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For Immediate Release
HRH Prince El Hassan bin Talal calls for "peace
with justice, end to violence"
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On behalf of the Islamic Supreme Council of America and its
founder Shaykh Muhammad Nazim Adil al-Haqqani, we are pleased
to release the following statement by World Conference on Religion
and Peace Moderator Prince Hassan bin Talal of Jordan. Shaykh
Adil is a WCRP co-president:
(Amman,
Jordan, 5/3/02) - H.R.H. Prince El Hassan bin Talal, Moderator
of the World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP), today
called for "a peaceful end to the siege around the Church
of the Nativity and for the
protection" of all holy sites. Denouncing the violence
that has gripped the Holy Land, including the very "site
of the birth of Jesus," Prince Hassan noted all three
Abrahamic faiths "call for Peace with justice, all three
make careful provision for self-defense, but none condones
the shedding of innocent blood for any reason."
WCRP
leaders have called for a swift resolution of the standoff
at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and a return of
its control to recognized church authorities. "The sanctity
of Holy places is recognized by all of the world's great faiths
and must be preserved," said Rev. Nichiko Niwano, President
of Rissho Kosei-kai and a Co-President of WCRP.
"Too
often in recent years, religious sites have been attacked
as a means for making political statements," noted Dr.
William F. Vendley, Secretary General of WCRP. "Perpetrators
of such violence must understand that an
attack on a site sacred to one faith is an attack upon all
religion."
Prince
Hassan, a direct descendant of the prophet Mohammed, called
on "believers around the world, especially the Jews,
Christians, and Muslims in the Holy Land, to unite in solidarity
for Peace in the Land of Peace."
Echoing
this sentiment, Bishop Gunnar Stallsett, Lutheran Bishop of
Oslo and a WCRP Co-President, noted, "Interreligious
cooperation and solidarity are essential building blocks in
the peace process. There can be no lasting
peace without them."
WCRP
provides on-going support for the courageous efforts of Muslim,
Jewish and Christian religious leaders who first assembled
in Alexandria, Egypt in January 2002 to collaborate for peace.
The First Alexandria Declaration of
the Religious Leaders of the Holy Land signed and issued on
28 January, "provides a blueprint for interreligious
cooperation as a tool for breaking the cycle of violence in
the Holy Land," said Rabbi David Rosen.
WCRP
is the largest international coalition bringing together representatives
of the world's great religions who are dedicated to achieving
peace. Its Executive Committee comprises senior leaders of
the Islamic, Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu and indigenous
religions.
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CONTACTS: Dr. William F. Vendley, Secretary General, WCRP
Phone: (212) 687-2163; E-mail: wvendley@wcrp.org
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