WCC: 'people of Greenland have an inalienable right to self-determination'

Photo: Claus Grue/WCC

Source: World Council of Churches

World Council of Churches general secretary Rev Prof Dr Jerry Pillay has stated that the US government's stated determination to own and control Greenland is in diametric opposition to the wishes of the people of Greenland and to their political trajectory towards independence. "It is tantamount to neocolonialism," said Dr Pillay.

"The World Council of Churches joins with Bishop Paneeraq Siegstad Munk, head of Greenland's Evangelical Lutheran Church, in appealing to all Americans who believe in freedom, dignity, and the right of people to choose their own path, to call upon their elected representatives and their government to stand by the Greenlanders in their right to determine their own future."

Pillay further noted that the people of Greenland have an inalienable right to self-determination and are on a clear pathway to independence, confirmed both by their own representatives and by the Danish government.

"Their rights and views must be seriously considered and respected," said Pillay.

LINKS

Read the full statement: https://oikoumene.org/resources/documents/wcc-statement-on-greenland

Website of the National Church of Greenland: https://ilagiit.gl/