The Catholic Commission for Social Justice (CCSJ) urges citizens to reach out in love and compassion to our brothers and sisters who are the victims of famine and war in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East. Millions of people are fleeing their homes due to, eg, political upheaval, poverty, famine, environmental degradation, and climate change in Somalia, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Sudan, Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. The media bring into our homes the faces of starving children and adults who have walked for days seeking refuge. Many die on the way. As Pope Benedict XVI said on Sunday, "It is forbidden to be indifferent in the face of the tragedy of the starving."
Let's remind ourselves that the theme for this year's World Refugee Day on June 20 was "Real people, real needs." It is sad that during the year when the world marks the 60th anniversary of the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, the humanitarian crisis facing refugees around the world grows by the minute. The UN Refugee Agency estimates that there are more than 43.7 million people who have been forcibly displaced from their homes (June figures). This number includes about 15.4 million refugees. The rest include asylum seekers, internally displaced people, and stateless people.
CCSJ urges all countries not to close their borders but to welcome "the stranger" and to put in place legislation, policies and practices that will enable them to meet the needs of all those who have been forcibly displaced from their homes. Each one is a child of God who possesses fundamental human rights and whose inherent dignity must be respected, protected and promoted. As the UN Secretary-General said: "No one wants to become a refugee. No one should have to endure this humiliating and arduous ordeal. Yet, millions do. Let us never lose sight of our shared humanity." Please pray for the victims of famine and for those who have been forcibly displaced in our world. Worship material can be accessed at, eg:
• www.cafod.org.uk/worship/refugees
You can also donate money to provide food aid, water, medical supplies etc to organisations such as:
• www.cafod.org.uk/get-involved/give/emergency-appeals/east-africa-crisis
• www.unhcr.org/pages/49c3646c368.html
• www.refugeesinternational.org/donate
Chris Bain, director of the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, says: "Every donation is having an impact on the front line of this crisis. You can literally make the difference between life and death for thousands of people over the coming weeks."
Leela Ramdeen
CCSJ