Bishop Bakare from Zimbabwe was named winner of a Swedish human rights prize for "having given voice to the fight against oppression." Bishop Sebastian Bakare was also cited for his work to promote "freedom of speech and of opinion in a difficult political situation." He was due to accept the 2008 Per Anger prize at a ceremony in Stockholm on November 10, said Johan Perwe of the government agency Living History Forum.
Bishop Bakare, installed as bishop of Harare earlier this year, was also due to be keynote speaker at a human rights conference in Lulea, northern Sweden. The agency said Bishop Bakare was an "important voice" who has "received threats as a result of his open and clear criticism of the government, his condemnation of local police brutality and his defence of human rights" in Zimbabwe.
http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acns/news.cfm/2008/10/31/ACNS4538
2 comments:
Sebastian Bakare did work at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley when I was at CDSP. He and his wife and kids (who, like my kids, are all grown up now, I'm sure) are just, well, exceptional people. This is a great story.
Bruce Robison
I pray he won't be the next martyr.
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