on behalf of powerless people.”
“These grievances must be viewed as the early warning signs which indicate underlying and simmering tensions that will soon explode into civil unrest if not addressed,” they said.
In May, the Baptist pastor Evan Mawarire launched the “#ThisFlag” social media movement to voice frustration about the state of Zimbabwe. His campaign spread through Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp.
The pastor’s videos have stressed non-violence, though some younger activists in a movement called Tajamuka are less moderate, BBC News reports.
The pastor was arrested and charged with inciting public violence and subversion, but was released after a court threw out charges.
Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has verbally attacked Mawarire, claiming he is a false minister backed by foreign countries that want to destabilize Zimbabwe.
The protests center on several demands. They advocate that civil servants be paid on time; fewer roadblocks and police shakedowns; the legal prosecution of corrupt officials; and the end of a ban on many imported goods. They also object to plans to introduce bond notes to ease a cash shortage.
In June Zimbabwe ran out of money. All civil servants, including soldiers, police, teachers, and nurses, were paid late. Many people cannot afford food and the country is suffering the worst drought in decades. The unemployment rate is at 90 percent.
In early July, a one-day national strike in protest of the situation in Zimbabwe completely shut down schools, businesses, and shops around the country. Mawarire was among the strike's backers.
The Christian leaders’ message condemned law enforcement brutality and urged the government to protect citizens’ rights to demonstrate and protest.
“In exercising this right, we implore citizens to always remain peaceful in their demonstrations,” they said.
They also had a special message for Christian believers:
“We call upon the Church, which is the salt and light of this nation, to continue to pray and also to speak out prophetically against any unjust system, until we have a peaceful and prosperous Zimbabwe in which every citizen’s God given and constitutional rights are respected.”
The religious leaders said they wanted a nation that respects all citizens and that fears God in its love for justice, peace and love of one’s neighbor.
“May God grant us Zimbabweans the courage, faith and hope to face our challenges,” they prayed.
Article Archive
Amid protests, Zimbabwe's Christian leaders band together to speak out
Related Articles • More Articles
Attendees lay flowers at the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan to mark the 109th anniversary of World War I-era mass killings on April 24, 2024. / Credit: KAREN MINASYAN/AFP via Getty ImagesWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 26, 2024 / 18:00 pm (CNA).As historians and human-rights activists mark the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide this week, some are warning that Armenia is once again facing another existential threat.Speaking on "EWTN News Nightly" on Wednesday, Simone Rizkallah, an Armenian activist with the Philos Project, said that "this feels less like a remembrance and more like a truly historical event that we are in the midst of."The Armenian Genocide was carried out by Ottoman Turks in 1915 and resulted in the deaths of some 1.5 million Armenian Christians, according to historians. Though recognized as a genocide by the U.S. and more than 30 other countries, Turkey denies that characterization.The massacre took place over a hundred ...
null / Orhan Cam/ShutterstockWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 26, 2024 / 12:30 pm (CNA).The addition of "gender identity" in the Biden administration's interpretation of anti-discrimination rules could jeopardize state laws that restrict women's sports and women's locker rooms to only women, according to legal scholars.Late last week, President Joe Biden's Department of Education redefined the prohibition on sex discrimination in education, enshrined in the 1972 Title IX provisions, to include discrimination based on a person's "gender identity." The new guidelines prohibit any policy and practice that "prevents a person from participating in an education program or activity consistent with their gender identity."Although the new guidelines do not clearly explain how the mandate would be enforced, experts at the legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) and the conservative Heritage Foundation told CNA that it could force educational institutions to allow men who...
Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne attends a German Synodal Way assembly on March 9, 2023. / Credit: Synodaler Weg/Maximilian von LachnerCNA Newsroom, Apr 26, 2024 / 13:57 pm (CNA).Four German bishops on Wednesday distanced themselves from the controversial Synodal Way's plans for a permanent body to oversee the Church in Germany, instead appealing for unity with the universal Church. The four bishops are the same who have previously blocked funding for this body: Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne and three prelates from Bavaria: Gregor Maria Hanke, OSB, of Eichstätt; Stefan Oster, SDB, of Passau; and Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg.In a joint statement, the prelates confirmed on April 24 that they would not be parties to a committee charged with setting up a German "Synodal Council, as this would conflict with the sacramental constitution of the Church."The four bishops also rejected the view that the German Bishops' Conference could legally establish a "synod...