THANKFUL TO Almighty God for the cessation of open war in Kuwait and Iraq,
MINDFUL of the tragic aftermath of such hostilities in terms not only of loss of life but also of the appalling social and economic conditions prevailing in the Gulf and the long-term threat to the environment caused by oil pollution in both sea and air,
REJOICES with the world community at recent political developments where negotiation has opened the way to peaceful resolution of long-term hostility or oppression, in particular:
• the September 1993 accords between the Israelis and Palestinians
• the birth of a non-racial and truly democratic society through the April 1994 elections in South Africa
• the peaceful transition to democracy in Malawi in 1994 where Baptists and other Christian leaders played a crucial and courageous role;
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance meeting in Seville, Spain, July 8-13, 2002:
DEPLORES the continuing violence in the Middle East;
LAMENTS the absence of peace for all the people of the Middle East;
NOTES that the absence of peace for the Middle East contributes to suffering throughout the world;
COMMENDS the leadership of USA President George W. Bush, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas as well as the roles of the USA, the European Union, the United Nations and Russia in putting forth “The Road Map to Peace” that provides an opportune moment for all parties involved in the Middle East conflict;
“Aware of the unprecedented suffering through which the people of Israel have passed during recent years, millions of them being exterminated by the most inhuman means; aware also that these sufferings are not yet at an end, but that hundreds of thousands are still in concentration camps or wandering homeless from land to land; aware, further, that the poisonous propaganda and destructive designs of anti- Semitism are still at work in many lands: this Congress puts on record its sense of sorrow and shame that such conditions prevail.
The General Council of the Baptist World Alliance, meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia July 4-9, 2011:
REGARDS current events in various countries in the Middle East as an opportunity for peaceful positive changes in the societies, and, therefore: