Declaration by Mennonite Churches in France on the War in Serbia and Kosovo
At a meeting of pastors and elders of the Evangelical Mennonite Churches of France, held in Valdoie on May 1, 1999, the following declaration concerning the conflict in Serbia and Kosovo was approved:
We the leaders of the Evangelical Mennonite Churches of France, gathered together in Valdoie on May 1, 1999, are challenged by the current events in Yugoslavia and the neighboring countries. We are troubled by the suffering of displaced persons and refugees, and we are concerned about the condition of life for the people of Kosovo. We are troubled by the operations of destruction in both Serbia and Kosovo and by the death of military personnel and civilians on both sides of the conflict.Sent to: French Evangelical and Protestant periodicals, MCC, MWC, the President of France, the French Prime Minister, the French Minister of Defense, the Secretary General of NATO, the President of the General Assembly of theUnited Nations, the President of the United States, the President of Serbia.As Mennonites, Christians who since the 16th century have cherished evangelical non-violence as lived and taught by Christ, we believe that war - just like hate and ethnic cleansing - is evil. Whenever the powers that be decide to terminate human life they are in fact usurping the prerogative which belongs to God alone. The Gospel of Jesus Christ declares that evil is overcome only by good, hate by love, and rejection by welcome.
The goal of the military intervention launched by NATO over a month ago was to force the government of President Milosevic to sign the Rambouillet Peace Accord and to put an end to ethnic cleansing. What do we observe today? Milosevic has still not signed the Peace Accord, and ethnic cleansing has increased. Kosovo and Serbia have both sustained substantial destruction. The prospect of peace and justice is now less likely than before.
The task of political authority is to encourage good and to discourage evil. We are aware of the difficulty of this task. We are also aware that we are late in speaking out. We question the military and political objectives of the allied nations in this conflict. There is a lack of clarity. We have questions about the "benefits" of this intervention in light of both short- and long-term military, economic and human costs. We are also troubled by the choice of civilian targets and by the limited options available for finding "a way out" of the conflict which would be acceptable to all parties concerned.
For as much as it depends on us, we desire to live peaceably with all people. For this reason we call on all parties to stop the hostilities and extortions and to return to the negotiating table in an appropriate context where all the concerned groups will be involved.
We commit ourselves to humanitarian aid and reconstruction for all parties concerned through international Mennonite organizations.
We are praying for those who are suffering and for those who are inflicting suffering. We are also praying for the leaders of all the parties involved in this conflict. May God transform hearts of stone into hearts of flesh.
Signed: Roger Kennel
President of the Pastors and Elders
· translated by MWC News Services
(NOTE TO EDITORS: A copy of the original French text is included below.)
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VALDOIE - Nous, responsables des Eglises evangeliques mennonites de France rassembles a Valdoie le 1er mai 1999, sommes interpelles par les evenements de ce printemps en Yougoslavie et dans les pays voisins. Nous sommes affliges par la souffrance de personnes deplacees ou refugiees et inquiets pour le sort des Kosovars dans leur pays. Nous sommes affliges par les destructions operees en Serbie et au Kosovo et par la mort de personnes civiles et militaires de toutes les parties en conflit.
En tant que mennonites, chretiens attaches depuis le XVIeme siecle a la non-violence evangelique vecue et enseignee par le Christ, nous croyons que la guerre - comme la haine et l'epuration ethnique - est un mal. En effet, lorqu'ils mettent fin a des vies humaines, les pouvoirs quels qu'ils soient usurpent les prerogatives reservees a Dieu seul. L'Evangile de Jesus-Christ indique que le mal ne peut etre surmonte que par le bien, la haine par l'amour, le rejet par l'accueil.
Les operations militaires, declenchees par l'OTAN il y a plus d'un mois, avaient pour but d'amener le gouvernement de M. Milosevic a signer les accords de Rambouillet et de mettre fin a l'epuration ethnique. Que constatons-nous aujourd'hui ? M. Milosevic n'a toujours pas signe les accords, l'epuration ethnique s'est acceleree. Le Kosovo - et la Serbie - ont subi des destructions considerables. Les perspectives de paix et de justice sont ainsi plus eloignees encore qu'auparavant.
La mission des autorites politiques est de favoriser le bien et de reprimer le mal. Nous sommes conscients de la difficulte de cette tache. Nous sommes egalement conscients de prendre la parole tardivement. Nous nous interrogeons sur les objectifs militaires et politiques des nations alliees dans ce conflit. Des zones d'ombres entourent cette operation. Nous nous posons des questions sur les "benefices" de cette operation face aux couts militaires, economiques et humains a court et a long-terme, sur le choix de cibles civiles, sur les "portes de sortie" acceptables par les parties en conflit.
Autant que cela depende de nous, nous desirons vivre en paix avec tous les hommes. C'est pourquoi nous demandons a toutes les parties de cesser les hostilites et les exactions et de reprendre de vraies negociations, dans un cadre approprie et avec les instances concernees.
Dans le cadre des instances mennonites internationales, nous nous engageons dans l aide humanitaire et de reconstruction aupres des parties en conflit.
Nous prions pour ceux qui souffrent et ceux qui font souffrir, nous prions pour les autorites de toutes les parties. Que Dieu transforme les coeurs de pierre en coeurs de chair!
Roger Kennel,
president de la pastorale