DAVAO CITY – Bishops from the Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox churches from 6 countries gathered in Davao City in southern Philippines for a three-day conference on United States interventionism in the affairs of sovereign nations.
The Ecumenical Bishops Forum spearheaded by international conference attended by church leaders from Canada, Norway, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, India, and the Philippines.
The EBF is co-chaired by now-retired Bishop Deogracias Iniguez, former chairperson of the Episcopal Commission on Public Affairs of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, and Right Reverend Bishop Felixberto Calang of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente.
The conference is the church leaders’ response to what they believe is “reprehensible US foreign policy of ‘exporting’ its financial crisis to other sovereign nations.”
The conference document said the U.S. is squeezing more super profits from the poor all over the world by imposing lopsided monetary and fiscal policies and plundering the economies and natural environment of other nations, especially the ancestral domains of indigenous peoples.
“The U.S. approach to solve its financial crisis brings un-peace, injustice and chaos to the affected nations and peoples, and global chaos ensues,” Bishop Iniguez said in a statement sent to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.
Bishop Calang said the conference comes on the heels of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte’s rejection of the U.S. embassy’s proposal for a drone program to be established at the city’s old airport.
He said the EBF and many religious institutions are supporting the mayor’s stance.
“Those who oppose U.S. hegemony are met with repression through wars of aggression, the bogus US-led war on terror, the U.S. drone strategy, and militarization by its proxy armies in neocolonies,” Bishop Calang said in the same statement.
Bishop Elmer Bolocon, EBF’s national executive secretary, both church and secular leaders in Davao City and Mindanao are contributing greatly to the theological, ecumenical, and secular movements against US interventionism in sovereign nations.
“If we want to achieve a just and lasting peace in the world, it starts with making the US government accountable for its sins to the world and to humanity,” Bishop Bolocon said.
Bishop Julio Labayen, a founding member of the EBF, said the bishops are in a great position to be socially involved in the lives of the people “by the authority given to us by Peter and by the exhortations of the social doctrines of the Church especially the Papal teachings of Popes Paul VI, John XXIII, John Paul II, and now of Pope Francis.”
Fr. Peter Murnane, one of the conference participants, shared his experience in opposing US militarism in New Zealand.
He is widely known as one of the advocates who breached the security perimeters of the Waihopai U.S. spy base in New Zealand. Fr. Murnane has invoked the Biblical call of “turning swords into ploughshares” for his actions. He cited the need for more church involvement in social action so that justice and peace will prevail in the world.
Prof. Roland Simbulan, of the University of the Philippines, and known anti-U.S. bases advocate, and renowned political thinker Dr. Ninan Koshy of India, are also in the conference which runs until January 18.
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