ACT Alliance is joining with UNICEF and other partners to launch a programme called Refugees Welcome.  This programme is an opportunity for ACT and its members to stand in solidarity with the world’s 65 million displaced persons, over half of whom are children.  Many ACT members have been responding to the needs of refugees for a very long time, and others are just beginning to. As part of a wider and longer-term strategy to seek ways to demonstrate solidarity with refugees, Refugees Welcome  is using Valentine’s Day as a launch moment.

The world is witnessing the highest levels of displacement it has ever seen. For many of us, these statistics remain just that – numbers that we are powerless to change. But together we can welcome refugees – one family at a time – by giving them a place at the table.

The idea is to rebrand Valentine’s Day, from a day of romantic love to one focused on empathy, friendship and inclusion. A concrete way to show love for neighbours and new community members is to invite a refugee family for a meal.  Our Christian heritage demonstrates time and again how sharing a meal is a key to building community.

Adjusting to a new country and lifestyle can be challenging, and many communities are looking for ways to show their support. This simple act of hospitality goes a long way to helping refugees feel welcome in their new homes. Each country has its own history of showing support for refugees, and this initiative hopes to build on efforts that are already underway.

ACT is encouraging its member churches and agencies to join this programme, to invite refugees to share meals in communities around the world.  This simple hospitality is a concrete example that will show louder than words that refugees are welcome.

Through this unifying, unbranded campaign, ACT members can elevate the profile of these welcome dinners, helping to make the connections between refugee and host. To accompany Refugees Welcome, we are finalizing a toolkit to help organizations and influencers with messaging.

In the meantime, we are sharing images and descriptions of the campaign here.

Beginning the week of February 13^th, we are asking participants to do the following:

–        POST: post the Refugees Welcome shareable graphic on your organizational and personal social channels on Valentine’s Day, Tuesday, February 14 to spread awareness of the effort;

–        HOST: ask your networks if they are interested in hosting a Refugees Welcome dinner or organize one yourself;

–        SHARE: upload photos of your dinners onto your organizational and personal social channels with the hashtag #RefugeesWelcome.  Those groups who are aiding refugees in other ways are also encouraged to share these images under the campaign hashtag.

In the coming days, we will share the Refugees Welcome toolkit with you, which contains messaging and information on hosting dinners. And later this week, the website, www.refugeeswelcometodinner.com, will go live.

While this initiative is being launched on Valentine’s Day, it has no expiration date. Sitting down at the table is just the beginning. The idea is for supporters to take concrete action with and on behalf of their new neighbors following the meal, and to establish meaningful connections. The possibilities are endless.

This Valentine’s Day, we hope you’ll help us spread the love.

What will happen in 2017? It is always difficult to predict the future, but I would still like to share some of my hopes and fears. From a climate change perspective, we can expect a lot, both good and bad. The good story is that the global awareness of climate change, and the need for action, has truly taken off. The newsfeeds will continue to tell about concrete initiatives and increased ambition. The bad news is first and foremost, hitting the poor and vulnerable people around the world. Those who already are affected by climate change and who will continue to face climate related hazards throughout the year.

Hurricanes, droughts and flooding

One of the important areas of work for many ACT alliance members is humanitarian response. Through these efforts, we experience the effects of climate change, and we know the need for action. When I look towards 2017 I fear that my humanitarian colleagues will become very busy. There has always been bad weather, but climate change increases both the frequency and strength of many natural disasters. For those people who may be affected, 2017 will become a difficult year. Farmers may lose their crops, families may lose their houses and belongings, and people may die.

In addition, climate politics will also be challenged. The newly elected president of the United States, Donald Trump, has unfortunately not shown a big interest in, nor understanding of,  climate action. On the contrary, he has, already during his first weeks in office, taken several initiatives indicating that he will reduce the climate ambition. While these initiatives in themselves may not be dramatic, the new approach, may inspire climate deniers around the world. This in turn may lead to increased difficulties in climate negotiations on both the national and international levels, delaying and hindering possibilities for progress.

