A new report from Jubilee Campaign USA in collaboration with Voice for Justice provides an overview of several common factors involved in cases of forced conversion and abduction. On October 13, 13-year-old Pakistani Christian girl Arzoo Raja was kidnapped outside of her home in Karachi. Two days later, Arzoo’s parents were told that their daughter…
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the UK Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, today hosted the online launch of the Declaration of Humanity by Leaders of Faith and Leaders of Belief. The first of its kind, the Declaration calls for the prevention of sexual violence in conflict and denounces the stigma too…
Government restrictions on religion rose to a record high in 2018, while religion-related social hostilities fell slightly but remained near peak levels, according to Pew Research Center’s 11th annual study of restrictions on religion. Restrictions by governments include official laws and actions that curtail religious beliefs and practices, while social hostilities encompass everything from religion-related…
The APPGs Written Submission to the International Development Select Committee inquiry on ‘Humanitarian crises monitoring – coronavirus in developing countries: secondary impacts.’ SECONDARY IMPACTS OF CORONAVIRUS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES Scapegoating of religious and belief communities 1. In countries around the world, many marginalised communities have faced intensified discrimination since the outbreak of covid-19. The UN…
The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Pakistani Minorities issued a statement condemning the abduction, forced conversion and forced marriage of a 13 years old Christian girl in Pakistan. On 13 October 2020, Arzoo Raja, was abducted from a street near her home in Karachi, forced to convert to Islam and marry the abductor, a 43-year-old Muslim…
Westminster Hall debate: Persecution of Christians and Freedom of Religion or Belief, 21 October 2020 Rehman Chishti (Gillingham and Rainham) (Con) I beg to move, that this House has considered progress on the Bishop of Truro’s independent review on persecution of Christians and freedom of religion or belief. It is a pleasure to serve under…
Chris Evans (Islwyn) (Lab/Co-op) I beg to move that this House has considered e-petition 300146 relating to China’s policy on its Uyghur population. This e-petition was started by Zayd Amjad. It asks that the Government impose sanctions on China over its treatment of Uyghur Muslims. Uyghurs are a Turkic ethnic group native to Xinjiang, China….
China: Uighur Internment Camps 23 September 2020 The Lord Bishop of St Albans To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the condition of Uighur internment camps in Xinjiang in China. The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con) My Lords, there are reports of torture…
Baroness Cox To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion or Belief, Nigeria: Unfolding Genocide?, published on 15 June. The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con) My Lords, the Government welcome the report…
Baroness Cox, alongside 19 co-signatories, has written to Commonwealth Secretary-General Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC to highlight urgent concerns about escalating violence in Nigeria, where attacks led by Boko Haram, Fulani herders and other Islamist militia continue in northern and central-belt states, with reports of increasing violence in the southeast. The letter reads We write…