Ekklesia News

Germany's biggest Protestant gathering has made a strong appeal for an end to international tax evasion and speculation on foodstuffs.

Germany's biggest Protestant gathering has made a strong appeal for an end to international tax evasion and speculation on foodstuffs.

"We need decisive international action to ensure that everyone meets their tax obligations," Professor Gerhard Robbers told journalists on the opening day of the 1-5 May event in Hamburg, called the German Protestant Kirchentag (church congress).

The theme of the five-day event is “As much as you need” (Exodus 16.18) and focuses on the need for a sustainable economy and society.

More than 115'000 people are in Hamburg for Kirchentag, which takes place every two years. Altogether there are more than 2,500 individual events in Hamburg, including debates on issues of church and society, concerts and worship.

Robbers, a professor of constitutional law at the University of Trier, said the Kirchentag needed to face the challenges posed by controversial banking deals and tax havens.

"It is unacceptable that the poorest are starving because of speculation on foodstuffs," he said.

Prominent speakers at this year's Kirchentag include German President Joachim Gauck and Chancellor Angela Merkel. Church of England Bishop Nick Baines will preach at the closing worship.

The Kirchentag was founded after in 1949 by Protestants who had been active in the Confessing Church, which opposed Nazi incursions into church life under Hitler. The Kirchentag founders wanted to help rebuild a culture of democratic political debate in Germany after the Second World War.

In its 65 year history, the Kirchentag has often taken a prominent position on controversial issues. The 1981 Kirchentag, also in Hamburg, was the focus for the peace movement in West Germany in opposing the deployment of nuclear weapons in Europe.

Web: http://www.kirchentag.de/en/en.html

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© Stephen Brown is an experienced ecumenical and current affairs journalist. He is an Ekklesia associate, and reporting directly from the Kirchentag for us.

David Cameron says he will raise the issue of three British men tortured by Dubai police with the President of the United Arab Emirates during his state visit.

David Cameron has today (1 May) said he would raise the issue of three British men tortured by Dubai police with the President of the United Arab Emirates during his state visit.

Asked on ITV’s Daybreak about the case of Grant Cameron, Suneet Jeerh, and Karl Wiliams, who were subjected to beatings and electric shocks by UAE police in July last year, David Cameron said, “the point I’ll make today [to the UAE President] is there needs to be a proper, independent investigation into…what happened.”

Sheikh Khalifa, President of the UAE – of which Dubai is a part – is on the second day of a state visit to Britain, and will be meeting the Prime Minister later on.

Mr Cameron added that an independent investigation into the men’s treatment would be the “first step” and that “nothing should be off limits in these discussions.”

The three British men who were subjected to torture were also forced to sign documents in Arabic, a language they do not understand, before being charged with drugs offences. They pleaded not guilty but were all sentenced to four years’ imprisonment on Monday this week.

Kate Higham, an investigator at human rights charity Reprieve, which is supporting the three men, said: “It is crucial that the Prime Minister makes clear to the UAE President that the way these three men have been treated, and the response by the Dubai authorities, is completely unacceptable. With these kinds of fair trial violations the prosecution against the men should have been dropped long ago - the Prime Minister must push for their immediate release and return to Britain. Anything less will leave people wondering just what the point of our relationship with the UAE is.”

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More than 150 people attended an event in Bristol Cathedral on Sunday 28 April to mark Workers' Memorial Day.

More than 150 people attended an event in Bristol Cathedral on Sunday 28 April to mark Workers' Memorial Day.

The event, organised by the South West Trades Union Congress (TUC) , attracted members of unions from all over the city to remember those who lost their lives because of their work, and to campaign for the living.

The cathedral was lined with colourful trade union banners as Canon Tim Higgins welcomed people to the building, saying religious and trade union communities were linked by a common desire for justice and peace.

Rich harmonies from the Red Notes Choir rang through the cathedral and created a moving ceremony that paid tribute to those killed as a result of work but who inspired on-going campaigns to protect working people.