A green wind

However, in spite of these pessimistic predictions, there is still hope. More and more countries are starting to turn plans into real action. Solar farms and wind power plants are being built, and the need and possibilities for adaptation becomes clearer among governments, companies and people. I am confident 2017 will bring a range of good news, best practices, innovative projects and concrete action. These actions must be celebrated, supported and multiplied so that the transition towards a green and resilient future, for both rich and poor people, can unfold.

A technical, but important agenda for climate diplomats

Finally, we should not forget the continuing UN negotiations about climate change. Global challenges must be solved through global cooperation, and diplomats continue to struggle. This year, their agenda includes discussions about how the funds mobilized for climate action should be handled. A technical, but still very important issue as a lack of agreement will lead to inaction. Diplomats will also discuss how to increase the ambition of national climate action. There is agreement about the need to make this happen, but no rules for how it should be done.  It may turn out to be an empty dialogue where parties praise each other, without actually delivering any change.

The incoming presidency for the UN climate talks is Fiji. Fiji is a small, but vocal country in the climate debate. Their entire existence depends on progress in international climate cooperation, and they will take their role as president very seriously. I expect them not only to facilitate the UN talks, but also to push, pull and inspire governments to come to the table, and to deliver action.

2017 will be a challenging year, but with good leadership, and a strong push from civil society, it may become a good year. In ACT alliance we will do everything we can to contribute to a positive development.

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Mattias Söderberg, Senior advocacy advisor in DanChurchAid. Was elected co-chair for the ACT Alliance advisory group on climate change advocacy and was the acting head of the ACT delegations to UN climate talks from 2010 to 2015. Was co-chair of the ACT EU climate change working group from 2007 to 2009, and head of the ecumenical COP15 secretariat in 2009. Mattias is originally from Sweden, but live in Denmark.

The refugee crisis in Greece has not ended, we just have forgotten it.

60,000 refugees are trapped in Greece, sometimes in substandard humanitarian conditions. A fact which clearly contrasts with the amount of European assistance pouring into Greece.  ACT Alliance EU has joined with 30 other organisations in asking EU Member States to prioritise the immediate transfer of people from overcrowded sites on the Greek islands to facilities on the mainland that meet European standards for reception. In this blog, ACT Alliance EU’s Agnes Bertrand explores the issue from her own experience and reflection.

I went to Greece before Christmas to visit camps in Athens and Thessaloniki where ACT members are active. The camp conditions are all well below international humanitarian standards. I saw hundreds of people living in conditions unacceptable in Europe and in many other parts of the world -not to mention the harsh winter conditions which have considerably worsened after my visit and put thousands in life-threatening situations.

Malakasa is a former weapons storage center near Athens hosting approximately 800 people who still have very limited access to electricity. Progressively, residents have been removed from tents to be housed in containers that were unused and forgotten after the earthquake of 1999.

In Oinofita (also near Athens), about 680 Afghans of all ages are crowding a former chemical factory living in tents or in improvised rooms measuring 4mx4m. They can access electricity but have no heating systems.

Oreaokastro, a former abandoned tobacco factory hosts 1,100 Syrians under tents without adequate electricity – a few generators try to cope with the heating and hot water needs of the residents, but in effect there is no suitable heating system and irregular access to hot water. Security conditions in this camp are challenging and there are allegations that a small number of occupants are involved in illegal activities.

I was told that reception facilities – i.e. refugee camps, buildings or other accommodation where refugees are housed vary significantly around the country’s 55 sites. On the islands, the overall accommodation capacity of so-called hotspots is set at 7,450. But in reality about 13,000 refugees are living in overcrowded and dangerous conditions there. More are arriving every day.

