Online Reporter
Debra Matabvu
Online Reporter
President Mnangagwa on Thursday met a delegation from the World Council of Churches (WCC) at State House in Harare.
The delegation, led by WCC General Secretary Rev Professor Jerry Pillay, is in Zimbabwe to attend the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) General Assembly, which is being held from July 22 to 24.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Rev Prof Pillay said they had held fruitful discussions with President Mnangagwa on a range of issues, including the reintegration of Zimbabweans returning from South Africa.
He said the WCC would continue working with the Government to support the successful reintegration of the returnees and other initiatives aimed at promoting the well-being of affected communities.
“We also had a discussion on the issue of the returnees,” he said.
“I come from South Africa myself, even though I live now in Switzerland and Geneva, but we discussed the issue of the returnees.
“We outlined the concern and the need to help for the reintegration of people into the Zimbabwean context.
“The President has given the assurance that Government is on the top of that, and they are doing everything to receive people, to know that this is the home for them, and therefore Government will do everything to make sure that they feel that they are back home.
The President has indicated quite clearly that they have always said that anybody from Zimbabwe who has gone abroad, that Zimbabwe is always home.
“And so, as they have returned, Government has given us the assurance that they will work in reintegrating the returnees into society.
“From a global point of view, the World Council of Churches is dealing with these issues because we are obviously concerned about how migrants, immigrants are treated in the world itself, and so the interest of the WCC in what is happening in South Africa and here and in other countries in the African region, we are working on those things.”
Rev Pillay was accompanied by Rev Dr Suzanne Matale from Zambia, representing the All-Africa Conference of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Hanns Lessing, Executive Secretary for Theology, Communion and Ecumenical Relations of the World Communion of Reformed Churches; Rev. Mzwandile Molo, South African Council of Churches general secretary and current chair of the Fellowship of Church Councils in Southern Africa, and Dr Masiiwa Gunda among others.