Nigel Costley, regional secretary of the South West TUC, said a worker died every 15 seconds somewhere in the world and that unions had a key part to play in worker safety, explaining that unionised workplaces were twice as safe as non-unionised ones.

Julia Verne from Public Health England said there were 16 deaths at work in the South West in 2012, but more than 2,000 workers suffered by life-threatening injuries.

The BBC's Sally Challoner then interviewed Dave Moscrop, who gave a powerful and moving account of how his father died after contracting mesothelioma in the workplace, and how he was seeking justice.

Dave said he was still angry at his father's bosses wilfully ignoring safety to protect their profits. His father, he said, was allowed to work on one side of a factory, making cabinets, when on the other side, asbestos was freely cut into pieces, sending dust into the air.

Sally then spoke to Tim Morris from UCATT, who said the only way to make the construction industry safer was to change the way it is run. He told of cuts to health and safety putting workers in danger, and of the horror of turning up at building sites after a death.

Dave Smith from the Blacklist Support Group gave a passionate speech about how trade union representatives who raised safety issues on building sites were 'blacklisted' - put on a secret list held by employers, and never employed again.

Dave said he had seen the blacklist detailing names and addresses of activists, even the type of car they drove.

He finished to rousing applause, saying he had no intention of remaining silent over the issue.

Moving on to an international dimension, Farzana Saker from Bristol Multi-Faith Forum went on to say that despite improvements in working conditions the UK, many multinational companies circumvented regulations by outsourcing manufacturing to countries with less regulation.

Anna McMullen from Label Behind the Label then said the worst thing about the Bangladesh tragedy, in which more than 350 people died, was that employers knew it was going to happen.

She said the owners of the eight-storey building were warned of cracks in the walls the day before the building collapsed, yet ignored them to continue working. Unions, she said, were repressed, preventing workers from raising safety concerns.

She finished by saying factories were death traps waiting to happen and, rather than express shock and sympathy, UK brands such as Primark and Matalan, who sold garments made in these factories, should invest in safety.

The final speaker was NUJ General Secretary Michelle Stanistreet, who asked people who it was who gave a voice to whistleblowers raising safety concerns, who shone a light into dark corners that bosses would rather were left in the shadows.

The answer, of course, was journalists, some 121 of whom lost their lives during the course of their work in 2012. The single biggest contributor to journalists' deaths, she said, was the culture of impunity as politicians turned a blind eye to the killings.

Nigel Costley closed the event by declaring trade unions must use the day to redouble their efforts to keep workplaces safe.

A short march to Castle Green followed , where wreaths were laid at the foot of the plaque to remember those who have lost their lives as a result of their work.

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The decision to introduce EU-wide restrictions on neonicotinoid insecticides linked to bee decline is a significant victory says Friends of the Earth.

The decision to introduce EU-wide restrictions on neonicotinoid insecticides linked to bee decline is a significant victory for bees and common sense, says Friends of the Earth.

However, the environmental charity warned that pesticides are not the only threat bees face, and renewed its call for the UK Government to urgently introduce a Bee Action Plan.

Through its Bee Cause campaign Friends of the Earth played a leading role in persuading major home and garden retailers to act on neonicotinoid insecticides.

Over recent months firms such as B&Q, Homebase, Wyevale and Dobbies have removed these products from their shelves - and Waitrose announced plans to remove these chemicals from supply chains.

Friends of the Earth's Head of Campaigns Andrew Pendleton said: "This decision is a significant victory for common sense and our beleagured bee populations.

"Restricting the use of these pesticides could be an historic milestone on the road to recovery for these crucial pollinators.

"But pesticides are just one of the threats bees face - if David Cameron is genuinely concerned about declining bee numbers he must urgently introduce a Bee Action Plan."

Commenting on the UK Government's failure to support restrictions on neonicotinoids, Andrew Pendleton said:

"The UK Government's refusal to back restrictions on these chemicals, despite growing scientific concern about their impact, is yet another blow to its environmental credibility.

"Ministers must now help farmers to grow and protect crops, but without relying so heavily on chemicals - especially those linked to bee decline."

