March 17, 2009

MADAGASCAR – The leader of the largest Protestant church in Madagascar has issued an appeal to Christian soldiers in the military not to commit murder. In a message broadcast repeatedly this morning on the radio station of the Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar, Rev. Lala Rasendrahasina is calling on Christians in the military not to commit violence.

Speaking by telephone from Antananarivo, Rasendrahasina reports, "I have asked Christians in the military to remember they are baptised and that they are not supposed to murder nor to accept orders from superiors to kill."

The Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar, a member church of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC), is involved in an initiative by the Christian Council of Churches in Madagascar to mediate a peaceful resolution to the violent political crisis which has caused at least 135 deaths since a dispute over democratic reform broke out in late January. The United Nations has been facilitating planning for the church-brokered meeting of all political parties and civil society.

The Christian Council of Churches will meet this afternoon in the midst of what is now being called a coup d'état, in order to arrange a date and a list of participants for the national conference. Attempts to organize a meeting on 12 March failed because of concern expressed by the opposition group that the proposed list of participants included too many government supporters.

Rasendrahasina says the situation for church people is very tense. He has received two threats that his home will be "burned out." He and other pastors have hired security guards. Tensions are exacerbated by the prominent role of President Ravalomanana in the Church of Christ in Madagascar where he serves as its lay vice-president.

Violence broke out on January 26 when the former mayor of Antananarivo, Andry Rajoelina, called a demonstration to protest the government's closure of a private radio station that had been campaigning for democratic reform. Although the radio station has since reopened, violent confrontations between Rajoelina's supporters and those of President Marc Ravalomanana continue.

"We recognize the extraordinarily complex situation in which the church finds itself at this time in the country's history," says WARC's world president, Clifton Kirkpatrick. "We are keeping the country and its churches in our prayers. We deeply regret the loss of life in this conflict, the destruction of property and the fear with which people are living. We pray that political and church leaders will agree to seek a peaceful resolution to their disagreements. "

World Alliance of Reformed Churches