Ecumenical body praises churches in Kenya

The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev Dr Samuel Kobia has called on Kenyan political leaders to keep moving towards dialogue while praising the countries' churches for their role in peacemaking.

The head of the African Union, Ghanaian President John Kufuor spent Wednesday trying to break the political deadlock between Kenya's re-elected President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga.

"While the situation continues to be critical, some signs of hope can be seen", Kobia said in a public statement on Wednesday.

He welcomed recent developments in the country and expressed hope that the "political stalemate" may be broken.

"We call on the political leaders, especially President Kibaki and Hon. Raila Odinga, to refrain from taking decisions that might frustrate the process towards dialogue for a peaceful resolution of the conflict", he said.

Violence tainted with ethnical components erupted across the country following a disputed presidential election last December. Reports estimate that about 600 people have been killed, while some 200,000 have fled their homes.

Kobia praised the work of the Kenyan churches, which have been "strongly involved in resolving the situation and calling for peace", at a time when their "ministry of healing and reconciliation" is deeply needed.

"Church leaders must continue to rise above ethnic differences and politics and call for an end to the disputes", he said.

The WCC statement also appeals to churches around the world to "continue to pray for the Kenyan people and churches and to provide humanitarian aid through ecumenical partners" in the country.

Grace Njunguna of the Bible Society in Kenya also sees signs of hope.

"We thank God there seems to be some peaceful solutions coming - God is answering prayer," she said on Tuesday. "Things are quite calm in Nairobi now, we have been able to go to the office yesterday and today.

"However we still have fighting in the Rift Valley. Our colleagues who were in Western Kenya have been unable to return to Nairobi, but if the trend we see now continues, there could be complete calm by the end of the week.

"President Kibaki has called Raila for a dialogue on Friday and has invited religious leaders. We pray that they will be able to meet and that they come up with a peaceful solution. We appreciate your prayers, please keep praying - we can see the results."