My visit coincided with the announcement by the European Commission to resume “Dublin transfers” to Greece starting in March 2017 – i.e. the transfer of asylum seekers who have moved on to other countries after being registered to the responsible state to be processed. Dublin transfers to Greece were suspended from the EU’s Dublin Regulation in 2011 after the European Court of Human Rights and the European Court of Justice found that the Greek asylum system and reception conditions systematically failed to meet basic human rights standards. It seems absurd to imagine conditions have improved since then.

Has Europe abandoned refugees in Greece?

At first glance, the answer is no, if one takes into account the fact that the EU is providing €1 billion of support to Greece, including  €700 million in humanitarian assistance. Some €198 million has already been disbursed via ECHO, the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations.

This total sum is to be spent on a population of around 60 000 refugees currently– girls, boys, women and men who have fled their homes and are seeking a safe future in Europe.

This would be an adequate amount of money, plenty in fact compared to what other refugee-hosting countries get. With this amount of money one would expect the reception conditions for asylum seekers to be good. The contrast in these conditions between ‘traditional’ asylum hosting countries and Greece is stark, and certainly not what one could reasonably expect from a European country.

What went wrong?

On the one hand, this appalling humanitarian situation is the result of the absence of a long-term strategic plan for refugees in Greece which is largely due to the fact that most of the asylum-seekers are not expected to stay in the country. Those who arrived before 22 March 2016 – which was when the EU-Turkey deal was agreed — may be eligible to be relocated to another European country where they can then apply for asylum. In September 2015, the European Council announced it would relocate 160,000 asylum-seekers from Greece and Italy. The process is complex and a lack of political will within the EU Member States has slowed the desire of Member States to live up to their pledges. Since 2015, only 8,162 ( 6,212 from Greece) have been relocated to other European countries. This situation creates a sense of hopelessness for asylum-seekers due to the indeterminacy of their futures: they simply do not know what will happen to them or when.

On the other hand, nothing is being done to really improve the reception conditions in Greece and for this the responsibility is to be shared between different stakeholders -the Greek authorities principally, who are responsible for the reception conditions awaiting the asylum-seekers. One cause for this is the poor coordination and miscommunication between the Greek Ministry of Migration, the Army and the Air Force, which are mostly responsible for the management of the refugee camps.  The seeming absence of well-functioning working arrangements between Greece and the UNHCR does not set the stage for smooth cooperation. On top of that, ECHO has set up a separate coordination mechanism for its humanitarian partner organisations, duplicating and undermining the UNHCR’s role. In addition, most international and local humanitarian organisations do not have access to a proper registry of the asylum-seekers from the Greek authorities. Although this is for privacy reasons it makes it hard for the organisations to quantify the exact number of refugees actually living in the camps, as well as their needs – especially the most vulnerable– and therefore to provide adequately and appropriately for them. Furthermore, asylum-seekers are also scattered across the country in too many sites, which makes it difficult for NGOs to plan and operate.

What should Europe do?

Europe’s leaders should ensure that asylum-seekers arriving in Europe are treated humanely, responsibly and that their rights are safeguarded. ACT Alliance EU together with 30 other organisations have asked EU Member States to prioritise the immediate transfer of people from overcrowded sites on the Greek islands; to open facilities on the Greek mainland which meet Europe’s legal standards for reception; to enable swift and efficient access to family reunification, relocation and a secure refugee status and to ensure that every person has access to protection and to a fair and efficient asylum process (you can read the full statement here.) This is the least they can do.

The appalling circumstances in which refugees find themselves can be seen for many as a short-term deterrent to refugees who may consider coming to Europe. But it is inhumane. And it is a non-response and a non-policy in the face of the challenges posed by conflicts now raging in Europe’s backyard.

ACT Alliance members Norwegian Church Aid, Finn Church Aid and Diakonie Katastrophenhilfe are involved in providing assistance to refugees in Greece in the field of protection, WASH and education. 

