An estimated 65 million people were displaced from their homes last year. This is equivalent to the population of Britain, or 24 people fleeing for their lives every minute. The mass movement of so many desperate people is a defining moral challenge of our time.
Recently we’ve seen the plight of the Rohingya people fleeing violence in Myanmar (Burma). This is the second exodus of Rohingya from Rakhine state: in 1991, more than 250,000 fled to Bangladesh. In the last few months, another 640,000 people have escaped violence, some walking for up to 10 days to reach camps in Cox’s Bazar across the border.
Working with Caritas Bangladesh, Cafod is providing life-saving assistance for Rohingya refugees. My colleague assisting the emergency effort in Cox’s Bazar told me of a family who had fled with their seven-day-old baby girl when their house was burned to the ground and their cattle stolen. The baby’s head was badly injured on the journey. Whenever she stirred, she immediately cried. We have reached more than 60,000 families like hers with food rations, and we are distributing warm clothing, blankets and sleeping mats to thousands more to fend off the winter cold.
Despite the challenges and with the generosity of the Catholic community in England and Wales who have given £200,000 to assist the Rohingya people, Cafod is seeking to clean the wounds of this crisis, as we have done before when people have faced terrible violence on a massive scale.
During his recent visit to Myanmar and Bangladesh, Pope Francis sought to encourage interfaith dialogue to end the cycle of violence. Sensitivities around the use of the word “Rohingya” captured the public’s attention, but the private meetings between Pope Francis and the leaders of both countries may yet foster a peaceful resolution.
Francis has made care for refugees a priority of his pontificate, setting up a Vatican department to oversee the Church’s work on displaced people. Last year the Holy Father asked us to “listen to migrants”, publishing guidance for world leaders to influence negotiations taking place this year on two proposed United Nations agreements: one on safe and orderly migration, the other to help people seeking sanctuary from conflict and persecution.
Shortly after the Pontiff issued this call, President Trump announced his intention to withdraw from the UN process to reach these global agreements, leaving the US as the only country to refuse to take part in the discussions.
This withdrawal may prompt the international community to redouble its efforts, echoing the response of world leaders when the US similarly abdicated global responsibility by withdrawing from the UN climate change agreement.
Pope Francis galvanised international negotiations in similar circumstances by publishing his encyclical Laudato Si’, asking leaders to hear “the cry of the earth” ahead of the successful UN climate change talks that led to the 2015 Paris Agreement.
This year global leaders will meet again to try and halt the rising temperatures caused by man-made climate change. The UN climate summit in Poland in November marks a milestone for countries to review their progress towards limiting global temperature increases and helping developing countries to deal with the impact of climate change.
We need stronger action on climate change, because even today we see that it hits the poorest communities hardest. Farming families Cafod has been supporting in Bolivia’s Altiplano region, for example, migrate to work in cities because the changing climate has led to unreliable crop yields. Often only the father will migrate, but sometimes both parents will leave, for months or years at a time. Children and elderly people are left behind in the countryside, trying to grow food on land that is difficult to farm. With the expertise of local groups, we have shared new farming techniques to help bring people back home to farm and grow a wider variety of food.
Poverty, climate change and conflict: the root causes of global displacement are complex and varied. But Pope Francis calls on us all to see the human face behind the numbers, asking us to “share the journey” with individuals and families, who share our fears and dreams. Given the opportunities this year to create a fairer and kinder world, we must afford refugees the dignity that is their God-given right.
Areas of Catholic Herald business are still recovering post-pandemic.
However, we are reaching out to the Catholic community and readership, that has been so loyal to the Catholic Herald. Please join us on our 135 year mission by supporting us.
We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching.
We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values. Please consider donating.