WCC news: WCC calls for a “peace-full Pacific”

World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay, in a special “Call for a Peace-Full Pacific,” urged a move beyond militarised security toward holistic, relational peace in the Pacific.  Photo: Albin Hillert/WCC 23 July 2025 "Yet this vision unfolds amid intensifying great-power rivalry,” Pillay said. “Too often, Pacific voices are relegated to the margins of these power contests.” He reaffirmed the WCC’s support for a nuclear-free Pacific, standing in solidarity with affected communities in Ma‘ohi Nui, the Marshall Islands, and Kiribati, calling for independent assessments of nuclear test impacts, transparent data access, reparations, environmental remediation, and universal ratification of the Treaty of Rarotonga and of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. “The WCC reaffirms its position that true peace requires the dismantling of colonial systems of control and oppression,” Pillay added, calling for continued listing of Ma‘ohi Nui and Kanaky on the UN decolonisation agenda until full self-determination is achieved, a transparent plan from France to decolonise by 2030, an international review of Hawai‘i’s political status, and full implementation of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, particularly in Aotearoa and Australia. Pillay also urged demilitarisation, specifically transparency and consent for all military activity, a UN moratorium on autonomous weapons systems, and island-led efforts to establish demilitarised maritime zones. He further noted that the Pacific Ocean is central to the future of life on earth, and called for a “global ban on deep-sea mining, and affirmation of the leadership of Pacific churches in climate advocacy,” he said, further urging “inclusion of frontline Pacific voices in UN climate forums; promotion of eco-communal theology that unites Scripture, Indigenous wisdom, and science; and continued church divestment from fossil fuels. Pillay also reaffirmed the WCC 11th Assembly “Minute on the situation in West Papua” that expressed the grave concern regarding the situation in Tanah Papua – the Papuan provinces of Indonesia. Pillay encouraged continued and intensified engagement by the WCC, including advocacy in UN human rights forums, and consideration of the establishment of an ecumenical working group on West Papua.  He urged all WCC member churches and partners “to increase their awareness, accompaniment, and support for the people and churches of Tanah Papua in the midst of this longstanding and worsening crisis,” concluding: “Let us uphold peace based on justice, dignity, and the sacred relationship between people, land, and ocean." Read the full statement See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 356 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 580 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay from the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches Chemin du Pommier 42 Kyoto Building Le Grand-Saconnex CH-1218 Switzerland