PRESS RELEASE

Sara and Palig Sarkisian are refugees from Syria living in Amman, Jordan, where ACT members support Syrian refugee families. Photo: Paul Jeffrey

The ACT Alliance, a network of 144 members in 100 countries, today joined the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), in calling for a reversal of the US Presidential Executive Order “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States”, which suspended the US resettlement programme for refugees and introduced visa bans on nationals from seven Muslim majority countries. This statement by ecumenical organisations comes in a context where the world is experiencing the largest forced displacement crisis since World War II and 86% of the world’s refugees are being hosted by  developing countries.

“Our faith calls us and all Christians to love and welcome the stranger, the refugee, the internally displaced person, the other“ the statement reads. “We are called to treat him or her as we would like to be treated. Scripture and the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ are abundantly clear on this matter.”

“Both hosting countries and regions of refugee origin need to foster and support mutual respect and unity, especially when members of particular religions are being singled out and discriminated against. In times like these there is nothing more urgent than to message love and acceptance and to build a culture which promotes love over fear. There is no fear in love. Perfect love drives out fear. We are called to serve one another and this applies particularly to those that are affected by disasters, violations of rights and war.” says John Nduna, General Secretary of ACT Alliance.

The expected impact of the Executive Order on refugees will be significant. This risks sending a potential fatal signal for refugee protection worldwide. ACT Alliance members engage in refugee response globally.

The WCC, ACT Alliance and Lutheran World Federation call in the joint statement upon the United States to continue to welcome refugees and offer them international protection, in accordance with its obligations under international law, regardless of race, religion or country of origin.

Click here to read the ACT/LWF/WCC Statement on the US Presidential Executive Order “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States.”

Several people, mostly women and children, lost their lives due to a bomb blast at the Cairo’s main Coptic cathedral during the Sunday morning Mass. “Such an attack on innocent worshippers and the church property is despicable, immoral and shameful”, said John Nduna, General Secretary of ACT Alliance in a message to the Rt Rev. Bishop Yolios, Bishop and Director of ACT member, Bishopric of Public, Ecumenical and Social Services (BLESS).

“It is a trying moment, for the church and Christians in Egypt, and indeed the global church. Our thoughts and prayers are with you. We remember today those whose innocent lives have been lost, their families and friends who are seeking answers to this wicked destruction; the injured and those struggling for their lives in hospitals, the Coptic Church in Egypt and the broader faith community as we seek answers and understanding”, said Nduna.

ACT Alliance members belong to the communities they serve in Egypt, Iraq, Syria and many other places where different types of violence seek to fuel hatred and division. The interview with Dr. Riad Hani, Executive Director of Bless, presents his own experience after the bomb blast in Cairo and expresses the common values that bring together the ACT members to find the strength to continue to serve the most vulnerable people, despite the adversities. Listen below:

“As long as women’s and girls’ bodies aren’t safe when walking on the streets then it is difficult to live”. I know this, but when meeting with Mozn Hassan, human rights defender and Director of Nazra for Feminist Studies, and hearing her way of describing the importance of mobilization and education for women’s rights and protection it shook me deeply.

In Egypt, the situation for women and girls is very difficult, and the promised measures from 2015 to protect them, have failed to be implemented. Two of the worst examples are female genital mutilation and child marriage – practices that are overly frequent. Therefore, implementation of laws at national, regional and global levels are crucial to guarantee a life free from violence, exploitation, discrimination and fear, including ending impunity for all forms of gender-based violence (GBV) and strengthening judicial systems’ capacity to handle cases on sexual GBV.

Mozn says that the Arabic Spring changed the soul of the country, gave hope and a sense of freedom to women; how they saw opportunities of changing their own situation. ”But we are now paying a very high price.”

Human rights defenders focusing women’s rights and protection are among those who are the most threatened in the world, together with environmental activists. Mozn Hassan is subjected to restrictions in her freedom of movement, sharing of information and networking in Egypt. It is dangerous to try to assert equality and rights of women, especially when women and girls are subject to ongoing violence, abuse and discrimination.

