Justice and Peace: European anti-trafficking driveA concerted European action to combat the trafficking of human beings, beginning from the end of March, was discussed and decided at Prague, during the annual meeting of general secretaries of the Conference of European Justice and Peace Commissions (“Justice and Peace Europe”) held in Prague, in the Czech Republic on 6-8 March. “Justice and Peace Europe” brings together 31 national commissions from all over the continent. This year the meeting was held in Prague, due to the fact that the government of the Czech Republic is holding the rotating Presidency of the EU during the first half of 2009, and also to “learn from the participants about their experiences of the transformation of Czech society over the last twenty years”, explain the meeting’s promoters. “Justice and Peace Europe” is aimed at contributing, in a time of financial crisis, “to the reconstruction of a European economy based on justice and respect for all citizens and for the common good”. The European organization has just concluded a concerted action, with the participation of all its members, on the reduction of poverty in Europe, with a request to States to keep their promises in meeting the UN Millennium Objectives. This time the focus of the meeting was concentrated on the trafficking of human beings: the common action will be followed by a programme of assisting the victims of trafficking and their families in the region of the Carpathians in Ukraine, promoted by the Ukrainian Commission of Justice and Peace and Caritas Ukraine. The participants in the meeting paid a visit to local Roma communities to see for themselves the problems they experience “in all European countries” and the efforts being made by the Czech Republic to integrate this marginalized group in society.Ireland: in support of ethical financeAn Irish Catholic bank, the “Clann Credo” with its head offices in Dublin, has not suffered in this period of recession because it invests only in companies that are trustworthy from an ethical point of view. The success of the bank is reported by the Catholic weekly “The Tablet”, explaining that this bank, founded by the order of Sisters of the Presentation in 1996 and receiving contributions from over twenty religious congregations and from the fund of the Irish government for social projects, is by now the most important provider of social finance for community projects in Ireland. “Clann Credo” lent seven million euros to various charities last year, sponsoring over two hundred community projects and voluntary services throughout Ireland. The Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility, a network of Irish and British churches and other groups that campaigns for an economy of greater justice and more respectful of the environment, has hailed the example of “Clann Credo” as a model of ethical investments. “This crisis has demonstrated the instability of traditional non-ethical investments”, declared Myles Litvinof, coordinator of the Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility. According to Litvinof, if more people who invest were conscious of the importance of sustainable development we would have less economic crises. “It’s an opportunity to convince people to transfer their own savings elsewhere. For religious communities it’s important to think in the long term”, said Litvinof.Austria: “the long night of the Churches” The annual ecumenical initiative “The long night of the churches” is crossing the frontiers of Austria: this year, apart from the some 600 participating churches in Austria, churches elsewhere, in Slovenia, in Alto Adige and at Brno, in the diocese of the Czech Republic twinned with Vienna, will keep their doors open until late at night. Ecumenism is the protagonist of the event in Austria: according to the Austrian Catholic press agency Kathpress, an inaugural ecumenical celebration will be held in Vienna’s Lutheran church on 5 June. Some thirty communities of other Christian Churches belonging to the Ecumenical Council will take part in the event. A meeting is also planned at the Kalvarienbergkirche between the leading political scientist Anton Pelinka and Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, during which the Church’s task of social policy will be discussed. The Austrian churches participating in the initiative will host various events tailored to people of all ages. “Parish priests have seized the occasion to ask themselves how they should present themselves. Each year in fact a creative programme ranging from the spiritual to the cultural and social aspect is proposed”, explained Karl Rühringer, coordinator of the event for Vienna, who emphasized that the participation of non-Catholic Christian communities also offers “visitors the chance to get to know other Churches”.
