Prayer vigils, film projections, themed testimonies and meetings. But especially a campaign to raise awareness about and to denounce the crimes committed by the Russian military forces in Chechenia. It’s all happening in France where the Churches have pulled together to promote an ecumenical mobilization for the international Day in support of the victims of torture, promoted by the UN and celebrated on 26 June. In particular, the national Synod of the Reformed Church and the president of the French Bishops’ Conference asked parishes and communities to pray for the victims of torture in the world and appealed to Christians to promote a day of awareness-raising and mobilization of Christians. The initiative will be coordinated by ACAT (Action of Christians for the abolition of torture and the death sentence), an ecumenical association that regroups Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox. For the victims of torture writes ACAT “life will never be the same again. A sound, a voice, a cry, a smell may be enough to propel these people back into their nightmare”. This year the Churches launched a campaign on Chechenia, asking people to send e-mails and “cyber-letters” to Peter Schieder, president of the parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, denouncing the violence committed by the Russian military forces in Chechenia. “The international community says the message is giving proof of inadmissible complacency towards the Russian authorities”. The signatories ask the Council of Europe in particular to “suspend once again the right of the Russian delegation to vote”, to “encourage the adoption of a resolution of strong condemnation of the Russian federal forces” and to “pursue the perpetrators of these violations”.
