December 14, 2010

GENEVA – The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has expressed gratitude to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for its dedicated service to refugees and internally displaced persons throughout the world, and for its pragmatic spirit of humanitarian partnership.

"We are grateful that through UNHCR, human dignity has been lifted up and millions of people who had lost everything have been able to start new lives," said LWF General Secretary Rev. Martin Junge in a statement coinciding with agencyÕs 60th anniversary being observed today, 14 December.

LWF humanitarian work is carried out through its Department for World Service (DWS) with country and regional programs in more than 30 countries throughout the world. Junge expressed gratitude for the long-standing practical partnership the LWF has shared with UNHCR and its predecessor body, the UN International Refugee Organization.

The LWF statement underlined "UNHCR's pragmatic spirit of humanitarian partnership; working with organizations and governments across all boundaries," citing collaboration in view of Somali and Sudanese refugees in Kenya, Bhutanese refugees in Nepal, and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Chad, among other settings.

The general secretary affirmed the LWF's appreciation for UNHCR's decades of life-saving work that have helped protect and save the lives of millions all across the world. "We are grateful for the brave dedication and selfless efforts of the High Commissioners and their staff over the years," the LWF said.

The UNHCR's 60th anniversary theme, "Put Yourself in the Shoes of Refugees," is one that resonates well for Lutherans, the LWF added, noting that at the close of the Second World War, one out of six Lutherans was a refugee or displaced person. Lutherans in other parts of the world worked together to provide relief and new lives for the displaced. Out of this service the LWF was born in 1947.

"LWF World Service continues to operate major programs of assistance for refugees and displaced persons around the world, responding to human need, regardless of religion. Service with refugees and displaced persons continues to be part of the core witness and work of the Lutheran communion of churches," Junge noted.

The statement underlined the sad reality that assistance to refugees and IDPs on which the LWF and UNHCR collaborate will remain necessary "as our world tragically continues to create situations in which innocent men, women, and children are forced to flee." Many of these forced migrants, though not fitting within the definition of a refugee, "are no less vulnerable, and no less in need of protection," Junge remarked.

"Ours is still a world in which the cruel situations of war, persecution, and disaster force people to leave their homes and seek refuge elsewhere. Yet, despite all this, our world is a better place because of UNHCR," he concluded.

The full text of the LWF statement is available at: http://www.lutheranworld.org/lwf/index.php/praise-unhcr-refugee-work.html.

Lutheran World Information