Mary Papayya

Mary Papayya

The Anglican Church in KwaZulu- Natal has launched a campaign of prayer for peace and justice in Zimbabwe.

Bishop Rubin Phillip announced the campaign during a special Freedom Day service at the Cathedral of the Holy Nativity in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday.

He said the campaign wold involve holding prayers at the same time every day until Youth Day on June 16. People of other churches and other faiths will also take part in the campaign.

Phillip said: "Instead of the election results being released, the situation in Zimbabwe has deteriorated to such an extent that we are seeing torture and violence used to intimidate opposition voters.

"Intense prayer is one of the crucial ways in which we can struggle against this appalling situation."

He said during the height of political violence before South Africa's 1994 elections, the churches took part in a similar campaign of prayer in the province. The church also made many other efforts to ensure peace, and the elections went remarkably well.

Every day at noon the cathedral bells will be rung to remind people of the need to pray for the people of Zimbabwe.

At all the regular services in the cathedral during the campaign, special prayers will be offered for Zimbabwe, Phillip said.

The Catholic Church in Southern Africa recently called for the appointment of a mediator, such as former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan, to resolve the crisis in Zimbabwe.

The president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference, Archbishop Buti Tlhagale, said the situation in Zimbabwe was "of regional, continental and international concern".