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Lutheran World Federation President Younan Says Arms Trade Treaty Is an Important Tool for Non-Violent Conflict Resolution
LWF President, Bishop Munib A. Younan
LWF Member Churches Encouraged to Urge Governments to Sign Treaty
GENEVA, 12 April 2013 (LWI) – The first-ever global Arms Trade Treaty will be an important tool for peaceful and non-violent resolution of conflicts, with justice and respect for the dignity and rights of every person, says Bishop Dr Munib A. Younan, President of The Lutheran World Federation (LWF).
In a statement today welcoming the adoption of the Arms Trade Treaty by the United Nations General Assembly on 2 April, Younan emphasized, “Our world needs more justice and human rights, not more guns. The Arms Trade Treaty will help make that possible.”
Younan who is bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, called upon the LWF member churches to urge their respective governments “to quickly sign and ratify” the treaty, which he said is “an important tool toward reducing armed violence in our world.”
The LWF president expressed gratitude and support to the World Council of Churches for its leading role in the years-long advocacy seeking to regulate the international arms trade and on other disarmament issues. “This has been a sterling example of international ecumenical advocacy, where churches have been able to engage at the local, national and international level, bringing the painful stories of local communities to the global stage,” he said.
According to the Control Arms coalition of civil society organizations, the Arms Trade Treaty creates binding obligations for governments to ensure that weapons will not be used for human rights abuses, terrorism, transnational organized crime or violations of humanitarian law. The treaty will open for signature on 3 June 2013.
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