Anti-Christian bias of our aid handouts in refugee camps, by former Archbishop
A FORMER Archbishop of Canterbury last night launched a stinging attack on ‘politically correct’ aid officials who are ‘institutionally biased’ against helping Christians.
Lord Carey warned ministers risk breaking the law by discriminating against Christians facing oppression in Syria.
He claimed Syrian Christians are not benefiting from British help as they avoid UN refugee camps, funded with UK aid, because of fears of persecution from rogue Islamist groups operating inside or Muslim officials who are hostile to converts to Christianity.
By staying away from the camps, Christians are missing out on food, shelter and opportunities to come to Britain in a relocation scheme.
Lord Carey, who was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1991 to 2002, said: ‘In the run-up to Easter, British taxpayers will be appalled by this institutional bias against Christians by politically correct officials. In this the British Government is not just breaking its manifesto pledge to look after Christian refugees it also appears to be breaking the law. The con- flicts in the Middle East have resulted in suffering and persecution of Christians. They have been killed or chased out of the birthplace of their faith.
‘The British Government has repeatedly promised to help persecuted Christians but has done nothing. Instead Muslim officials have been put in charge of the billions of British taxpayer aid in the UNHCR camps. This is ensuring that help and aid rarely reaches the Christians.’
He added: ‘The Government’s asylum and aid policy in Iraq and Syria and the neighbouring countries needs to focus properly on those who need help the most.
‘This will result in much more effective help for minorities like Christians and Yazidis who are facing genocide.’
In its 2015 election manifesto the Conservative Party had promised it would be ‘supporting perse- cuted Christians in the Middle East’. Legal advice obtained by Lord Carey shows the Government could be breaching the European Convention on Human Rights for ‘indirect discrimination’ against minority refugees.
Christians made up nearly 10 per cent of the Syrian population before the civil war began in 2011 but they have received less than two per cent of the asylum places provided by Britain.
In the first year after it was launched in September 2015, just 64 out of the 4,175 Syrians admitted to the UK were Christians.
John Pontifex, of Aid to the Church in Need, a charity helping Christians in the region, said: ‘At the start of the war there were around 300,000 Christians in Aleppo, now there are as few as 30,000. The Christian community is facing extinction in a place where Christian heritage dates back to 50AD, if not before. We will have it on our conscience if at this critical juncture it becomes clear that we acted precious little if at all to help them in their hour of greatest need.’
During visits to the region, Mr Pontifex said he had met with Christians who were too scared to seek help at the camps.
‘Unless the Christians abide by Muslim customs they are not welcome,’ he added.
A Government spokesman last night said: ‘UK aid is provided in line with humanitarian principles, so whoever needs our help the most gets it first, regardless of race, gender or religion.
‘We work with trusted partners who operate in line with those same principles of neutrality and impartiality, including in practicalities such as refugee camp management and staffing. To suggest otherwise is wrong.’
Britain gives £1 in every £8 of foreign aid from developed world