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Survival International has launched a tourism boycott of India’s Andaman Islands, until the degrading practice of ‘human safaris’ to the Jarawa tribe is stopped.

The tribal rigfhts organisation Survival International has today (30 April) launched a tourism boycott of India’s Andaman Islands, until the degrading practice of ‘human safaris’ to the 400-strong Jarawa tribe is stopped.

Survival is calling on the 200,000 tourists visiting the islands every year to stay away until tourists are banned from the road through the Jarawa’s forest and an alternative sea route is put in place.

Survival has written to over 200 travel companies and websites in eleven countries urging them to stop their tours to the Andaman Islands, and will place advertisments targeted at tourists to discourage them from visiting the popular travel destination. Survival is also asking members of the public to pledge not to travel to the islands until the demands are met.

Hundreds of tourists from India and around the world travel along the illegal Andaman Trunk Road every day to ogle at members of the Jarawa tribe – treating them like animals in a safari park.

When asked how he felt when outsiders took pictures of him, Enmai, a young Jarawa, said, "I don’t feel good. I don’t like it when they take photos from their vehicles."

Earlier this year, India’s Supreme Court banned tourists from the road for seven weeks, reducing the traffic along the Andaman Trunk Road by two thirds. But the ban was lifted after the Islands’ authorities changed their own regulations in order to let the ‘human safaris’ continue.

The tours have been widely condemned both in India and around the world. India’s Minister for Tribal Affairs called them "disgraceful" and "an embarrassment", and last year, in response to a submission by Survival, the United Nations expressed their ‘deep concern’ about the ‘human safaris’ and called for the illegal road to be closed.

Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said today, "The Andaman government is arguing that the road is a necessary lifeline for the north of the islands. It’s nonsense: in fact there’s no reason for the road. The route by boat is faster, more convenient and cheaper for islanders, so providing an alternative sea route is better for locals, tourists, and the Jarawa alike. There will be no end to these degrading human safaris until tourists stop using the road, and we’ll continue the boycott until that happens."

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Amnesty International has warned of a likely legal challenge if Northern Ireland is left as the only part of the UK without marriage rights for same-sex couples.

Amnesty International has warned of a likely legal challenge if Northern Ireland is left as the only part of the UK without marriage rights for same-sex couples.

Speaking in advance of a vote in the Northern Ireland Assembly on same-sex marriage, due to take place on Monday, Patrick Corrigan, Amnesty International's Northern Ireland Programme Director, said: "States may not discriminate with regards to the right to marry and found a family, on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. That obligation is clear in international law. This means that marriage should be available to same-sex couples in Northern Ireland just as it appears it soon will be in other parts of the UK.

"Equally, the right to adopt, for instance, should be available without distinction based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

"The UK authorities cannot abdicate that responsibility not to discriminate and Northern Ireland politicians should not leave local same-sex couples with inferior rights to the rest of society.

"Should politicians fail to act, there could be a legal challenge on the basis of inferior treatment of same-sex couples in Northern Ireland with regards to the right to marry and found a family."

He conclused: "Sadly, it appears that some politicians prefer to abdicate their responsibility on questions like this, leaving it instead to judges to take the right decision."

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The Refugee Council has submitted evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee, which is undertaking an inquiry into the asylum system for the first time in ten years.

The Refugee Council has submitted evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee, which launched an inquiry into the asylum system in February for the first time in ten years. The Committee has now begun hearing evidence from key stakeholders, such as the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration.

The aim of the inquiry is to look at, among other things, the effectiveness of the screening process for asylum applicants including the Detained Fast Track, the assessment of credibility of vulnerable asylum seekers, whether support to asylum seekers is sufficient and effective, the prevalence of destitution, and whether the media is balanced in their reporting of asylum issues.

The Refugee Council’s Advocacy team drew evidence from across the organisation to highlight the issues our clients regularly face. Its evidence includes:

- How the dispersal of pregnant women in the asylum system puts their health at serious risk
- Living on Section 4 support, including how the cashless system poses risks to pregnant women
- Gaps in receiving asylum support and destitution as a result
- Obstacles people experience in finding support, housing and employment after being granted refugee status
- Problems for refugees applying for travel documents due to the new Biometric Residence Permits
- The disproportionate and discriminatory nature of some reporting of asylum and refugee issues in the media.

