Pax Christi calls for protection of vulnerable populations in Northern Iraq

Pax Christi Member Organisations in Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany,I ndia, Italy, New Zealand, the UK and the United States have sent letters to their Ministers of Foreign Affairs calling for an immediate action t safeguard the right of life of all vulnerable populations in Northern Iraq.

The news coming from the country is horrendous: thousands of people, mostly minority groups including Christians, Yazidis, Shabak and Turkmen have been brutally driven from their homes; innocent children, women and men are suffering violence of every kind. The ongoing conflict has already displaced some 1.2 million people, mostly minority communities who have fled the northwest of Iraq.

Pax Christi members regret that religion is being misused in this crisis. Faith should not be used to demonise people of other faiths. Religious beliefs should nurture justice, human dignity, compassion and solidarity. Pax Christi supports urgent recent appeals from Patriarch Louis Sako in Iraq and echo the call made by Pope Francis: “War is not to be waged in the name of God!”

Read below text of the letter to FCO from the British Section of Pax Christi.

Dear Mr Hammond,

Pax Christi members in the UK are extremely concerned with shocking reports of displacement of peoples and mass slaughter threatened by the self-proclaimed Islamic State against numerous minority groups in Iraq. The news coming from the country is horrendous: thousands of people, mostly minority groups including Christians, Yazidis, Shabak and Turkmen have been brutally driven from their homes; innocent children, women and men are suffering violence of every kind. The ongoing conflict has already displaced some 1.2 million people, mostly minority communities who have fled the northwest of Iraq.

This is an extremely sensitive situation, and United Nations officials have compared it to a “cultural cleansing”. We are aware of the important aid work which the UK government has undertaken in recent days and we ask for more. We appeal to you now on four counts to safeguard the right of life of all vulnerable populations in Northern Iraq.

- To act to protect people by helping them move to places of safety – either within Iraq or outside its borders. This should include the possibility of accepting Iraqi refugees in the UK should this be necessary.

- To provide emergency humanitarian assistance to those who are displaced, either within Iraq or outside its borders.

- To actively support a solution which can only be legitimated by the United Nations and not by individual states.

- To prevent further arms from entering the region, whether from the UK or other countries. We note with fear the decision by the French and the United States to arm Kurdish forces.

We urge you to remain alert to events taking place in Iraq and support Iraqi efforts to end this cycle of violence. The international community, working through the United Nations, should support Iraq on guaranteeing a framework in which the life and dignity of all Iraqis are respected.

Pax Christi members regret that religion is being misused in this crisis. Faith should not be used to demonise people of other faiths. Religious beliefs should nurture justice, human dignity, compassion and solidarity. We support recent appeals from Patriarch Louis Sako I in Iraq and we also echo the call made by Pope Francis: “War is not to be waged in the name of God!”

Thank you very much for you attention.

Pat Gaffney

General Secretary, British Section of Pax Christi