It is with pride I can say that we as a global faith-based alliance emphasize equal access to an enabling environment for civil society organizations in general and specifically those addressing the issues regarding equal rights and participation of women. Meeting with women like Mozn Hassan, there couldn’t be any other way forward than to continue to work for protection of women who are active as human rights defenders in the area of economic, social and cultural rights.

Practical material and ideological approaches need to be combined. Liberties and freedoms tend to be irrelevant if not rights are realized. Freedom of speech will not be exercised as long as all time and strength are spent on organizing food for today.

As a global faith-based alliance, we call for an end to gender inequality and injustice; gender-based discrimination and violence; to bridge the gender gap and address unequal power relationships for the promotion of human dignity for all.

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Gunilla Hallonsten, Senior Advisor on Gender Justice.

When the world’s states convened at the climate summit in Marrakesh, Morocco, a few weeks ago, 47 of the most vulnerable countries in the world stood up and made a pledge. They want to switch to 100 % renewable energy. A total transformation of their economies and development, pushing coal, oil and gas out of the energy market. This is wonderful news for the climate, and a great leadership in a world where most countries are starting to look for pathways towards a green and resilient future.

But when the pledge is made, the next question is posted. How will this be done? And how can it be done in a responsible manner? I have one important recommendation.

Governments and investors must respect human rights
Energy projects tend to be big. A new solar power station in Morocco, called Ouarzazate, will cover more than 2500 Hectares of land. The almost completed wind power project at Lake Turkana, Kenya, with a large number of big windmills, will drastically change the local scenery.

When large energy projects are produced in developing countries, there are high risks involved. In most local communities, there are already people living on the land, and they have fundamental rights. Sadly, experience show that many of these rights may be violated when big investments are made. People are forced to leave their land, and investments may have effect on traditions, production and livelihoods. Human rights are universal, and they must be respected by governments, investors and businesses.

Actually, there is already a set of UN Guidelines for businesses and human rights, which set out the legal framework for governments and businesses to ensure that investments, such as wind and solar power projects, are developed without having negative impacts on local communities. Doing no harm is a prerequisite for doing good, and governments and investors must show responsibility to ensure this.

Cooperation and dialog is the way forward
Human rights and green transition are often seen as two clashing agendas, but they are in fact complimentary. Human rights protection is an enabling factor for good investments. Everyone in the world, including the poorest people, should have access to renewable energy in the future. This is important; to make sure their human rights are fulfilled. However, this will only be possible if large-scale investments are made in the coming years. The vulnerable countries, who stood up in Marrakesh and called for a full switch to renewable energy, have a big task ahead of them, and they will invite donors and businesses to invest. When they do this, they should take this historic opportunity to combine the call for green transition with a call for responsible investments.

One important principle is to consult, include and engage local communities in the process of developing new energy projects. If people are included from the beginning and exhaustive consultations and dialogue between public and private actors conducted – including governments, companies, investors and civil society – success will be more likely.

The green transition do not need to challenge human rights. On the contrary, green transition should be based on human rights.

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Mattias Söderberg, Senior advocacy advisor in DanChurchAid. 

There are still some people out there who believe that faith and Christianity are in complete contradiction with human rights. I don’t. In fact, most faith-based justice and rights proponents believe that faith values and principles support human rights.

For example, according to James Wood[1]  ‘The creation of humankind in the image of God is, in fact, the foundation  of  all  human  rights,  for  human  rights  are  located  in  the  nature  of  God’.

The understanding that human beings irrespective of their race, gender, age, nationality, social economic status or any other categorization are bearers of the imagine of God, and therefore deserving of justice, dignity and rights.

As the world commemorates tomorrow the Human Rights day, two things come to mind: the increasing recognition of faith based actors as contributors towards the full enjoyment of human rights throughout the world, and the equally increasing vulnerability of communities and people to violation of their fundamental human rights as a result of violent conflicts, climate change and other causes.

