“I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”
Luke 19:40
The Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC) meets in Cyprus on 21-26 November 2024, almost exactly a decade since it last convened in this land of great significance to the early history of our faith as one of the sites of the earliest Christian outreach beyond the Holy Land. Moreover, it is two years since the passing of H.B. Archbishop Chrysostomos II, may his memory be eternal. We are grateful to God for this opportunity to meet with his successor as primate of the Church of Cyprus, H.B. Archbishop George III.
At the same time, we grieve that 50 years after the coup d’etat supported by the Greek military regime followed by the Turkish invasion in July 1974, we meet on an island that is still suffering from the consequences of this unresolved conflict. The scars of division, dispossession and displacement remain unhealed, the illegal occupation of Cyprus persists, and the separation of Cypriots from their respective holy places and places of worship and the loss of so many items of religious and cultural heritage remains a deep wound in the hearts of Cypriot people.
We recall the numerous occasions over the years on which WCC governing bodies have addressed this painful reality, including in:
- The Executive Committee statement in November 2014 – regarding forced displacement, refugees and internally displaced persons in the Middle East;
- The 11th Assembly statement in September 2022 – “The Things That Make for Peace” – which lifted up the continuing military occupations of the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) and Cyprus; and
- The Central Committee Minute in June 2023 – on Territorial Crises in the Eastern Mediterranean.
During these five decades, the United Nations (UN) and the international community have made many efforts to promote negotiations for a peaceful and just resolution of this situation. We commend those efforts, as we commend the work of the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process which has sought to engage religious leaders and communities on both sides of this division in inter-religious dialogue and cooperation for peace.
We deeply regret that negotiations in the Cyprus peace process collapsed in 2017, and have still not been resumed.
Further, we are saddened that while Turkish Cypriots have no constraints on their freedom of movement and access to all parts of Cyprus, Cypriot Christians experience significant restrictions on their access to and freedom to worship in churches and holy places in the occupied area.
The WCC Executive Committee:
Stresses that, in the context of the situation in Cyprus, the ecumenical Pilgrimage of Justice, Reconciliation and Unity serves as a powerful witness against occupation and division, and against injustice.
Urges all leaders from both Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities to overcome past hostilities, divisions and injustices, and to support free and open access to all places of worship on both sides of the divide.
Calls upon all relevant State and non-State parties to commit to a peaceful end to the division of Cyprus resulting from the invasion and occupation fifty years ago, and to negotiations for a non-violent, successful and just outcome as an essential foundation for sustainable peace and development in the region.
Urges the UN Secretary-General and all members of the international community to continue to support, accompany and encourage the peace process in Cyprus, including the inter-communal confidence building and peace promotion efforts of the religious leaders and faith communities of Cyprus.
Appeals to the Turkish Cypriot authorities to liberalize their manifestly restrictive approach to requests for access to and to conduct worship services in churches and Christian holy places in the territory under their control, and to ensure free access to such places.
Calls on member States that have not already done so to sign and ratify the Council of Europe Convention on Offences relating to Cultural Property (‘Nicosia Convention’) as the only legally-binding instrument aimed at preventing and combating such crimes by strengthening criminal justice responses and fostering international cooperation.
Affirms both the past and future role of the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process, thanks all those who support it, and encourages religious leaders from both communities to resume and redouble inter-religious and inter-communal reconciliation and cooperation for peace, justice and respect for the human and religious rights of all people in Cyprus, and to show leadership for peace, justice, reconciliation and unity.