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The Arctic came to Friends House in London on 20 April as part of a global day of action as Greenpeace used 3D projection to transform the building into the pristine Arctic.

The Arctic came to Quakers’ Friends House in London on 20 April as part of a global day of action.

Greenpeace used 3D projection mapping to transform the iconic building into the pristine Arctic. The film celebrated the Arctic as a precious habitat and called for a global effort to protect it from climate change and deep sea oil-drilling.

Helen Drewery, General Secretary of Quaker Peace and Social Witness said: “Faith leads us to work for a sustainable and just society so Quakers welcome Greenpeace’s work to Save the Arctic. It was moving to see Greenpeace’s vision for an Arctic free from fossil fuel extraction and the effects of climate change projected onto our building. The images strengthen our resolve to work to end dependency on fossil fuels.”

Using the hashtag #ILoveArctic the Greenpeace campaign said: “As the ice melts, oil companies are threatening the pristine Arctic with industrial disaster. The world is calling for action to protect the Arctic for all of humanity.”

View the 3Dprojection here www.quaker.org.uk/arctic-campaign or on http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/climate/arctic-london-amazing-3d-proje...

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The execution of two death row inmates in Japan is part of a chilling escalation of death penalty use under the country'snewgovernment, Amnesty has said.

The execution of two death row inmates in Japan is part of a chilling escalation of death penalty use under the new Liberal Democratic government, Amnesty International has said.

The two men - Yoshihide Miyagi and Katsuji Hamasak, were hanged in Tokyo on 26 April, after they had both been convicted of murder for shooting rival gang members in a restaurant in Ichihara city in 2005.

The executions are the fourth and fifth to take place in Japan since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took office in December, with three other men hanged in February. In total, Japan has executed 12 people during the last year. By contrast, before March 2012 no executions had been carried out for 20 months in the country.

Amnesty International Asia Pacific Director Catherine Baber said: “This shocking news unfortunately reinforces our fears that the new government is increasing the pace of executions in an alarming way.

“We have already seen five executions this year, and it shows that the government has no intention of heeding international calls to start a genuine and open public debate on the death penalty including abolition.

“We urge the government to immediately reverse this worrying trend and impose a moratorium on the death penalty with a view to its eventual abolishment.”

Ten people were hanged in less than a year during Shinzo Abe’s previous time as Prime Minister between September 2006 and September 2007. Meanwhile, the current Justice Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki has publicly expressed his support for the death penalty as well, adding to concerns that the total number of executions under Abe’s previous government might even be surpassed this time.

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Human rights groups have called on the Prime Minister to raise human rights abuses with the President of the United Arab Emirates during his State Visit to Britain.

A coalition of human rights groups including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Reprieve have called on the Prime Minister to raise the issue of human rights abuses with the President of the United Arab Emirates when he pays a State Visit to Britain on Tuesday.

In a letter to David Cameron, the organisations urge him to raise the “UAE’s discriminatory and disproportionate response to peaceful criticism, its severe violations of due process and fair trial rights, and credible reports of torture – including the alleged torture of three British nationals,” during the visit of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The letter cites a number of incidents, including the torture by Dubai police of Grant Cameron and Karl Williams, from London, and Suneet Jeerh from Essex in July last year. The three men were subjected to beatings and electric shocks and forced to sign documents in Arabic, a language they do not understand, before being charged with drugs offences. They have pleaded not guilty to the charges, and a verdict is expected in their trial on Monday 29 April, the day before the Sheikh’s arrival in Britain.

The legal charity Reprieve says UAE has failed to carry out a proper investigation into the men’s mistreatment in line with their obligations under international law; meanwhile, authorities in the country have proceeded with their trial, calling the police involved in their torture as witnesses against them.