The two scenarios above present opportunities and challenges. It is quite clear that our faith resources including narrative, leadership, constituency and our influence towards the economic and political life of society could contribute significantly to achieving human rights. It is absolutely critical for faith-based networks like ACT Alliance to raise their voices in opposition to human rights violations. In addition, churches and church based networks should increase their efforts of solidarity and support for the people would are affected by human rights violation.

With the unbelievable pain and suffering affecting millions of people fleeing war and conflict for example in Syria, Iraq and South Sudan and other places; the millions of women affected by gender based violence; and the many communities denied rights and livelihoods as a result of the impacts of climate change, the voice of churches and faith based organizations should rise higher and higher, until no one is left behind.

In addition to raising voices in support of human rights and justice, real and concrete action is required in order to challenge those in power and to support the most vulnerable. On this year’s human rights day, we celebrate the heroes of faith who work daily at community and international levels, fighting for the rights of the most vulnerable. We also celebrate human rights defenders who remain steadfast in their mission in spite of the threat they face.

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Isaiah Toroitich, ACT Alliance Global Advocacy and Policy Coordinator 

[1] James E Wood: Baptists and Human Rights Baptist World Alliance 1997

From 30 November to 1 December the High Level Forum for Effective Development (HLM2) will take place in Nairobi. The event is organized by the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (GPEDC) is a great opportunity to demand multistakeholder platform in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to demand the continuation of the fulfillment of a stand-alone development effectiveness agenda

The last 15 years, civil society has been engaging in making the aid effectiveness agenda more inclusive, based on human rights, gender equality and sustainable development, in order to make sure development delivers to people, without leaving no-one behind.

A network of ACT Alliance members coordinates the faith based sector of the Civil Society Organisations (CSO) Partnership for Development Effectivness, to continue the strive for the partnership to be a true multistakeholder platform and that civil society organizations are recognized as development actors in their own right.

The event in Nairobi will be key in determining this multistakeholder and democratic space in the implementation of the Sustainable Development goals and other international commitments like the financing for development and climate justice. The ACT Alliance participants, together with an interfaith delegation, is lobbying for the human dignity for all through some key asks.

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Official hashtags: #HLM2 (event) #ACT@HLM2 (ACT)

PRESS RELEASE

As the two-week long UN climate talks in Marrakech, COP22, reach their final hours, international faith based humanitarian and development network ACT Alliance said that the transition to a green and resilient future has taken strides forward but urged governments to keep up and grow the momentum.

Commenting on the two-week deliberations the alliance welcomed the bold and ambitious move from the Climate Vulnerability Forum, an alliance of poor and vulnerable countries.

The head of the ACT alliance delegation to COP22, Dinesh Vyas, said: “Forum members  committed to switch to 100 percent renewable energy as soon as possible and to review their national climate plans before 2020, while having not contributed to climate change. These are the true climate leaders and they send a clear signal to historical and big carbon emitting countries.”

Additionally, the alliance highlighted that COP22 responded positively to the importance of reinforcing the work on Loss and Damage and its mechanism, and said that much work is yet to be done, including clear decisions about future mobilisation of climate finance.

At the meeting developing countries, backed up by the ACT Alliance, criticised existing climate finance plans from developed countries for its failure to acknowledge of previous climate agreements, in particular the lack of priority given to measures to address adaptation needs.

Vyas, said: “The Paris Agreement has been called a success, but the coming couple of years will show us if it will deliver the promise of a just, sustainable and resilient future. The conference in Marrakech has started a journey, and we look forward to seeing the ambitious agreements from Paris turned into action. We want to see vulnerable people and communities receiving support. We want to see coal mines closed and fossil fuels subsidies stopped. We want to see renewable energy reaching remote communities that are currently surviving without energy.”

“As people of faith, we believe that necessary action is possible and urgently required,” he continued. “This is our message to leaders of the world. We need them to take action, and to turn the ambitious words from the Paris Agreement, into projects and activities that will help us transition towards a green and resilient future.”