Theologians who attended the 2024 World Forum on Theology and Liberation (WFTL) held in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, expressed solidarity with the indigenous people who are victims of Israel’s genocidal attacks and neo-colonialism taking place in Palestine.
About 40 participants from five continents around the world said in a statement issued on February 19 that “Israel has colonized Palestine for decades and is currently committing planned genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.” criticized for having it.
The forum also stated that they “opposes the Zionist interpretation of the Bible that has justified genocide” among Western theologies, including Jewish theology.They argued that “from the perspective of liberation, the Gaza Strip in Palestine should be considered a key site of theological interpretation and an important turning point in the understanding of God and its implications for the lives of people around the world today.”
The World Forum on Theology and Liberation was officially launched in Porto Alegre, Brazil, where the 5th World Social Forum (WSF) was held in 2005. Latin American theologians who participated in the 1st World Social Forum in 2001 said there was a need for many social and people’s movement activists to come together and provide opportunities at a global level for global theology to join in and share the concerns of poor people around the world and build solidarity. discussed. As a result, the World Liberation Theology Forum was formed.The World Liberation Theology Forum has been held mainly in South America and Africa, including Brazil, Senegal, Canada, Kenya, and Tunisia, over the past 10 years, and this year is the first in Asia.
The forum’s agenda, schedule, and location are set in consideration of the World Social Forum, and are not set in Davos, Switzerland, where the World Economic Forum (WEF) is held, but mainly for the theology of solidarity with the poor and oppressed and victims of the global economic system. Opens in ‘Third World’. This forum was held at the ‘Godavari Ashram’ in Kathmandu from February 13-19 under the theme of ‘Politics and Religion from the Perspective of Liberation and Solidarity’. In their statement, participants affirmed that indigenous peoples around the world have the right to autonomously express their beliefs and religious practices based on their own socio-cultural traditions and religious beliefs. In addition, they strongly criticized the actions of Christians around the world that destroyed the spiritual identity of indigenous people and enforced colonial rule, and expressed solidarity with the resistance of indigenous peoples who seek to reveal and regain their identity as indigenous people and Christians.
The 2024 World Social Forum, held concurrently with the World Liberation Theology Forum, was also held in Nepal for the first time from February 15-19, and approximately 40,000 people from 92 countries around the world participated. According to the organizing committee, a total of 1,252 organizations held discussions and activities on 402 subtopics under 13 areas.This forum addresses all forms of discrimination, including economic inequality and economic justice, labor, migration, slavery, human trafficking, caste, discrimination based on occupation and origin, race and ethnicity, untouchability and xenophobia, sexual identity, gender equality, and peace. It covered a variety of topics, including conflict, refugees and climate justice, ecosystem protection and sustainable development.*