Reprieve investigator Kate Higham said: “Rolling out the red carpet for a regime which has tortured our fellow citizens will be seen as deeply unsettling by many Britons. It is therefore crucial that the torture of three British tourists by Dubai police, and the wider context of human rights abuses across the UAE, is at the top of the agenda during this visit. Our reputation in the world can only be damaged if the Government puts political convenience above standing up for our fundamental principles.”

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The World Council of Churches General Secretary has stressed the important role of Sudanese churches in rebuilding their nation after years of conflict.

In his meeting with the Sudanese minister Alfatih T. Abdallah, World Council of Churches (WCC) General Secretary the Rev Dr Olav Fykse Tveit stressed the important role of Sudanese churches in rebuilding their nation after years of conflict, along with the assurance of their religious freedoms.

Tveit was in Khartoum from 23 to 24 April, visiting church leaders and government officials at the invitation of the Sudan Council of Churches (SCC), headquartered there.

The visit is Tveit’s first to Khartoum since the separation of Sudan and South Sudan in 2011, implementing their peace agreement of 2005.

“Sudanese churches belong genuinely to the country,” said Tveit. “Christians here are citizens of Sudan and therefore have an important role in assisting the rebuilding of their nation.

“We support churches in their struggles and aspirations for peace. We affirm our hope in the government to accomplish its responsibility in protecting churches and Christians and ensuring their security,” he added.

Abdallah, Sudanese minister for guidance and endowment, affirmed this stance. “Sudan needs churches to rebuild the society after a long history of conflict. Their right to worship and conduct their activities is a guarantee in constitution of the country,” he said.

The minister promised further interaction with the churches. “We hope to hold regular meetings with the churches to address the problems and building of trust and dialogue,” said Abdallah.

In his response to the minister, Tveit said, “There will always be religious minorities and majorities in any country. However, it is regardless of these dynamics that all actors of the society, including the churches, should be working together for the rebuilding of peace in Sudan.”

In Khartoum, Tveit was introduced to the issue of limited permits for building of churches, which he raised as a concern to be addressed during his meeting with Abdallah.

Referring to the restructuring of the SCC across the Sudan and South Sudan borders, Tveit said that “This is an extremely important step and a sign towards the immense need of unity among Sudanese churches. The gospel is the ministry of the church, and it is through our witness that the cross will be seen amidst the challenges that come with creation of a new country.”

Tveit met with the Sudanese church leaders at the All Saints Cathedral in Khartoum. They included Fr Anthonio, chairman of the SCC, Abdalla Ali, acting General Secretary of the SCC, and Bishop Ezekiel Kondo from the Episcopal Church in Sudan. On 25 April, Tveit was in Juba, South Sudan meeting with church and government leaders.

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Survival International has held protests outside Peruvian embassies and consulates, calling for an end to expansion of the Camisea gas project in Peru’s Amazon rainforest.

Supporters of Survival International held protests outside Peruvian embassies and consulates in London, San Francisco, Berlin, Madrid and Paris on 23 April, calling for an end to the deadly expansion of the Camisea gas project in Peru’s Amazon rainforest. Camisea threatens the lives of uncontacted Indians.

Protesters in London and Madrid, dressed as gas workers with masks and helmets, carried placards symbolising the lethal effects of the Camisea project. The protesters handed oil canisters filled with the names of 120,000 people to the Peruvian embassies and consulates, asking Peru’s President to stop outsiders and companies from invading uncontacted tribes’ land.

Peru’s government is on the brink of approving a huge expansion of the notorious Camisea gas project which would penetrate further into the Nahua-Nanti Reserve, home to several uncontacted and isolated tribes.

Camisea already lies in the heart of the Nahua-Nanti Reserve, which is the buffer zone to the Manu National Park, considered by UNESCO to be "the most biodiverse place on earth’." It is Peru’s largest gas project, and is run by Argentina’s Pluspetrol, US’s Hunt Oil and Spain’s Repsol.

The UN recently called for the "immediate suspension" of the Camisea expansion over the risk it represents to the lives of uncontacted tribes living nearby.

Uncontacted Indians are extremely vulnerable to diseases brought in by outsiders – initial exploration in the Camisea block in the 1980s led to the deaths of half the Nahua tribe.

Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said, "The UN wants to suspend the Camisea expansion. Thousands of people worldwide are against it. International law prohibits it. So why is this lethal project still on the cards? Not only is the government putting its reputation in jeopardy, it’s guilty of breaking international law."

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Shelter Scotland has led a coalition of Scottish charities in criticising proposals by the Scottish Government to put all new social housing tenants on ‘probation’.

Shelter Scotland has led a coalition of Scottish charities in criticising proposals by the Scottish Government to put all new social housing tenants on ‘probation’.

A letter to Scotland’s Housing and Welfare Minister, Margaret Burgess MSP, warns that probationary or ‘introductory’ tenancies are an attack on hard-won tenants’ rights, unfairly stigmatise all council and housing association tenants and could ultimately destabilise Scotland’s social housing sector.

The proposals are unnecessary and discriminatory and would in effect penalise the majority of social tenants for the bad behaviour of a small minority.

Shelter Scotland says it will campaign vigorously to defend tenants’ rights to security of tenure, which were only secured as recently as 1980.

Graeme Brown, Director of Shelter Scotland, said: “People need to feel safe and secure in their home - not have the threat of eviction hanging round their neck. At the start of a new tenancy, people need support not suspicion and penalties.

"Introducing probationary tenancies would be a big step backwards in tenants’ rights. It is totally unnecessary as social landlords already have a range of tools at their disposal - backed by legislation - to deal with anti-social and criminal behaviour if it occurs.”

He added: “At a time when some UK politicians have sought to stigmatise social housing tenants as scroungers and welfare cuts threaten families’ ability to keep their home, Scotland’s politicians have the opportunity to strike a different tone.

“We believe it is a mistake to follow the lead of English landlords or mirror Westminster’s language of division. We are calling on Scottish Ministers to reject probationary tenancies which simply penalise all new tenants for the behaviour of a small minority.

“Everyone needs a secure affordable home and we will campaign vigorously to defend the rights of all of Scotland’s 595,000 households living in social housing.”

Charities in the coalition that signed the letter are: Shelter Scotland, Oxfam Scotland, Barnardo’s, Child Poverty Action Group, Children in Scotland, Glasgow Homeless Network, Glasgow West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations, Homeless Action Scotland, One Parent Families Scotland, Scottish Churches Housing Action, Scottish Drugs Forum, and The Poverty Alliance.

Read the letter here: http://scotland.shelter.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/654640/Letter...

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The threat of military escalation in Korea and Japan was one of many topics discussed by the Second Worldwide Anglican Peace Conference, held in Okinawa 16-22 April.

The threat of military escalation in Korea and Japan was one of many topics discussed by the Second Worldwide Anglican Peace Conference, held in Okinawa, Japan 16-22 April

A total of 80 delegates – from Anglican/Episcopal Churches in Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Australia, Canada, the United States, the UK and Ireland – discussed how they could respond amid signs that governments were moving towards a war-footing.

As an example that peace is possible, the conference commended an initiative of the Anglican Church of Korea – titled Towards Peace in Korea (TOPIK) – which is promoting peace dialogue in the region and providing humanitarian assistance to North Koreans.

An official statement issued by delegates at the peace conference reads: "We commend the Anglican Church of Korea and its ministry for the peaceful reunification of the Korean peninsula and humanitarian assistance to North Koreans in need."

Rachel Parry, United Society (Us) Programme Manager for Asia, said the fact the conference was jointly hosted by the Anglican Churches of Korea and Japan was itself another powerful demonstration of the regional Anglican commitment to reconciliation, trust-building and hope.

She explained: "The joint hosting of this peace conference by these two churches puts into perspective how far these churches have come in terms of trust and relationship building, and in terms of their desire to share their learning and aims for peace with other countries in Asia, and indeed the world. The witness of this reconciling ministry and its implications and consequences beyond these borders is important for the Anglican Communion to understand."

Hosting the conference in Okinawa was similarly significant, she said given the trials the island has faced over the last decades – first colonisation by Japan in the nineteenth century, then the traumas of the Pacific War, and the occupation of land by the United States’ military bases.

"The situation in Okinawa presents us with a critical example of the power dynamics and realities in the north-east Asia region. Getting at the heart of why there continues to be United States’ military bases on Asian islands has been a fundamental part of the conference."

The conference concluded with the agreement of a seven-point ‘call to action’ for addressing peace issues in the Pacific region, including advocacy on behalf of those whose voices are rarely heard, especially women and children.

Rachel Parry added: "Our presence indicates the importance with which we see the issues in this part of the world, and our solidarity with churches and people whose voice is not often heard."

Paul Keun Sang Kim, Presiding Bishop of the Anglican Church of Korea, said: "A hard journey toward peace lies before us. Today, as we face this long and hard journey, Jesus is telling us, 'It is time to go'. Now we must respond."

Katharine Jefferts Schori, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, concluded her keynote address with the rallying words: "Peace and harmony in every part of the world depend on discovering our common humanity, our shared yearning for a meaningful place in this life, the hopes we have for our children and the world around us."

In a message to the conference,Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, said: ‘This conference has come at the most needful time… May the initiatives you pursue contribute to the breaking down of enmities and to the establishment of a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula."

The Archbishop also offered a message of support for Anglicans in Japan "as you face the continuing anxiety of nuclear fallout and address the issues of nuclear power policies, as well as questions around the military industry."

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One in four disabled rail passengers has suffered a hate crime or abuse, according to new research published today (24 April)) by the TUC's Action for Rail campaign

One in four disabled rail passengers has suffered a hate crime or abuse, according to new research published today (24 April)) by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) Action for Rail campaign.

The poll of 1,031 disabled people reveals that over a quarter (27 per cent) of disabled rail users have been targeted while at stations or on trains, with over two-fifths of wheelchair users (43 per cent) and travellers with visual impairments (41 per cent) reporting abuses.

The survey, by pollsters Survation, comes as train operating companies prepare to embark upon a major programme of cuts that Action for Rail fears could see the loss of 7,000 train guards and 7,000 station staff over the next six years.

These plans are deeply unpopular with disabled rail users, the poll reveals. Four-fifths (81 per cent) say reducing staff numbers will make train travel more difficult for them, with one in three (34 per cent) warning the cuts will deter them from making journeys, and in some cases make rail travel impossible.

Action for Rail says the findings show why the government should rethink its plans for the railways, which give train companies until 2019 to reduce staffing costs by £200million and close ticket offices at 650 stations.

If the cuts go ahead, Action for Rail is concerned that over seven in 10 (73 per cent) of the UK's stations could become unstaffed by the end of the decade, and that all trains would lose their guards.

Action for Rail says the cuts make a mockery of the government's commitment to making the railways more accessible to disabled and elderly people and would put the safety of all commuters at risk.

The poll shows that disabled rail users rank safety and security as the most important service that railway staff provide.

Disabled campaigners will today meet MPs in parliament at 1.30pm to raise their concerns about the cuts and will hold protests against the proposals at 4.30pm outside London's Kings Cross Station.

TUC General Secretary and chair of the Action for Rail campaign Frances O'Grady said: "These findings are disturbing and show why the government must rethink its plans for the railways. Giving train companies the green light to slash staffing on trains and stations will increase the risk of passengers being verbally and physically abused and will lead to a worse service for everyone.

"No-one deserves to travel in fear or to be left without vital assistance, and these plans make a mockery of the government's commitment to make the railways more accessible to disabled and elderly passengers. Ministers cannot achieve this target if after the cuts we end up with ghost trains and stations."

Linda Burnip from Disabled People Against the Cuts (DPAC) said: 'These alarming figures back up what we already know - abuse and hate crime is a growing threat faced by many disabled people. We need extra not fewer staff if we want to tackle this problem and this is yet another regressive step being proposed by this government."

Director of Transport for All, Faryal Velmi said: 'Trained and visible rail staff are essential for us to be able to travel confidently. We urge the government to rethink plans to reduce staff numbers, and ensure that disabled and older passengers can use trains with the same freedom and independence as everyone else."

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